Information is easy to come by, but how do you get yourself to do it and reach your fitness goals? It comes down to the fitness willpower you have already! Many obstacles come in your way on the path to any worthwhile goal. When it comes to fitness, some of those obstacles, like traffic or overcrowded gyms, for example, can be solved by working out at home. However, you still need to get moving and stay consistent. This is not an easy task, even for the most fitness-enthused among us! It comes down to your fitness willpower and today we’re sharing five key tips and realizations to help you get an edge. These tips are inspired by the Charles Duhigg book, The Power of Habit, and applied here in the context of fitness and home-exercise.
1. We Have a Limited Supply of Fitness Willpower
You know the feeling: it’s January 1st and you’ve never been so motivated in your life, you signed up for a juice cleanse, you’re committing to go keto forever, you’re going to go to yoga 3x per week, walk daily and workout 5x per week… You know how that story ends with hard burnout and rebound maybe a week later, maybe a month, the point is that you overtaxed your fitness willpower, and now you can’t hold yourself back from the dessert buffet and feel like Joey Chestnut eating hot dogs on the 4th of July.
Don’t be that person! Take the slow and steady approach to keep your fitness willpower reserves just fresh enough. Start with one thing, the thing you know 10 out of 10 times you have no trouble doing and then go from there! That may be drinking a glass of water first thing every morning or committing to complete a lap around the outer sections of the grocery store with fresh produce before going to the inner isles that have more processed goods.
2. Do Difficult Tasks While Your Fitness Willpower Reserves are Full
You set your intention Sunday night to workout Monday right after work, then when Monday afternoon rolls around you come home from a long day at work and take just a minute to rest on the couch. Next thing you know, you realize you have no fitness willpower left to crush the great workout you had planned… This tragic series of events is all too common, and can be easily avoided! If you’re someone who is always exhausted after work, try a different time for your workouts! Likewise, if you’re a night owl and are barely functioning before 10 am without six espresso shots, don’t try 6 am workouts when you can likely find a better option. Listen to your body, and choose times when you’re most alert and motivated to your most difficult tasks.
3. Just Simply Writing Down Your Routine Will Help to Stick to the Plan
In the previous example, you set your intention Sunday night, great work! Was it written down as a commitment to yourself in your calendar (or wherever you keep your daily/weekly routines)? If it was, you’re far more likely to do it after all, or worst case, you’ll move it to a new time on your calendar when you’ll be re-committed to completing the task. Similarly, if you plan your routine far out in advance, such as planning that you’ll work out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for the next three months, you’ll be less likely to skip the workout when you can see how this one session fits into the bigger picture. That helps avoid the “how much does this one workout really matter?” excuse that creeps in and sabotages long term fitness willpower.
4. What’s Your Why? Do it for Someone Else
Does this matter to you? If not, or if it’s a lukewarm reason, you’ll be much more likely to skip commitments or quit altogether. If, however, your goals are intimately tied to other people you care about, you will go to war to see your goal through to completion. For example, if you want to lose weight to be able to play with your kids or to improve your heart health to be able to see them grow old, you’ll be far more motivated than if you want to fit in a smaller bathing suit or live up to some ideal you’ve set for yourself (not bad goals, just less powerful when it comes to fitness willpower).
5. Lead the Way! Build Control Over the Process for Maximum Fitness Willpower
“Do you ever feel like a plastic bag drifting thought the wind, wanting to start again? Do you ever feel so paper-thin, like a house of cards one blow from caving in?”
Katy Perry
Whether those Katy Perry lyrics already have you burst into song like a “Firework,” or you have no idea who she is, we can agree that feeling out of control is quite de-motivating. That no matter what we do, it just doesn’t matter. Building a sense of control over the process for your fitness goals will help you maximize your fitness willpower like never before! So how do you take control back? Make some decisions! Do you hate using a treadmill when you’re at the gym but feel like you have to? Decide to do something you enjoy and look forward to, and then appreciate how your decision caused that improvement. Hate kale? Decide to eat a different green, leafy vegetable that you like, or try cooking it differently, and take time to taste how much sweeter being in control of your health tastes!
Thank you for taking the time to read this article, we hope you have learned some things you can take initiative with and decide to act on! Now while it’s easy to read information, working with a coach is the best way to progress. We’re offering a session for you at no cost! Sign up for a complimentary workout here or call (844) 704-9477 and we’ll schedule a workout for you!
