Most if not all know the importance of working out. Most who know have also got a gym membership at one time or another. And the majority of those who got a gym membership did not follow up into continuing it as a way of life. It was discontinued after a few weeks/months.
The question becomes how do we continue going to the gym, day after day, weeks and months. Working out sounds like fun and once we start it, it becomes a burden. So how can a person continue doing something that is not categorized as fun for long periods of time? Where does the motivation come from?
The people who hit the gym everyday are like the rest of us. They too don’t relish waking up early or doing the extra yards. They would rather sit on a couch and play games or watch TV. Why would anybody in their right senses do the hard stuff after or before a long day’s work. It’s not like all of us want to start or continue having a profession that involves how our body looks. Right?
I am sure you could relate to it. The secret to working out daily lies in seeing the end, and thereby setting the wheels of motivation in motion. What you need is motivation to work out, and motivation doesn’t come easy. You need motivation to motivate you to work out. Sounds ironic isn’t it? Well, it’s not easy, but not impossible either.
Here are five ways that you can set your motivation engine on trigger happy mode.
Motivation Tip #1: See Yourself in your Future Body
Use your imagination to jump into the future and seeing the man/woman who had worked out daily. The person you see in the future is the person you want to be.
The only thing that stands in the way is working out. By picturing this, the why I have to workout part of the problem is solved. If you are convinced, then even a batallion of soldiers cannot stop you.
Motivation Tip #2: Eat Healthy
Working out and eating healthy are two in a box. If you don’t do them together, the results will just not show. If you only workout and eat crap all the time, the workout gets negated and on top of that, you might even start putting on weight. Seeing yourself gain weight will put you off and with it goes the motivation to workout.
You should know that for the intended desires of your body in terms of muscle mass, body weight or anything that could be, dieting contributes about 60-70% while the rest is taken care by working out.
Motivation Tip #3: Drink like a Fish
A major factor that can get you to gym is the energy you have left especially after a day’s work. The energy partly comes from the foods that you eat and partly from the water content in your body.
It is your job to keep your body well hydrated, and this in turn energizes your mind to put on your sneakers and head to the gym.
How much should you drink? Experts differ in the exact numbers. But the majority of dietricians put the number in the range of 3 liters to 5 liters a day.
Motivation Tip #4: Make yourself Accountable
How do you make yourself accountable to hit the gym? Isn’t it easy to convince yourself that you are too tired or have work to do instead. That’s true, and if you are weak to yourself, you should try getting an accountability partner.
It could be your partner, friend or a colleague. Just ask them to keep you honest and to ask one question a day. Just knowing that somebody is checking up on you is enough to make you guilty and workout.
Motivation Tip #5: Get your Ass Off the Couch
I kept the most important tip for the last. Unless you get your butt off the couch, there is no way you are going to workout. So it is key to consciously get up and start heading out.
Mel Robbins in her book – The 5 Second Rule explains how she does it. She starts a countdown from 5 and as soon as it reaches 0, she going. Although the method sounds basic, the launch countdown does something in your brain to have you take action when the countdown stops. Try it out, it could very well be what you need to lift you off your ass.
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