How to Stay Motivate to Workout

7 Ways to Stay Motivated to Workout

 

By James Rial

You did it! You planned and executed that workout routine but for some reason, it’s so much easier to find an excuse not to do it anymore. Over time it can become daunting to stay motivated to continue your workout routine. Life just gets in the way and leaves you feeling tired, you're just way too busy, or maybe it's just because your favorite show is premiering tonight. Something is bogging you down and it's making you want to skip training. The fact is, it can be tough to keep up the momentum. Especially early on when the results just aren’t showing up as expected. Maybe your plan was to work out four or five days per week, but just getting in two days becomes an uphill battle. I completely understand the frustration. You really want to meet your goals but how to motivate yourself to work out?

Here are 7 ways to stay motivated to work out that I have used to help keep me motivated and more likely to keep training.

1. This one has kept me motivated in the past, however, there are still times I would much rather work out on my own. Bringing in a friend, at least in the beginning will help you stay motivated if they can keep up the pace and have the same best intentions you do. You can work together as a team to stay motivated as well as spot each other for those heavy lifts. (Once you get into the habit and become self-motivated it will become less daunting to get up and just do it.)

2. The next best motivator is music. Sometimes it’s tough to get up and get moving, but the right playlist with heart-pounding intense beats can really get your body moving.

3. Eat a small but healthy carb-rich snack 30 minutes before your workout. Try things like bananas and natural peanut butter, a hand full of nuts, or a small fruit smoothie with a scoop of protein.

4. Keep track of your progress no matter how small the progress level is. I you’re following these articles; you will see gains. Whether you lose a pound or two per week or just increase your endurance levels. Don’t give up, the results will come with time. Remember to just stay motivated and any exercise is good exercise, and you will progress.

5. Try not to make it a habit of this, but a decent pre-workout can help boost your energy levels on those days you are just stuck. Another trick I like to do is to just make a cup of green tea and then dilute it into 8 to 12 ounces of water. This usually boosts my performance and energy during my workout and it’s much healthier than a pre-workout powder loaded with fillers and more caffeine than necessary.

6. Going to the gym. Home workouts are much harder to get into. In your comfy house, why not just skip the workout and crawl onto the couch and watch some Cobra Kai. This is where the gym shines, if I can force myself to get there, then I might as well workout.

7. This one doesn’t really get you super pumped but on occasion, I just put my favorite TV show like Roadkill Garage onto my tablet or phone and focus on that while I get through my routine. Sometimes just taking my mind off the pain I’m going through to get motivated gives me the nudge I needed.

All you really need is that extra push to get going. Once your body starts moving your blood and oxygen levels will do the rest. Throughout your workout, your energy levels will increase automatically kicking you into high gear for another intense workout. Just keep reminding yourself about how good you feel about yourself after an intense workout.