This year was full of obstacles and challenges, but we are at the very end of it. Are you ready to make next year your best year ever? Here are 10 ways to stay motivated and overcome all the obstacles that may appear on your road. If you’re truly determined to make it your year and finally reach your fitness goals, you’ll need strong motivation.
Disregarding what your goals may be – whether you want to reduce your weight, increase your muscle mass or simple practice healthier way of living, you’re bound to have some challenging days.
These days will leave you with two choices – you can either stay tough and disciplined, or simply give up. Unfortunately, many people opt for the latter. Just few weeks into the healthy, correct habits, many of us start to lose their zeal and return to the old, bad habits. Before the
Once the summer comes, the January and February goals became nothing more than a lovely memory. Don’t allow to become part of this grim statistics! With correct motivational tricks you can be sure that you’ll stay on the right path.
Here’s how you can stay motivated in the new year
1. Photograph yourself more often to monitor the progress
Many of us motivate themselves visually. By taking a photograph once a week or once a month, you can easily notice the changes from practicing the healthy diet and regular workouts. By following these pictures of progress, you can keep yourself motivated and won’t give up. Photographs can tell you how far you have progressed on your journey, and will help you improve.
2. Find a training partner
If you’ve always practiced alone, maybe it’s time to find someone to keep you company while you practice. In this way you find not only someone who can give you support and share your joy when you make progress, but you also find someone who can help you in the harder exercises, and motivate you not to give up in the last 10 minutes of your cardio session!
Most importantly, when you know that your partner depends on whether or not you come to workout, you’ll think twice before deciding not to show in the gym. If you find someone who can be with you all the time, you might realize that it was the missing link to your success.
3. Hire a Trainer
When you’re a beginner, fitness can be somewhat complicated and difficult. If you’re not used to working out, you may thin out your patience trying out new things, and never find out which program and training method suit you the best. One of the best ways for overcoming this problem is to hire a personal trainer.
The trainer can help you achieve your goal, direct you how to exercise correctly and design a training program just for you. The trainer can also be an excellent motivational tool. They can serve as emotional support when you need one, and will help you notice the positive changes even when you think there are none, and even when you’re not feeling at top of your game.
4. Try Out New Training Method
Sometimes all you need is a small change in the routine in order to see results again. If you’ve practiced the same exercises, sets, reps and machines, it’s time for a change. Change your exercising schedule, the sets and reps scheme, even the days for training. Our body is highly adaptive machine.
If you don’t find new ways to challenge it, your progress can easily come to a halt. Introducing changes in your training every 4 to 6 weeks can be beneficial for your progress, your muscle growth and weight loss.
Introducing a new training method is also an excellent way to break the mental monotony of training, helping you maintain your psychological health on the long run. Being mentally focused at each training allows you to invest yourself 100%.
5. Work-out Outside
Sometimes gym training can make you feel as locked inside a cage. When the 4 walls and contraptions start to repel you, take your training outside. Jog in your neighbourhood, or in the park. The change of environment and the fresh air will take you out of your monotonous routine and even motivate you.
6. Visualise your Success
When the motivation that made you begin practicing in the first place starts to fade, ask yourself if you have lost the perspective about the end goal. When this happens, look at your before-photo, and visualise how you’d like to look and feel once the goal has been reached.
In order to see yourself in this position, find a secluded and quiet spot, and set aside 5-10 minutes picturing yourself reaching your goal. How does it feel? What has changed in your life? Try to really step into the moment. Setting aside several minutes a week to visualise yourself can help you stay focus on the goal in which you had invested so much time and energy.
7. Train in the Morning
It is a fact that sometimes our life is the obstacle we need to overcome. You have a busy schedule, day to day duties and minor problems that can come in the way of your training. If this sounds familiar, than finding training alternatives can be of great help to you. One of the solutions might be to move your training in the mornings.
If you can get them done before something unexpected stops you, there will never be an excuse for missing a training. Moreover, you’ll go to work feeling accomplished knowing that you’ve done something good for your body!
8. Create Home Environment for Training
You don’t have to spend thousands of dollars on a home gym. However, investing some money in baying several props can help you move closer to your goals. It’s still better to do something than nothing at all.
Even with your busy schedule you can set aside 20 – 30 minutes to train at home. You don’t even need much space. All you need is a set of weights, a mat and practice ball. If you really want to train at home and have room for this, than you can consider investing more.
9. Change the Old Gym with a New
Seeing the same old people in the same old gym can be tiresome and boring. Try visiting a new gym for a change. Try training on new equipment, meet new people and find out what your new environment has in store for you.
10. Give yourself some rest
If you have tried these motivational methods and still have no desire to visit a gym and train, maybe all you need is a rest. Sometimes the best method of motivation is to take a brake and recover.
Resting after a week of physical activities can reduce your fatigue and help your body to fully recover from the physical torture you subject it. Take a rest, relax and recover, but avoid turning your one week of rest into a month-long leave.
