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How to Stay Motivated During Workouts

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Losing weight and getting into shape involves sticking to a healthy and balanced diet, yet it also means getting regular exercise. But anyone who has ever tried sticking to a rigorous health and fitness regime will know that it’s just not that simple.

Finding the willpower and motivation to hit the gym when there are just nicer and more relaxing things to do with your time is difficult, unless you employ these effective strategies for staying motivated during your workouts.

Set Yourself Goals

Getting started with your workouts is often the easy part, but seeing them through to the bitter end can be tough. You need to know that the pain and exhaustion you put yourself through on a regular basis are worth it, which is why setting realistic yet challenging goals is absolutely essential.

Using a fitness tracker allows you to set one ultimate goal, as well as several smaller goals along the way. Your steps, movements, calorie intake and sleep patterns will be closely monitored, and the results will be relayed to a fitness app or mobile device.

This allows you to check whether or not your goals have been reached. It also enables you to set new ones for the weeks ahead.

Schedule Workout Sessions in Advance

Before the beginning of every week, it’s a good idea to think in detail about when you’re realistically going to get time to exercise. If you are trying to squeeze exercise sessions in at the last minute, the chances are you’ll skip some, or you might be tempted to cut some of them short.

Last-minute temptations and distractions can leave exercise at the bottom of your list of priorities, which means you simply won’t be able to achieve your health and fitness goals.

If you know that you have sufficient time in the gym, you won’t become anxious, and you can concentrate your energy on motivation. Create a schedule for your exercise sessions, and stick to it.

Keep Things Fun and Different

Variety is the spice of life, and nowhere is that phrase more apt than in the gym. The same old exercise routines can make it very hard to motivate yourself, so mixing things up every once in a while is a great idea.

If your preferred exercise is running, why not take a cycle ride for a change? If you usually have your routine of lifting fixed weights, change it up and head for the free weights section of your gym every so often. And make sure you are always looking for new motivational songs to add to your workout playlists.

Reach Out to Friends and Family

Whilst exercising in isolation is what many people prefer, there is a lot to be said for having the support and motivation of friends and family around you during workouts.

If you run, you could head off with a friend and enjoy some conversation along the way – which could make exercise more social and fun. You may need a kick up the backside from time to time, and someone you know well could be the perfect person to do just that.

Of course, you may meet like-minded people at your local gym, or via exercise groups on websites and social media.

Making your workouts more fun and social could be the key to finding the motivation you need to make exercise part of your lifestyle – and not just a quick fix for short-term benefits.