Complying to an exercise program, keep it fresh
There are many times when people come to me asking for nutritional and fitness advice. Go figure, it is what I do for a living. So I always take up these opportunities because I thrive on seeing people achieve their goals and improve their lives. Usually, what I do is first establish some sort of foundation of fitness by designing a balanced exercise regime consisting of injury prevention techniques, some strength training and a flexibility and regeneration aspect as well. I always imply that acquiring goals through health and wellness takes time, a lot of it. In fact, noticeable changes usually won’t start occurring until 18 weeks after adhering to a program and actually following through with the process… Therefore, it takes patience as well.
But hold on… patience is a virtue right?
So what if your patience runs out and you are having a hard time complying to an exercise program?
It takes a certain personality to be able to completely adhere to a fitness program until a goal is achieved. Let’s face it, that’s just how people are wired. Look at body builders, they train 1 to 2 hours a day, 5 to 6 times a week and they track everything they put in their mouth. Oh and by the way, they do it to prepare for one little sliver of time during their competition, which lasts 1 night when they go around and flex their muscles for 15 minutes on stage. Is everyone wired this way?
There is a very small amount of the general population that wants to put themselves through this type of lifestyle. Some people may think it’s odd, but the slave labor the body builder lifestyle trump over everyone else is compliance. Complying to a program is going to give you the best results.
Does this take some patience? Yes, it sure does.
Will this challenge you? Yes, just like many other things in life.
Can it be boring and monotonous? Yes, fitness can actually be boring (I hate saying that!)
So what can you do to avoid the difficulty and boredom of adhering to an exercising program and achieving your fitness goals? Don’t worry not all hope is lost. Let’s list 3 things to help you stay on track without getting distracted from getting to where you want to be.
1. Set short term goals
Losing 50 lbs. can be hard. Dropping a few dress sizes is no easy task either.
But can it be done over night? Hell no.
When it comes to a goal such as losing weight, gaining strength and coordination, or fixing injuries… they usually don’t occur overnight. These are some very prevalent fitness goals that the general population seeks to achieve as fitness goals.
One such way to achieve some progress and actually see some results is to track your progress through short term goals. For example, maybe attempt to lose 1 lb. in a week. Or maybe run 3 minutes longer on a steady state cardio routine at the end of the week. Hold your planks for 5 more seconds by the end of two weeks. There are many options out there to achieve some short term goals. However, there is only one way to achieve them… YOU HAVE TO SET THEM. In order for a goal to be made, it must be set forth by the maker. Therefore, each week set a very tiny goal that is likely to be achieved. Sooner or later, those little tiny goals will add up and give you something substantial without losing interest in making some progress in your fitness routine.
2. Get involved in various form of physical activity (other than JUST exercise)
Going to the gym and doing 4 or 5 resistance exercises on the weight room floor followed by 10-30 minutes of steady state cardio on the cardio machines can die fast for most people. Certain gym atmosphere factors can veer people away from actually going to the gym. The constant attempt to try to sell clients programs and products to make money. The meat head who took a pre workout and their head is going to explode when they are throwing dumbbells on the ground after pressing dumbbells weighing more than you can be disheartening. Maybe you have to wait for a few machines ( I freakin’ hate waiting for a bench!), making it to where your gym visit is 30 minutes longer than what you want it to be.
The gym is only one example of how fitness can become monotonous. Don’t get me wrong, by no means is the gym a bad thing! This monotony can occur by doing only doing P90X for 3 months, and then repeating it. Maybe all you do is Yoga. Whatever, monotony will make you just not want to exercise, and giving you a “not again…” attitude.
A great way to avoid this is to consistently check out other forms of physical activity that doesn’t necessarily involve an exercise routine. For example, check out a martial arts class once a week. There are plenty of various forms martial arts studios that would be willing to have you check them out for free! Tai Chi, Jiu Jitsu, Aikido, Kenpo… you name it. These activities will give you a killer workout and you won’t be following the same routine that you usually do.
Maybe try some form of dancing with your significant other? Ballroom dancing and Salsa require a partner. What better way to break the standard routine then enjoying a night with your pal and increase your heart rate and core body temperature for a great night of calorie burning!
Maybe get involved with an recreation team sport. Many cities have a Parks and Recreation Program that has free agent lists. Signing up on a free agent list for sports like soccer, volleyball or basketball can get you involved in a team sport activity that will give you a great workout as well!
3. Set ONE Big goal (set up by the short term goals)
In order to set you up for a huge reward and keeping you on track is to set one BIG goal.
People go to college for a reason right? Well most of the time. Why else would an individual go to law school? Maybe to have ONE ABSOLUTE GOAL to be a lawyer. Linking this example with your fitness goals will help you get to your fitness goal and comply to a program
For example, maybe you need to lose 50 lbs. Maybe you want to be a certain weight for your wedding. Maybe you want to look better in a certain pair of clothes. Make this your absolute goal and use that goal as motivation every time you exercise. Use this ONE goal to motivate you to keep on digging deep through the times you just don’t want to comply with your program. When there are bad food choices ahead that may deter you from your goals, think of the ONE big goal. When there are times that you just don’t want to exercise and you haven’t met your short term goals, go back to the ONE big goal. In order to make all this work worth something, having ONE big goal to achieve will help you veer away from distractions and stay on track!
Staying on track is challenging. But this is how you are going to achieve success. Human are achievement oriented individuals, sometimes it just takes a little sense of direction to get to where you need to be. Compliance is a huge part a fitness program and achieving health and wellness goals. Instead of working on what goals you wish you had, try to work on what will make you comply with staying on the path that will get you the goals you are envisioning.
