Motivation

You are looking to improve your overall health and know that regular exercise can help with that. So you sign up for a gym membership and have the class schedule on your fridge. But since taking the initial tour of the gym, you haven’t gone back. You just aren’t motivated to exercise. Don’t worry, you are not alone.

Finding the motivation to exercise can be tough, especially if you don’t like exercising. Here are some tips to help find your motivation:

Pack Your Gym Bag – Pack everything you need the night before and place your bag by the front door. Prepacking your bag means you don’t have to decide in the morning whether to exercise or not. Since your bag is packed you have no excuse not to exercise or talk yourself out of going.

Schedule Your Workouts – you put everything else in your calendar why not your workout? Plan your workouts a week ahead so that the time becomes blocked in your calendar. Consider these appointments sacred “me time” and try not to cancel them for other appointments.

Get a Workout Partner – when you know you are meeting someone for a workout, you are more likely to show up because you don’t want to let them down. Having a workout partner can motivate you to put more effort into training because someone is pushing you to do more.

Try Something Completely New – doing a brand new activity will force you to be fully engaged and help keep you motivated to exercise. Whether it’s yoga, fencing, rock climbing, or something else, having an instructor guiding you can make it seem more like a learning experience instead of exercise.

Leverage Your Lifestyle – try combining your workout with an established aspect of your life. Have kids? Go for family bike rides or help coach the kid’s sports team. Have a dog? Explore Thornton Bales Conservation Area or George Richardson Park for a scenic hike or go rollerblading with your pooch. Live in a condo or apartment? Try taking the stairs instead of the elevator down to your car in the morning.

Sign-Up for a Competition – whether it is a 5k run, climbing the CN Tower or participating in a Zumba-thon, the pending event date will help keep you motivated to exercise. When you know you have a reason to train, you are more likely to make yourself exercise so that you can finish the competition.

Find an Activity You Enjoy – when we say “activity” we mean something that will allow you to at least break a sweat (so scrap-booking doesn’t qualify). It’s never too late to learn a new sport – there are many adult leagues not only for intermediate and advanced participants but also for beginners. You can learn to play soccer or hockey. Or explore running or indoor rock climbing. If you find something you enjoy, it’ll be easier to lace up your shoes and get going.

Maintaining your motivation to exercise is sometimes challenging and may not always be related to your mind set. If you want to maintain a steady schedule of activity but find it hard due to recurring pain, it might be a good idea to see a physiotherapist.

Is your workout made of exercises that you have been doing for years? Do you think your physical progress is stalling? Does working out no longer get you pumped? If you nodded yes to any of these, you could be suffering from workout boredom.

By performing the same exercises over and over again, not only are you bored but your body is bored too! Which means your body is no longer being challenged and you are likely not achieving the results you want. Combat workout boredom by incorporating these six exercises into your workout routine:

1. Lunges
Changing the type of lunge you perform is an easy way to beat workout boredom because there are plenty of variations to choose from. Try lateral lunges to target the inner and outer thigh muscles. Or curtsey lunges to improve your balance and coordination. Or the Bulgarian split lunge which provides a fuller range of motion and targets the hamstring muscles.

2. Kettlebell Swings
The kettlebell swing is a full body move that works everything from your core, to your shoulders, to your legs, to your back. On top of conditioning these muscles, kettlebell swings increase your heart rate to provide an excellent cardiovascular workout with minimal impact on your lower body.

3. Single-Leg Squats
Performing single leg squats forces your body to work harder and will develop the glute and adductor muscles more so than the traditional squat. By isolating each leg in turn, you are ensuring each leg does the same amount of work and develops muscles evenly.

4. Calf Raises
Do you play basketball or volleyball and want to increase your vertical jump? Doing calf raises can help you jump higher. Not into a particular sport? Well, that doesn’t mean you don’t need to worry about your calf muscles – they provide support for your ankle and play a role in your overall balance, so be sure to include a couple of sets in your workout.

5. Plank Jacks
Holding plank is great for your core, but challenge your core even more by adding a jumping jack motion with your feet. On top of working your core, plank jacks tone your shoulders, arms, back, thighs and legs.

6. Weighted Side Bends
The oblique muscles can be one of the hardest muscles in your abdominals to strengthen, but weighted side bends target them perfectly. Not only does the side bending motion help trim your waist line which makes you look thinner, but it also engages the muscles along the spine and in the lower back to help improve your posture.

The easiest way to beat workout boredom is to perform exercises that challenge you and your body. Not sure how to perform these exercises or incorporate them into your workout? Book an appointment with one of our physiotherapists who can educate you on proper form and help you develop a customized workout plan.

These exercises are suggestions for individuals already following a regular exercise regimen. However if you experience pain while were performing any of the above exercises, please stop and consult a doctor or physiotherapist. For those recovering from injury or are currently suffering from any type of pain, please consult a doctor or physiotherapist before trying any of the above exercises.

A new year usually brings with it a strong fire to drive change in our lives, especially when it comes to health and fitness. Unfortunately for most, that flame is out before the end of February leaving us with a pile of frustration, disappointment and self-doubt. Here are 4 ways to maintain your “start of the new year fire” to stay on a path to keeping your fitness resolutions.

Partner In Your Commitment
If you have a friend who is interested in making a similar change to their lifestyle, invite them to join you on the transformation journey. When you lose momentum, the support and encouragement from someone else can go a long way. And when you announce your resolution to someone, there’s a factor of accountability that makes is less convenient for you to give in when the going gets tough – and make no mistake there will be times when it gets tough. So find a buddy for support!

DO NOT equate stumbling with failing
Lose the mindset that the moment you miss two days of exercise or eat something you know you shouldn’t or experience a slight injury, it means you’ve failed and it’s okay to give up. Just like a baby learning to walk, recognize that there will be instances where you fall or stumble. It’s part of the process – just get back up and keep trying! Rest assured, persistence is part of your nature – otherwise you’d still be crawling. Remember, it’s a given obstacles will come up – motivational plateaus, self-doubt, scheduling challenges, etc. Whatever the road block, just work around it and keep pushing forward. Small change requires little effort – significant change requires significant effort.

Exercise Isn’t Complicated
Fitness is about activity, not equipment. You can start exercising the moment you make that commitment without the need for special equipment or a gym membership. If you choose activity over sitting on a couch there are an infinite number of ways to break a sweat with just your body:
– Go for a walk or a run…yes, even in the winter.
– Do a low intensity workout combining squats, lunges, push-ups and stretching.
– Step-up to a high intensity workout with a few sets of burpees, supermans, dips, planks and jumping lunges.
Want more ideas? Google “exercise without equipment” – the options are endless.

Pick The Right Friends
If you know someone who lives the kind of healthy lifestyle that you are aspiring to, then find a way to spend more time with them. Also, make a note of the friend(s) you have that live a less than healthy lifestyle and spend less time with them – or more drastically, LOSE THEM AS FRIENDS. You become like the 5 people you spend the most time with – SO CHOOSE CAREFULLY!

Good luck on your journey – success is yours for the taking!