by, Coach K
Rising from bed before 5:00AM to lift anything heavier than a cup of coffee, let alone move at a high intensity, is not easy. The decision to sleep in the extra hour before work can seem like a good one in the moment. But then like most people, I’m physically and mentally exhausted from the day, so the last thing I want to do is exert more energy towards something other than making food, sitting on the couch and crawling to bed.
We all have busy lives that can sometimes cause us not to prioritize fitness. The excuses could be never ending and unfortunately we don’t have a little cheerleader sitting on our shoulder all day motivating us to do all of the things we know we should. So we have to focus on the small things in order to get on track, and stay there.
Try these 3 simple for conquering those illusive health and fitness goals:
Change Your Thinking
It really is this simple. We have the power. Shift that mentality from couch potato to athlete. Regardless of how athletic we consider ourselves to be, we can all be athletes; A runner, CrossFitter, biker, swimmer, yogi, etc. Once that positive switch is thrown, it will subconsciously provide motivation for sticking to our goals. As a trainer, it is very difficult to hear someone say they “aren’t in enough shape” to start a workout routine. Kick that negative thinking to the curb. Recognizing and changing this can be a long process depending on how bad you want to change. We consistently remind our athletes that everyone starts somewhere, and challenge them to be stubborn and stick with it. This makes a huge difference in their new way of thinking to effect positive change.
Set Goals
Be specific. Write down the steps needed to achieve the goals you set and take action! People tend to laugh when we suggest this course of action, but we all have to hold ourselves accountable somehow and this is a strong visual way to do so.
Most goals are not accidentally achieved. If you want a kipping pull up or muscle up in the next 6 months, what steps are you taking to get there? Also be sure to make the goals realistic. No person wakes up and runs a marathon without any prior training. Here is an example...
Goal: I want to run a 5k in May
Action Plan: 6 weeks before race, run a half a mile in week #1 three days per week, and increase .5 mile each week
Goals propel us forward and help us believe in ourselves. Of course, this doesn’t mean we have to have every moment of our lives planned out and think we’re a failure if we don’t make a goal that was set. But, without a sense of what we want to do and where we want to go, we won’t be successful in accomplishing what we want out of life.
Keep a Routine
Do you try to go to bed the same time every night? Do you schedule time to workout? Are you sticking to a meal plan that is simple and easy for you to follow? Without a set routine or schedule, it’s easy to lose sight of what is important and fall off track. Don’t let that happen! Start small and try to have a set time for bed each night and try to meet it. It will likely be difficult the first few nights, but routine is the key to this type of change.
The next week, add something new and easy to maintain. It can seem like we’re adding more work to our schedules but over time tiny habits become routine.
Following a routine can make our lives more efficient. Once our tiny habits have been turned into routine we get more things done and become more efficient in the things in each day’s tasks! With pattern, comes expectation. Expectation to maintain a healthy lifestyle will create priority and with it successful fitness goals.
It’s easy to put things off until another day. Acknowledge that there is only one thing that we can control our lives, and that is the choices we make. Seek to be an optimist, go slowly and take the time to ease into something new by keeping things simple and realistic.
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