Finding it tough to get motivated to get sweating and puffing again?
These tips can help you get your groove back.
Having a little trouble getting motivated to get back into training for the summer?
There’s every chance that you were going well last summer and autumn, training several times a week and then work, kids, cold weather, sickness and holidays got in the way and BOOM! before you know it, you’ve lost your groove and getting back into it seems like SUCHHHHHH an effort.
Recognise this feeling? If you do, you’re not alone – not at all.
This reality is so common for so many people. We’ve all been there. All of us are consumed trying to do this thing called life, hoping to get a little luckier, wishing for a little more happiness, aching to get out of a lifestyle funk.
And let’s be honest sometimes other things just have to take priority.
So how do you get your groove back and get your training back on track for summer? Here are a few tips to get you motivated and going again.
Set yourself a goal with a deadline
Goal setting is the basis of all fitness training – we all have a goal, that’s why we train. But sometimes they can be too vague.
Losing weight or getting fit are great goals, but without a deadline, sometimes they can continue to remain vague.
Instead set a goal with a deadline such as “I want to enter a fun run in 3 months”, “I want to lose 10kgs by my birthday or Carla’s wedding” or “I want to compete in Tough Mudder”. All of these have a deadline which you can set an action plan to meet your goal.
Diarise exercise times as appointments
You wouldn’t skip your doctor or dentist appointment would you? So why is exercise any different?
Put your exercise sessions into your diary at the start of the week and schedule other appointments around it. That way you know when to train and you have allocated the time to it.
It’s about prioritsation – just like anything else in your schedule.
Be realistic about your sessions
So much of getting your exercise groove back is about being honest with yourself and forming realistic goals.
Overcommitting or expecting an unrealistic commitment of yourself is setting yourself up for failure.
Expecting yourself to train an hour every day in your first week back is unrealistic as you will fatigue, and your body will need recovery.
Similarly, don’t schedule in unrealistic sessions. If you are not a morning person, the chances of you making a 6am session when you’re already lacking motivation is slim to none.
Perhaps in your first few weeks, schedule 2 or 3 sessions a week at the time of day when you have the most energy.
If you’re strapped for time, you would be amazed what 30 minutes of exercise on your lunch break can do for your energy levels.
Enlist a friend
If you know you are going to cheat yourself, enlist a friend to keep you accountable.
By scheduling sessions with another person, you are now answerable to somebody else. You deciding to sleep in or prioritise another activity or just not show up, now affects not just you but your friend also.
You have now made a commitment to another person, likely a friend. And unless you are incredibly self-obsessed and chronically conceited you will not want to let them down.
It is also rewarding to share your journey with someone else and you can get some socialising in while you’re at it!
Make those changes stick
Getting back into training can be hard for even the fittest and most motivated person, but try utilising some of these techniques and you will get yourself back on track.
Studies show that the hardest part is getting started and once you’ve got over the initial hump training and exercise will soon be on the way to becoming a virtuous habit.
Be realistic enough to appreciate that the first week or two will likely be tough but you can do it, after all – you’ve done it before!
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