Working out
You’re looking to get into shape again. 2017 is the year.
You’re ready to hit the gym, and finally achieve those fitness goals you’ve
been telling everyone all year.
Sure, you may end up dragging yourself to the gym today. But
without attacking and transforming your fitness mentality completely, it’s
impossible to maintain a consistent exercise regime. I want to share some personal
insights about how to rewire your brain so that fitness isn’t a chore, but becomes
must in your life.
Goal-setting
To get serious about getting fit, you must set clear and achievable
goals. An unrealistic goal like “going every to the gym every single day” is
not sustainable in the long run. Something like “go when I have a free evening”
is too vague and non-committal.
What’s your fitness goal? Do you want to build your cardio
base? Gain muscle? Lose weight? Once
you determine exactly what it is you want
to achieve, you will need a plan to achieve it.
Designing a workout routine used to be a daunting task, but
in the age of the Internet there are thousands of pre-set workout routines available
for beginners. By investing only an hour of research, you will find a routine
that caters for your fitness goal, your current fitness level, and your weekly
schedule.
For instance, you want to put on muscle and only have time
to work out 3 days a week. You may
discover that a simple routine like Starting
Strength aligns with your goal and schedule. You’ve now simplified the
entire ordeal of planning to a workout, to simply showing up to the gym 3 days
a week, and following the workout videos on your phone.
When selecting a fitness routine, don’t spend too much time
searching for the perfect workout. You can adjust the small details over time –
the critical step is to get yourself in the gym in the first place.
Putting the goal into action
I’m a firm believer in habit cultivation – that you can condition
yourself to form any long-term habit by applying sufficient discipline and a solid
game plan
Habits are formed through three processes: the stimulus,
action, and reward. The stimulus to continually exercise develops naturally
over time. Once you get used to the feeling of being in shape, you’ll find it
takes minimal effort to act on it. The action will be easier as well – as you
become less awkward in the gym it takes less and less effort to go. Finally, you’ll
learn to condition yourself to crave the reward of a satisfying workout. You’ll
embrace the immediate rush of endorphins, the lingering soreness of a particularly
productive set, and the lasting results of a more physically attractive you.
How do you get yourself into this routine?
The initial challenge is to get yourself physically inside the
gym as much as possible. Once you’re in there, your workout essentially takes
care of itself. Here are four tips that I’ve used to cultivate my consistent
exercise routine.
1.
Make your
workout your priority – Treat your exercise time like a job interview
because you absolutely cannot miss it. Block off your workout time days, if not
a week, in advance. If you want to ensure you have a free period to go, go in
the morning. Set your wake-up alarm 90 minutes earlier, and set your alarm to
go to bed earlier too.
2.
Put
reminders everywhere – Write a note in your phone. Put post-its in your
room. Send yourself reminder emails. You must continually remind yourself that of
your goal to go to the gym that day or the next day. Visualizing yourself
exercising a dozen times a day will make the real action easier.
3.
Wear
your workout clothes everywhere – Whenever possible, particularly on
weekends, wear your exercise clothes out. You want to make the gym session as convenient
as possible. When people ask why you’re dressed like Richard Simmons, commit
yourself by telling you’ll be working out before you head home.
4.
Get
dressed as quickly as possible – This trick works especially well for
morning workouts. Every time you don your exercise gear, you must explode into
it. What that means is that you will put on your shirt, pants, socks, and shoes
as fast as humanly possible. Over time, you’ll form a habit and you’ll be
unstoppable in getting dressed and out the door for your morning workout.
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