Posts tagged Physical fitness

Staying Fit and Motivated

There’s a totally legitimate reason you always seem to fall off the workout wagon. The conventional approach to exercise almost forces you to bail out. First of all, working out to make others happy is the least successful way to compel you to break a sweat. Want to look good and go with how you feel, and not on how others feel. The more you do stuff you like to do and not what you think you should do, the more you’ll keep doing it. The benefits of this intrinsic motivation have been proven to be extremely effective. Don’t let nagging friends get to you. Instead, start with yourself and allow the desire to feel better surface.

Appoint yourself the CEO of your fitness decisions. Don’t let well-meaning pals force you into another gym membership you won’t use. Develop autonomy and it’s one thing you must do if you want to harness intrinsic motivation. People who feel as if they’re designing their own fate feel higher levels of self-worth. And in the end, that’s what gets them in the mood. So, how do you take the wheel? Start by asking yourself why you want to stay healthy at all. If the answer indicates other people’s opinions of you, your efforts are probably doomed. But if you decide to get fit because you want to feel stronger and healthier, you’re more likely to be successful because the end result means something to you.

Next, find a form of exercise you enjoy so much you’d do it even if it weren’t good for you. If the mellow vibe of a yoga exercise brings you bliss, light up some incense and roll out the mat. If active play is what you need, sign up at your local club. Perhaps the most important would be to never do something that you truly detest. If you’re invested in what you’re doing, your performance will improve, and that will feed your desire to go back for more. If you honestly can’t equate exercise with fun, flex your take-charge muscle by setting specific personal goals. Whatever your goal, it can help you stay motivated in both the short and long term.

People thrive on feedback and having goals provide just that. Focus on tangible accomplishments so the goals are more meaningful. These should be based on feeling good and that’s what keeps you from coming back for more. Physical accomplishments give you positive feelings about yourself and increase motivation because they’re inherent. Looking for validation via external factors simply won’t work. Also, invest in some form-fitting clothes because excess fabric only hampers your improvement, which can only make you feel good about yourself. Avoid fixations on inches lost because the real measure of success should be how you feel at the end of every session. Make your workout a part of your identity because fitness is your core value. Have a go-to home routine for those days you can’t go out. Having a plan B helps maintain your momentum when life threatens to derail you.

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