How To Stay Motivated

If you are anything like us, you have the dream of trading your post Christmas belly in for a slimmer more attractive model but not quite the will power to make it happen. These top tips will help you stay motivated. Just remember it’s never too late to begin and it’s never hopeless, we all just need a little bit of a pep talk now and then to get us started.

Ready…Set…Go!

Don’t worry you can stay on the sofa for this bit. All you need is a pencil and notepad and an idea of what you want to achieve.

The Goal

You need to come up with a goal that you really, really want to achieve. Not a pipe dream that you would be quite happy to leave under your pillow when you get up in the morning but a solid, important, goal that you feel determined to achieve.  Just pick one goal. Yes we officially give you permission to throw out all the other subsidiary goals like keeping your desk tidy at work. We don’t mind what your boss thinks of you. We are here to make sure you achieve your all consuming, number one, top priority, goal.

Be Specific

Write your goal down in a notepad and think about how you will know if you have achieved it. We at JTX Fitness have a tendency to have vague ambitions that continually change as we get closer to them..a very quick route to feeling very unmotivated.   So if you want to shed a few pounds make sure you are clear how many pounds you want to lose, how much you weigh now and by when.

Keep It Healthy

If you want to lose weight your target BMI should be between 18.5 and 25. If you have a fitness goal give yourself adequate time to train for that ultra marathon challenge you have been dreaming about.

Think Of A Reward

The idea of achieving your number one, top priority, goal should make you feel excited. But along the way you are bound to have a few slumps so you’ll need an additional carrot to keep you going at the half way point. If you have a fitness goal, make sure the reward you chose isn’t counterproductive, like a big slice of chocolate cake. Why not treat yourself to a massage or day at the spa with a friend?

Tell Everyone

Well maybe the woman in the queue for the Tesco’s checkout doesn’t need to know your ambition to swim a mile… but make sure you tell your friends and family your goals. Tell them how important they are and how you intend to achieve them. You will need them to give you a good talking to if you fall off the wagon and most importantly not tempt you to go down the pub rather than the gym when you have had such good intentions all day. If she’s willing, get your mum involved, there is nothing like a look from a disappointed parent to focus the mind, no matter how old you are.

Give Yourself A Daily Reminder

Whether that’s a note on the fridge or an alarm on your phone. The quickest way to achieve a goal is by making it part of your life. Try to do something towards your goal for fifteen minutes a day.

Get Started

It sounds really simple but getting started is often the hardest thing to do. Start small. Focus on a week at a time and feel good about being a week closer to your ambition than you used to be. Exercise releases endorphins into the body that help fight the winter blues. The more you exercise, the less down in the dumps you will be. Enjoy!

Photo Credit: rodalenews.com, terme-slovenia.net/