Physical activity is part of the foundation of a healthy lifestyle. Physical activity doesn’t just mean keeping to a regimented fitness routine. There are lots of ways you can add exercise to your day so you can reap the benefits without breaking a sweat. If you prefer a strenuous workout, that’s great, too! Just know that even getting up from your work desk every hour and taking a lap around the parking lot has health benefits.
Get more information: Tips To Help You Lose Weight
Do a reality check:
Be completely honest with yourself about how fit you are. Start off slowly. Many people bite off more than they can chew in the beginning, which leads to frustration, making it more likely that you’ll stop before making real progress. Pick something you like so you’ll be more likely to stick with it. Keep a record of your progress so you can see how far you’ve come.
Fuel your body:
Physical activity burns calories so you may find you’re hungrier once you start moving more. Pay attention to your hunger and satiety signals. Choose whole foods like fruits and vegetables, lean proteins, and healthy fats. Balanced eating will keep your energy stores full and help build muscle. Water is also a type of fuel. Your body doesn’t work as efficiently if it’s dehydrated so aim for at least 8 cups of water each day, before, during, and after your physical activity.
Set a fitness goal and make a plan:
Want to run a 5K but you’ve never run before? Maybe you want to move from a 5K to a 10K. Would you love to be able to walk up a flight of stairs without getting winded? Wherever you’re starting from, be sure to start with a plan. Create realistic goals and reward yourself (without food!) when you reach them. Speak with someone who has experience doing what you want to do for pointers. Try to schedule your workouts as you would any other appointment.
Get more information: Ways To Lose Weight Permanently
Recruit a buddy:
You’re less likely to bail on a workout if you know a friend is waiting for you. Seek out a friend who has a “you can do it” attitude; that positive energy is contagious and will keep you going after the initial excitement of starting something new wears off. An activity partner is also good for any emotional support you may need along the way. If you need to meet with a coworker, walk over to their desk instead of sending an email, or suggest taking a walk outside instead of sitting in a conference room.
Don’t give up:
Some days will be easier than others. Life gets in the way sometimes and you may miss a workout because you’re sick or because you simply need a break. The key to continuing your success is to not throw in the towel if you miss a few days. Everyone misses days, but people who stick with their routines don’t let those missed days derail their overall success. Progress is made slowly over time, so pick up wherever you left off and keep up the great work!
Physical activity is a fun way to start building your healthy lifestyle.
Get more information: Health Benefits of Yoga
Positive Motivation:
Positive motivation is using positive thoughts, attitudes, emotions and experiences to propel you forward on your journey. Negative motivation then, as you may have gathered by now, is using negative thoughts, attitudes, feelings or experiences to drive you. With your health and fitness, there should never be any negative motivation, only positive motivation.
We can use negative motivation to get a positive result, but what fun is that? I believe that negative motivation only works in certain situations, usually if it comes from an external rather than internal source. So for example, I use negative motivation to inspire my clients to use proper form: If a client reaches down to pick up a kettle bell to do a squat and they look down at the kettle bell when beginning or ending their reps, then I make them do a punishment exercise.
This use of negative motivation to get a positive result is based on my ability to watch the client and make the client get into proper form; the goal is to get them to remember the proper form. I want the discomfort of the punishment exercise to remind them to use proper form next time. Using negative motivations with yourself may not yield positive results; instead, it may result in less time working out or less time at the gym, or even possibly an injury.
Negative Motivation:
Negative motivations can also sometimes turn into justifications or excuses for why you should not go to the gym or workout. Don’t talk yourself into reasons why you should not be motivated to go to the gym or to get your workout for the day! These types of negative motivations get you negative results.
Negative motivation excuses add to the number of workouts you are going to miss anyway. So use positive motivation to get you in and through as many workouts as possible and let the natural occurrences that keep you away from exercise happen without your mind interfering in the process.
