Try these tricks to become one of the fitness faithful
Let's face it, it’s not all that difficult to start a fitness routine. After all, most of us have done it more than once.
The trouble is sticking to it. All too often, our initial enthusiasm wanes, we get distracted by other things going on in our lives, or we don’t think we’re seeing results quickly enough. At that point we often give up.
Yet many people who do manage to stick with it would no sooner give up their regular workout than go without brushing their teeth. What’s their secret?
A recent study by researcher Dr Diane Klein shed some light on the subject. Long-term exercisers, who had been working out for an average of 13 years, were asked to rank what motivated them to keep up their fitness regimes.
Their answers might surprise you. The main attraction for them was feeling good and being healthy. Here are the study results in order of what motivated them most.
- Fitness
- Feelings of well-being
- Energy
- Enjoyment of the exercise
- Making exercise a priority
- Sleeping better
- Feeling alert
- Being relaxed
- Weight management
- Appearance
So, how can you become one of the fitness faithful?
Here are 10 tips for making fitness a habit in your life from Klein, along with long-term fitness buff Roy Stevens and his wife, Wanda, who is transforming her hit-and-miss exercise schedule into an almost-daily habit.
1. Do a variety of activities you enjoy. And remember, there’s no rule that says you have to go to a gym or buy equipment.
Do a variety of activities, such as walking, running, tennis, cycling or aerobics classes, as this will ensure you can exercise regardless of the weather or time of day.
2. Commit to another person. Wanda is a housewife from Texas. She says it’s easier to exercise with someone else. “The social aspect of exercise is important for me.”
“I'll let myself off, but if I've agreed to walk with a friend after dinner, I won't let them down", she says. Wanda exercises with her husband Roy every morning, and if he is away she takes the dog for a walk.
3. Make exercise a priority. "It has to be a non-negotiable," says Roy, a management consultant. He began exercising 20 years ago to keep down his weight. He’s kept up the exercise habit even when he was working 70 hours a week as a restaurant owner.
Another advantage in making exercise non-negotiable is that friends and family learn that it’s part of your identity. This means they give up saying things like, "Why don't you take it easy today?"
4. Exercise first thing in the morning. With two pre-school children, Wanda couldn’t find time to exercise except on a hit-and-miss basis. Any number of things could sabotage her good intentions to walk or go to a Pilates class after dinner. But all her excuses vanished once she started getting up before the children so she could exercise.
"I didn't think I was a morning person, but it's working for me," says Wanda.
Experts agree that exercising in the morning is best.
"If you go to a gym, it should be located between your home and work. “Exercise, take a shower and you’re energised for the day,” says Klein, lecturer in exercise, sports and leisure studies at the University of Tennessee.
5. Alternatively, exercise on your way home from work. This is the next best thing to exercising first thing in the morning..
"Don't go home first. I learned that the hard way. There aren't a lot of people who are so motivated that after they go home and change clothes will go back out again and exercise,” she says.
6. Exercise even when you’re "too tired." The chances are you’ll feel better after exercising. This is because exercise energises us.
7. Keep a record of your activity. Write down the things that are important to you. It could be how much time you exercise each day, how many steps you walked, how far you ran or cycled, what you weighed etc.
Some people make a game of it. Some runners calculate how many miles away a particular place is from their home and then work out how far they run in an average week, setting a target date for "arriving" at this destination.
8. Identify signs that you are making progress. It’s great when your clothes fit better, you can lift heavier weights or exercise longer without getting exhausted.
There are lots of other signs of progress too, such as:
- getting a good night's sleep.
- thinking more clearly.
- having more energy.
- realising your muscles don’t hurt after you’ve helped a friend move furniture.
- seeing your resting heart rate drop over time.
- hearing your doctor congratulate you on your improved health.
9. Walk - with a pedometer - or a dog.
"If you enjoy walking and haven't exercised for a while, 10 minutes three times a day will give you 30 minutes," says Klein.
Use a pedometer, which records the steps you have taken, and work up to at least 10,000 steps a day.
"Better still, walk the dog," says Klein, who motivated her sister to walk by suggesting this. "Twice a day she walks her dog, which is good for them both and provides companionship," says Klein.
Wanda also enjoys walking her Border Collie and finds there is another benefit."It relieves the guilt I felt over not giving her enough attention now that we have kids," she says.
10. Reward yourself. Are you telling yourself that you don’t deserve a reward for something you should be doing anyway - or that once you can zip up your jeans without lying on the bed, that will be reward enough? If so, that’s not very inspiring.
Experts say that making behaviour changes is hard, and rewards motivate. So decide on a goal and a reward, and work towards it. You might buy yourself a DVD you want after sticking to your fitness plan for one month. Or you could buy a new pair of shoes when you achieve 5,000 steps a day. Do whatever motivates.
No comments:
Post a Comment