Regular training and exercise are critical to your overall health. It not only elevates your mood but also enhances your productivity and alertness. Engaging in exercise also helps your body manage your blood sugar levels and help you lose weight.

Maybe you’re exercising just to stay fit. Or your healthcare provider recommended that you start a healthy exercise regime. It could even be that you simply wanted to kick up your fitness and training routine a notch higher. Whatever the case, adapting to a new exercise routine can be difficult. It requires patience, dedication, and motivation.

5 Practical Tips to Help You Stick To Your Fitness and Training Routine

One of the toughest parts of starting a new fitness and training routine is learning how to stick to it. Let’s face it, creating your fitness goals is easy but seeing them through is very difficult. This is why 50% that create fitness goals ditch them within 6 months.1

Here are 5 effective tips to help you crush your weight loss and fitness goals.

Focus on Getting Started With Fitness and Training

Just get started! Don’t think about it. Don’t second guess yourself…just start. The hardest part about starting a new exercise regimen is getting the motivation to actually do it. Allow yourself to take baby steps at first before you crank up the intensity.

For instance, if your goal is to run for 10 miles every day, start by running two miles. If you accomplish these simple tasks, you’ll get motivated to try again the next day. This will help you achieve consistency which is integral to accomplishing your goals.

You, however, have to be internally motivated; otherwise, you won’t stick with the routine long enough.

Switch It up Once in a While

If you ate the same meal every day for 2 weeks, you’d get bored, right? So why are you doing the same exercises every day? Switch it up once in a while by doing different exercises. For instance, if you’re more of a cardio person, ditch the stair climber and use the elliptical machine.

This will keep things interesting, and you’ll be more inclined to stick to your exercise regimen. Don’t reinvent your entire routine, though. You should just shift around some aspects.

Work Within Your Limits and Recover Properly

Don’t start your new fitness routine with a Bootcamp mentality. Yes, you want to reach your goals as soon as possible, but being hard on yourself will not only demotivate you but is also risky. If you overexert yourself, you could sustain injuries.

You know your limits and how much strain your body can handle. Work within those limits, and you’ll gradually become stronger.

Needless to say, do not forget to get enough recovery time. It is crucial to recover properly so as to have enough energy and motivation to work again. Cryotherapy and knee & foot massage are some new modalities that have great results when it comes to recovery.

Avoid an All or Nothing Approach

Be realistic with your fitness goals. For instance, you can’t expect to lose 40 pounds in a week, so why are you pushing yourself this hard? One of the main reasons why people ditch their fitness routines is having unrealistic expectations.

They adopt an all-or-nothing approach, and if any element of their plan fails, they completely give up. It’s okay to start with 2-3 days of exercise every week. Don’t beat yourself up for exercises 10 minutes shorter than the last time. What matters is that you did what your body could handle, and that’s enough.

Get an Accountability Partner

There are days when you won’t want to get out of bed. There will be days when your trips to the gym will seem tedious. When this happens, you’ll need someone to give you an extra nudge.

It’s so much easier to bail when you’re the one keeping yourself accountable. However, if you know someone is waiting for you, you’ll have no choice but to exercise. Studies also show that having a workout partner increases your adherence. This helps you work out for long.2

There’s a catch, though. You have to find a companion that’s disciplined. They should also have the same fitness goals as you.

Achieve Your Fitness Goals With a Strict Fitness and Training Routine

Starting a new fitness and training routine is exciting but seeing it through is difficult. All you need to do is get started, get an accountability partner, and work within your limits. You should also try out new things once in a while and avoid an all-or-nothing approach.

Links to Sources Used

  1. Attrition and Adherence Rates of Sustained vs. Intermittent Exercise Interventions – https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3181282/
  2. A new exercise partner is the key to exercising more – https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/10/161004081548.htm