To avoid falling off the wagon, or losing your motivation in the first place, here are 25 tips to help you maintain your motivation to achieve your goals once you have established where your specific drive is coming from.
1. Develop a positive attitude: The first thing you need to achieve your goals is a positive attitude. Negativity towards what is necessary to achieve what you want in life will only set you up for failure. Stay focused on the positive, write down the positives that are in your life right now, and all the wonderful things that you will achieve, feel and see happen in your life when you make the right choices day in and day out. Your attitude towards anything in life is completely under your control, take charge of that power and you can see the upside of any situation.
2. Identify your obstacles: To defeat a worthy opponent you need to know about the opponent. Identify what obstacles that may get in your way then construct a plan to defeat them. If time is an issue, schedule and block off your training time. You possess the power to make a difference in your life, USE IT! Early on identify the obstacles that are going to pop up along the way, and come up with strategies that you will incorporate to get around them when they happen.
3. Find an exercise mode that you enjoy: There are plentiful ways that you can train in order to achieve your fitness goals. It’s important for you to try new things and find methods that you enjoy. Waking up every day dreading what you have to do is going to push you towards skipping your training. Whether it’s strength training in the gym, playing your favorite sport or heading out for a hike or bike ride, figure out what is going to energize you and that you will adhere to. Keep in mind to meet YOUR GOALS you may need to add in things that you don’t like. If you truly want to achieve that goal…DO IT!
4. Exercise with a friend: CFMAF has group and semi private classes that help you to stay accountable and energized. Join Them! This is a great way to stay accountable. Especially early on in your training, you may be more motivated by knowing that someone is at the gym or on the hiking trail waiting for you. Many people feel nervous when going to a new gym so sign up with a friend and cut all the nervousness out.
5. Set realistic goals: Goal setting is crucial. Set goals that are attainable for you, set short term goals and long term goals. Do not set goals that are out of reach as that will set you up for disappointment. For example, don’t shoot to lose 40 pounds in a month, you want to set goals that are going to get you on a healthy track and keep you on that track for the rest of your life.
6. Compete: Competing is a great way to push yourself to new levels, it adds a level of excitement to attaining your goals. I am not speaking of competing against others per say, but more about competing with yourself…CHALLENGE YOURSELF. Challenge yourself to obtain 2 more reps, 15 more seconds, 5 more pounds of weight. Tell yourself that no one will out work you…THEN PROVE IT!
7. Educate: The more educated you are about how your body works, and about how nutrition affects and changes your body, the easier it will be for you to make good choices about your own personal health and fitness. Ignorance is bliss, until it leads to health issues, self esteem issues, and/or disappointment in what you have allowed your body to become. The information you need to achieve your goals is out there, it’s just up to you to seek it out. LISTEN to your trainers and even more than listen ACT ON THE INFORMATION you receive.
8. Move: The only way you are going to add that muscle, drop body fat and transform your physique is to MOVE. If an hour of exercise seems daunting at first, just get moving for 5 minutes, you will find that once you get your body in action it is much easier to keep it going.
9. Change your scenery: Revamp your workouts by having a change of scenery. Go into our fitness center. Have a program written up for you. Step out of your comfort zone. Go onto our martial arts floor, use the space. Don’t get locked into 1 way of doing things. That is the reason CFMAF varies our workouts for you and changes the routines regularly.
10. Try something new: Getting into a steady workout routine as part of your day to day life is absolutely beneficial, but to avoid boredom don’t be afraid to try something new. Take advantage of the many classes offered at CFMAF. Maybe you’ve always wanted to try yoga or learn karate or try out that cool kickboxing class. Mix things up and keep them fresh by branching out and trying something you’ve always wanted to.
11. Listen to music: Studies show that music elevates your mood and can enhance your workouts. Having your favorite beats playing while you are strength training or doing cardio can help you keep going even when you are tired. If you are slowing down or thinking of prematurely quitting, kick on one of your favorite songs and you will get a surge of rejuvenation. Burn a cd and give it to the staff (keep it clean), we will play it during a workout session.
12. Track your measurements and workouts: When you first set out to achieve your goals, be sure to know where you are starting from so that you will know how much progress you have made over the course of time. Track your stats and measurements and track your workouts. It’s exciting to see when you could only do 4 push ups on day one and 12 weeks later you can do 50! If you don’t track your progress you will not know how far you have come. If you are having a tough day, a great way to get reenergized is by checking your stats and seeing positive progress in the right direction, letting you know that your hard work is paying off.
13. Take Pictures: When you start out on a fitness journey, it is highly likely that you will hate your starting point, regardless of what that might be. The majority of people are motivated to visually look better, so seeing the condition of their current physique can be difficult. Nevertheless this is a critical piece of the puzzle, to actually SEE the changes in your body instead of just FEEL them is very powerful. Take pictures every 2-4 weeks to see the change in your body. Post your pictures someplace that you can see them every day so that you will remember why you are making the right choices day in and day out.
14. Journal your nutrition: When you are working towards attaining a fitness or health goal, 80% of your success is going to depend on the eating choices that you are making on a day to day basis. Stay on track and motivated by writing down all that you eat in a given day, this will also help you avoid mindlessly snacking or going over the amount of calories that you should be taking in per day.
15. Reward yourself: The internal rewards of achieving a fitness goal are great, however giving yourself an external reward can increase your motivation even further. A couple ideas to positively reinforce without having a fitness setback are purchasing a new pair of running shoes or workout clothes, or enjoying some pampering at the spa.
16. Schedule your workouts: We all have extremely busy lives. Our time is consumed by jobs, families and any number of activities which will easily pull our attention away from taking work out time for ourselves. Putting your health and fitness on the back burner just sets you up for long term health issues and unhappiness. Your fitness IS important, so take the time to schedule your workouts into your day. Treat it as an important appointment that you can’t miss, and make sure you get it done!
17. Find your right time: You may be a morning person or perhaps you are an evening person. Regardless of which time of day you find yourself most energized, you can achieve your goals. Plan your training schedule accordingly so that you hit your workout of choice at the time when you feel strongest and most eager to exercise.
18. Eliminate negatives: Cutting negative people, places and circumstances out of your life will open you up for more positives. To the best of your ability, avoid negative people who would put you down, negative places that cause you to fall off track or put you in a bad mood, and negative circumstances that can lead you to emotional stress and poor choice making. Cutting all negatives in your life out may not be an option, but do your best to eliminate as many of them as possible.
19. Get creative in the kitchen: Eating healthy is crucial to your fitness success, and good foods can taste great. The only way you are going to enjoy eating healthy for a lifetime is if you find foods that you enjoy eating on a daily basis. Find ways of preparing your foods that please your palate. You’ve got options including but not limited to, grilling, baking or steaming. Hit up the spices aisle at your local grocery store and find some new ways to flavor your meats and veggies, there are loads of options out there.
20. Be prepared: Preparation is the key to your success if you are serious about achieving fitness goals. If you are consistently unprepared, meaning you don’t have the right foods available at the right times, or you forgot your gym clothes, then you can easily lose your motivation and fall off track. Schedule the time on weekends or during your “down” times to cook your foods and having them ready to go when you need them. Tupperware to store these items in your fridge or freezer as well as a small cooler so you can take your food with you to work or out running errands will help you stay on track.
21. Talk to your family: Family support can be one of the make or break aspects to achieving your fitness goals. A home filled with naysayers is difficult to avoid, so it’s important that early on in your journey you sit them down, have a heart to heart explaining your goals and why they are important to you. Explain that you need their support in order to achieve them. If this doesn’t work, you CAN still achieve your goals, it will just be a matter of tapping into a deeper level of inner strength.
22. Become connected and remain connected to your CFMAF Family: When you are working towards a fitness goal, it helps when you know there are others out there working towards similar aspirations and struggling with similar obstacles. Don’t isolate yourself from others at CFMAF who are taking the same journey as you. Feed off one others POSITIVE energy. (Remember, if someone is negative…Let Them Go.)
23. Use one of our great personal trainers: Having a quality trainer to motivate you and guide you is the piece of the puzzle that will get you to your goals. One of our trainers will be able to help you set goals; and guide you on the lifestyle, eating and exercise choices that will get you there. Knowing that you have a trainer there to teach you, push you, hold you accountable and keep you on track can absolutely help you get to your goals. With CFMAF a trainer is ALWAYS within your budge, you just have to make yourself a priority.
