Exercise Routine
Finding your exercise routine can be quite difficult, but with the right attitude, knowledge and exercise gear you’ll be able to get into a healthy and fun routine that suits your schedule and lifestyle.
You’ll soon find that exercise isn’t a chore and that it can be fun and incredibly rewarding. Just remember: know what you like, keep things simple and don’t miss a workout. Even committing to something small everyday can benefit you. As they say, no matter how slow you go you’re lapping everyone on the couch! Follow these simple steps to find your exercise routine... Happy training!
1. Bring a friend
Having a friend with you makes exercise fun, because you can make it social. Also, it’s easy to convince yourself not to train, but having someone there to make you accountable for your decisions will motivate you to stick to your goals.
2. Make it competitive
If you’re a competitive person, use this competitiveness to your benefit by competing with everyone and everything. Going for a jog? See if you can beat some of the cars on the road to the next set of lights.
3.Listen to audiobooks & podcasts
Listening to audiobooks only when working out will motivate you to train again in order to find out what happens in the rest of the story. If you don’t train, you don’t hear the end of the story. Simple and effective!
Podcasts are also a great alternative and can make it feel like you're training with friends. Some of our faves are:
| This American Life | 99% Invisible | |
| Comedy Bang! Bang! | How did this get made? |
4. Put it on paper
Writing down what you want to achieve, short or long term, will motivate you to complete your goals. Seeing a tick next to items on your list is very satisfying, but perhaps what’s even more motivating than that is wanting to avoid a big red cross!
Motivation
Want more tips to keep motivated? Here’s a list of awesome things you can do to keep your motivation up:
Create a fun training/exercise playlist
Build activity into your daily routine
Create a reward system
Wear something that makes you feel good
Celebrate your achievements (no matter how small!)
Set goals
Remember why your started
Try group fitness
Learn a new skill
Give yourself micro-challenges
Work out with people who will cheer you on
Make whatever you do to exercise your favourite thing
- Keep track of your success
Happy training!
Reward System
- Set benchmarks and reward yourself consistently when you reach them.
- Make your rewards meaningful to you. This way you'll feel motivated to reach your goals in order to get that reward.
- Remember: small rewards for reaching small goals work most effectively, because you're rewarding yourself for consistently reaching your benchmarks.
- Don't use food as a reward. Using food as a reward for exercise is very risky because it's so easy to give into the habit
Now that we have a general idea of how to incorporate a reward system into your training plan, it’ll be helpful to have some examples of good rewards:
Small Rewards
Put $5 in a jar (to spend on a bigger reward later on!)
Treat yourself to a movie of your choice
Sleep in
Have a relaxing bubble bath
Pick out a new pot plant for your room or garden
Medium Rewards
Treat yourself to a massage
Have a manicure/pedicure
Get a new workout outfit
Buy a new set of dumbbells or fitness gear
Download a new fitness app
Buy a new pair of sunnies
Big rewards
Get yourself an iPod
Buy a Fitbit
Take a healthy cooking class
Hire someone to clean the house
Book a session with a personal trainer
Try a new class, like Yoga or Zumba
Have a weekend getaway
The most important part of incorporating a reward system is to be honest with yourself. Focus on building a habit and not just finding a way to get the reward. This way you’re more motivated which will make it more likely that you’ll get into the habit of exercising regularly.
