Motivation and Gym

Watch the video

Watch the video on youtube

: in autumn and with the beginning of the new year.

Shutterstock

These are the times when good intentions about our physical form reach their peak. It usually works like this: we go, we buy everything we need for our physical activity, we do or have an activity program done and then we start headlong. The first weeks we dedicate 4 or 5 workouts to our physical well-being, even more than what was recommended or what we had set for ourselves; then, with the passage of time, we begin to limit the number of times and a series of problems begin to arise that seem urgent and force us to skip and / or postpone our training session.

After a while, most of us find ourselves looking sadly at the shoes and clothes bought new only a few months earlier and, more importantly, looking at ourselves with the air of the one who once again has failed the appointment with the good purpose he had given himself.

If it is true, therefore, that "who begins well is halfway through the" work, let's go and see not to leave the work unfinished, trying to answer the following question: how to stay motivated once the initial enthusiasm has gone?

physical, learn to focus on small improvements rather than staying focused solely on the final goal. If you need months of training to achieve a certain weight or performance, it will be easy to lose motivation. However, setting intermediate goals will help you stay high. your motivation and it will give you a chance to celebrate your achievements (see point 4).

or one of the many free online services to keep track of your improvements. In addition to measuring, it is important to recognize one's progress, or take the time to "touch" the path taken and review what remains to be done. Furthermore, to keep motivation high, it is useful to stop and see the positive changes that can be recorded. For example, if the goal is to lose weight, stopping to enjoy the pants that are baggy or the hole in the belt can give you a renewed energy to continue towards our goal.

, a sauna, etc.) or treating yourself to a different day can be very important. Rewarding yourself means loving yourself and reiterating that the pursuit of physical well-being is first of all for us. In addition, awards and celebrations help break the routine and stave off the monotony, which is one of the main enemies of motivation.

to our motivation. Finally, if for you money is an important source of motivation, I recommend that you make a "contract" with yourself with a penalty in case of non-compliance.

that we are getting bored. If the goal we have set ourselves will make us happy, the secret to achieving it in the shortest possible time is to enjoy every single step of the way. The next time you find yourself accusing yourself of skipping your workout at the gym, stop and take the time to think about what could make your training session more fun or what you could do as an alternative. Enjoying and rejoicing in the pursuit of physical well-being is of fundamental importance to keep our conviction high, therefore making us respect the programs we have made.

why according to the program should you do a "now or do you blame yourself because instead of 3 sets of abdominals you did 2? If the answer is yes, you are suffering from black and white vision. When we are focused on a goal the risk is to adopt an all or nothing view. Adopting this attitude can be an obstacle to maintaining our motivation at high levels. Clearly and objectively the difference is, but it is often not that big; moreover, we can choose to focus on the fact that although we were tired or had little time we still managed to be part of the training rather than skipping it in its entirety or scolding ourselves.

. The faster you accept the "bad days" the faster they will pass and you will be able to return to pursuing your physical well-being with the same motivation as before and with your self-esteem intact, if not increased. Personally, I believe that skipping a workout or going off the diet and then resuming regularly is a sign of great mental strength and motivation, in the face of the normal unexpected events of life. One of the keys to motivation is the serene acceptance of difficulties.

, swimming with step), change gym or lap, or simply days of the week or training methodology.