Health, Fitness, and Exercise - Staying Motivated

How often do you drive to work and see the same person jogging down the street day after day? Have you ever thought to yourself, "I wish I had the magic formula that would make me want to exercise every day?" Well actually you do. Here are some tips to help get you there.

Being human the majority of us need some kind of incentive to exercise every day. True, there are the few who get out of bed in the morning and do their thing. It's in them - they feel good about what they're doing and that's reason enough for them to stretch, do aerobics, yoga, Pilates - it doesn't matter - they do it to feel good. But for most of us, exercising is a chore, an abysmal task, a drudgery that we all know "in theory" should be done every day, or at least most days, but gets set aside with such inglorious excuses as; "I woke up too late", "The kids were sick", "I didn't get enough sleep." Or maybe the most honest answer of all, "I just didn't feel like exercising today." So what's an able body person suppose to do to stay able?

First of all, realize that if you want to exercise everyday it must become a habit, second nature, something you don't even need to think about. But habits take time to develop. On average a good habit, as opposed to a bad habit which often develops very quickly, takes somewhere between 21 - 30 days to develop. And that's if you do it consistently every day. Not once a week, not every other day, and certainly not sometimes - every day for three to four weeks. But even when you get in the habit of exercising you will still need an incentive to want to continue because habits, especially good ones, can become old and tired over time. Or what if you are sick for a day or two, what happens to the habit then? What will make you want to get back up on the horse (loosely speaking of course), and want to ride again?

The key to a long term exercise program is setting realistic goals. Do not say, "I want to lose 16 pounds in a month", but instead, "I want to lose 4 pounds by month's end." The former may be doable, but you will be so miserable in the process of losing those 16 pounds that you will quit before the end of the month or shortly thereafter - thereby, putting yourself in jeopardy of not only gaining it all back but putting on additional pounds to boot. Keep in mind, exercising to stay healthy is not short term, and it is not a goal in life - it is a life style that once having achieved your primary objective will require you to maintain those hard fought gains for the rest of your life. Even the most fit person will lose his peak in as little as four or five days, and may even return to pre-exercise condition in as little as 10 to 12 weeks. So you will always need to keep at it. It's never ending.

In an effort to set yourself up for success, not failure, establish long (two months or more), medium (one month), and short term (weekly) goals. Let's say you went to the gym and fell in love with the elliptical trainer. This machine is low impact, it's aerobic, and it will even add some muscle strength to your body - overall, not a bad machine. You've worked on it two, three or four times and you want to continue but even now you realize it's starting to get boring. You clearly see the benefits but can't envision doing this exercise day in and day out for weeks, yet alone months. So here's what you need to do - make a game of it. If you're currently on the machine for 25 minutes a day set your short term goal to 30 minutes, or 29 minutes, or 28 minutes - it really doesn't matter but set a "realistic" goal for the week. For example, tell yourself, "At the end of the week I want to train on the elliptical for 28 minutes a day." Sure you could probably do a lot more but why burn yourself out? You have time. It probably took you many months, or even years to be as out of shape as you are - why do you need to get back in shape in a very short time - remember fitness is a life style. Over exercising is a sure fire way to give yourself a reason to quit your program because soon you will be saying, "I'm tired all the time, I just can't do it anymore." But our stated goal is reasonable, it won't wear you out. In fact, you just need to add 30 seconds or so a day to each workout. Now that you've decided on your goal write it down on a piece of paper and keep it in plain sight - this will serve to motivate you each day.

The next step is to extend each weekly goal by three, four, or five minutes. This will become your medium term goal- what you want to achieve by month's end. However, and this is key, your medium goal will be set slightly less than the total of the minutes you add each week. Sounds complicated? It's not. Take a look. Let's say we decide to add 4 minutes each week to our original 25 minute a day workout - that would be 41 minutes a day by month's end. But instead of setting your monthly goal to 41 minutes you reduce it to 37 minutes a day. Why? This allows flexibility in the event that one of your weeks is a disaster - bad days and/or bad weeks will happen, we're only human, and being flexible allows you to keep your goals on track. You're not cheating, you're not taking the easy way out - you're being realistic about what life has to offer. Remember realistic goals equal success. Finally set your long term goal the same way you set your medium goal - slightly lower than the sum of your weekly minutes. As you can see, these are easily achievable goals that will not only make you feel good about yourself, but will also make you proud that you're exercising, and will give you a sense of accomplishment on a weekly basis. You have something to reach for each week - an incentive that will make you want to continue. Here's is a word of caution - yes, there's always a caveat. You should always exercise to feel good, not to feel exhausted. When you get done working out you should feel relatively tired but not so tired that it takes you all day to recover. If after an hour or so you're not saying to yourself, "I feel stronger and better for having worked out today", then you probably have worked your heart and body too hard or too long. Back off! Remember we are trying to establish a pattern, not win an Olympic gold.

Once you've accomplished your first set of long, medium, and short term goals, continue to keep your program interesting by moving on to other machines and setting new and different goals. If you decide to stay with the same machine take on new tasks to keep yourself motivated. For example, if in one hour you now burn 670 calories set your goal to burn 700 calories in one hour by months end 780 calories in one hour. Or strive to change your exertion levels - there is no end as to what types of goals you can set - and achieve. And by the way, give yourself a break - use a fun motivational tool that works wonders for many exercisers. Have a food incentive award to help you reach your goal. Something small, like a cherry chocolate or two, a small dish of ice cream, a piece of your favorite pie - make it something you crave for but don't usually eat - something that usually makes you feel. Only now it's different - you've reached a particular goal so enjoy the treat with absolutely no regrets, you've earned the right to a small indulgence.

One last thing I might mention with regards to staying exercise motivated - cross train. Doing the same repetitive exercise month after month not only becomes boring but in time leads to injuries. Cross training keeps your program fun, adds incentives to help keep you motivated, and allows your body to stay healthy by using different muscle groups. Run or jog for a month, do the elliptical trainer for four or five weeks, get on the recumbent bike for two or three weeks, it's all ways to keep your program upbeat and fun so that you get up each morning looking forward to your exercise. So be it at home, at the gym, or on the road, set goals - write them down - put a smiley face next to your achievements - be proud, be happy - it's all worth it. Be that person that everyone sees every day and let them wonder, "How does she do it?"

Sul Man is retired and owns Shop Weight Loss Products.Com. He is a past certified personal trainer and has spent his life maintaining his body through exercise. Once an avid runner and marathoner, at age 62, he still rides his bicycle more than 2000 miles per season in the cold short summers of New England. Visit us at Shop Weight Loss Products.Com where you can use our FREE BMI Calculator and see our full line of health products.

Article Source: http://www.wellnessarticlelibrary.com

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