I always find that if i'm struggling to find the motivation to exercise, I know I need something inspiring to give me the push to get going! With that in mind, here are some some personal motivational tips from The Fit Retreat team that I use when I'm lacking the "fitness buzz" to exercise. Here's how to get motivated!
1) Early risers... If you are one of those crazy people who like to jump out of bed and exercise first thing in the morning, but come across days where you just can't seem to get going... Put on that fitness gear ASAP!
I always find that if I am planning to exercise in the morning, I get up and put on my fitness clothes straight away. This instantly makes me think about exercising and will give me that little push of motivation I need to have an amazing workout.
2) The mid-day plateau... Ok, so you have had a frantic morning and now its just gone lunchtime and you have a bit of time to kill until the madness starts again, but you are feeling rather tired, low energy levels and 100% not motivated to endure a 15-20 minute fitness workout. Grab something refreshing and take a seat.
Sound insane? Now grab your phone or laptop and Google fitness exercises or 15-20 minute workouts (look out for some on The Fit Retreat blog very soon!) This is such a great way to get motivated, watching other people exercising gives people the feeling that you want to be fit or look amazing, which subconsciously will send signals to our brain and without us realising we are now thinking about working out, being fit and wanting to exercise! Our adrenalin and energy levels are now increased, giving us the motivation and strength to exercise. Try it!
3) After work commuters Vs stay at home mummies... After a long day working hard the last thing you want to think about is exercising! But if you keep "on-the-go" it will be easier to find that motivation to workout.
Commuters - the famous saying "take the stairs" means doing anything you can to help keeping your body moving. Walk, stand on the train/bus or if it is a long journey you can sit down, but maybe watch some videos on exercising or take a peek at your favourite fitness inspirations/celebrities/idols, see what they're up to. If you keep your mind motivated, your body will follow.
For the mums out there. I know exactly how it feels when you get towards the end of the day, the point where you are ready to collapse and the last thing on your mind is doing a squat in your living room! I always tend to find that if I start off just by having a light stretch just to relax my aching muscles, this focuses my mind to become relaxed too.
While this is happening take advantage of thinking about what motivates you, why you want to have the energy to exercise and why it's important to look and feel good. Take your time to let your body repair and this in itself is a real energy boost. Remember your workouts do not have to be long and boring. Short and simple does the trick. A 15 minute workout will release the "happy, feel good hormones" and utilise its energy by burning calories up to 48 hours post exercise. Who needs more motivation than that!
4) The secret snackers... We are all guilty of that extra snack, whether its due to boredom, tiredness, needing the energy fix, being a busy bee and you haven't had the sufficient amount of food. Or pure and simple, you are a secret snacker!
When I worked one-to-one with my clients, lots of them would say to me. 'I just can't stop snacking" etc.. I would ask them to do me a favour. Every time they went to the fridge/cupboard to do x10 squats. Sound silly? Well it works! Trust me by the time you get to that last squat it will have you focused on why you are trying to be healthier, fitter and you will become more motivated and stronger to say no to the secret snacking. Having the correct amount of food during the day will keep you energised and motivated to live a healthy lifestyle and exercise, therefore you will snack less without realising.
5) I need to go to the gym to exercise... Rubbish! Excuse my bluntness. Unless you are training for something specific and you need to use certain weights and machines then yes a gym is necessary. But If you just trying to increase your fitness levels and become a better fitter you, you do not have to join a gym.
I am not saying not to, if you have the time, money and you like the social side of going to a gym, then great, keep going. But if you feel that you don't really want to join a gym, you don't have the time or money and you're not that confident, then do not let this stop you reaching your goals, because you do not need a gym to exercise.
Spoken like a true traveller "the world is your oyster" Ok so the garden or living room might be as far as you can go but, you get my point. There are so many body weight exercises you can do in the comfort of your own surroundings, and you will see great results. Along with a good healthy eating regime, amazing fitness workouts, you will be on your way to a more balanced lifestyle.
I hope you have found my simple, but effective tips helpful - now you will be able to find the motivation to keep going, even when your lacking that fitness buzzzzz !!!
Have a great day!
Lianne