Are you looking to make your weekend strength workout session a regular workout class? Many casual exercisers are looking to sweat more frequently but are not able to find that motivation to make workout/fitness as a part of their daily routine.
Conventional approach has not been that strong enough to make you that fitness freak who says” I will catch up with you over coffee later, I am up for a jogging session now”. Or are you the person who may workout for 18 days & on 19th day “ It’s cold out there & I will not be able to go to the gym to do my favorite back workout. Better I take a small nap.”
So how do you make fitness motivation look easy nut to crack?
- Reward yourself
Some fitness folks might be motivated by vague quotes such as “better health”, “weight control”. But that may not work for you. Most of fitness aspirants should strive to focus on setting up tangible rewards for working such as having cinnamon peanut butter smoothie or watching your favorite show on Netflix later on. Create a “ habit loop” which essentially involves cue a trigger the behaviour, indulging in routine & then appreciating your workout by giving yourself a reward. Such an extrinsic motivation is so powerful that makes your desired behaviour exceed expectations & drives your action to make your routine a habit. Over a period of time, the motivation becomes intrinsic as brain starts to associate sweat with rise in endomorphin. When you have achieved that objective that workout/exercise itself is a reward.
- Executing a commitment contract
We make a promise to ourselves that we will reduce that extra pounds in next x months. However such a strategy is more likely to succeed if we pledge the same in front of some friends. You can further up this mind game by agreeing to pay $ 5 to a friend in case you miss out that last planks set. The idea is to get through the initial displeasure to enjoy long term value & benefits.
- Mental contrasting
People have long been motivated by positive outcome of desired behaviour. For instance, when given a chance to either spend that $ 20 on daily gym pass or have your favorite burger, the fact that I can see my muscle building after hitting the gym which motivate me pick up daily gym pass over that spicy chicken burger. In other words, after you imagine an obstacle you can evaluate what you can to overcome it & make a plan accordingly. However such a strategy can only be effective when accompanied by practical problem solving methods. So what should you do? After visualizing the outcome, the best you can do is to figure out what is holding you back. For instance, if you feel dizzy & exhausted when going for a jog after office hours, try to change the schedule/timings. You may start your day with jogging so that you feel energetic.
- Financial Reward
People who get paid to go the gym doubled & tripled the attendance rate. You do not agree? There are a lot of community based apps that pay you when you stick to your schedule. If you miss your cardio session, you allow app to charge your credit card/paypal account. When you reach your goal, you get paid out of the pool funded by such rule breakers. You are sure of your success when in a month you not left even one workout session.
