Having trouble finding the right motivation to work out? Feeling a bit flat recently? Do you feel like you don’t have enough hours in the day? I put together this ‘handout’ I guess you could call it for a client who felt exactly the same way as a helpful tool to use to get back on track and help her regain her motivation and commitment. If you do feel as though your motivation is lacking, or you don’t have enough hours in a day PLEASE ,I encourage you to take a copy of this and have a look through. Even discuss parts of this with your trainers to help get back on track.

1.      Motivation

Everyone goes through times where they feel flat and unmotivated, most of the time this can just simply pass but the hard part is making sure it doesn’t stick and making sure it doesn’t create a negative image or feeling towards a particular task or place. A lack of motivation can and often does cause a lower productivity rate, whether you’re talking about people at work or people working for their own fitness and health. Don’t let a lack of motivation get the better of you. Here are some tips and pointers to help increase that motivation and get back on track;

1. Set goals

Start with simple goals and then progress to longer range goals. Remember to make your goals realistic and achievable. It's easy to get frustrated and give up if your goals are too ambitious.

For example, if you haven't exercised in a while, a short-term goal might be to walk 10 minutes a day three days a week. An intermediate goal might be to walk 30 minutes five days a week. A long-term goal might be to complete a 5K walk.

What’s your goal:

Short term:___________________________________

Intermediate:_________________________________

Long term:___________________________________

2. Make it fun

Find sports or activities that you enjoy, then vary the routine to keep you on your toes. If you're not enjoying your workouts, try something different. Join a volleyball or softball league. Take a ballroom dancing class. Check out a health club or martial arts center. Discover your hidden athletic talent. Remember, exercise doesn't have to be a chore or punishment— and you're more likely to stick with a fitness program if you're having fun.

Name your favourite 3 exercises/sports:

1.______________________

2.______________________

3.______________________

 

3. Make physical activity part of your daily routine

If it's hard to find time for exercise, don't fall back on excuses. Schedule workouts as you would any other important activity. You can also slip in physical activity throughout the day. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Walk up and down sidelines while watching the kids play sports. Pedal a stationary bike or do strength training exercises while you watch TV at night.

What are 3 things you can do at home to incorporate exercise daily:

1._______________________________________________________

2._______________________________________________________

3._______________________________________________________

4. Put it on paper

Are you hoping to lose weight? Boost your energy? Sleep better? Manage a chronic condition? Write it down. Seeing the benefits of regular exercise on paper may help you stay motivated.

You may also find it helps to keep an exercise diary. Record what you did during each exercise session, how long you exercised and how you felt afterward. Recording your efforts can help you work toward your goals — and remind you that you're making progress. This can simply be a notebook you keep in your bag for when you have completed any form of exercise.

5. Join forces with friends, neighbors or others

You're not in this alone. Invite friends or co-workers to join you when you exercise. Work out with your partner or other loved ones. Play soccer with your kids. Organize a group of neighbors to take fitness classes at a local health club.

6. Reward yourself

After each exercise session, take a few minutes to savor the good feelings that exercise gives you. This type of internal reward can help you make a long-term commitment to regular exercise. External rewards can help, too. When you reach a longer range goal, treat yourself to a new pair of walking shoes or new tunes to enjoy while you exercise.

7. Be flexible

If you're too busy to work out or simply don't feel up to it, take a day or two off. Be gentle with yourself if you need a break. The important thing is to get back on track as soon as you can. Don’t take weeks off, simply a day or two if need be, or schedule your week to allow for rest days.

Now that you've regained your enthusiasm, get moving! Set your goals, make it fun and pat yourself on the back from time to time. Remember, physical activity is for life. Review these tips whenever you feel your motivation slipping.

8.  Time

Below I have created a simply plan of the week. Your job is to input what you do for each day next to the hours that you do them or colour code the squares to match certain tasks i.e. PT/ exercise is blue. If you don’t have set hours for things, simply put them at the bottom of the page and we can discuss these together.

Time	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	sunday
6am
7am
8am
9am
10am
11am
midday
1pm
2pm
3pm
4pm
5pm
6pm
7pm
8pm
9pm
10pm

 

Any tasks not allocated to times or day: ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3.      Commitment

Now it’s really easy to go to bed and night and say yeah tomorrow morning I will get up early, go for a walk, eat right and be the best that I can be. It is entirely different however, to actually do these things. Over the next week, I want you to start by thinking about what commitments do you feel you can make. It’s all well and good for me to say, ‘right get up go for a walk 3 days a week’ but the reality is if you make the commitment yourself, its more personal, it means more to you and you are more likely to follow through with it. So I want you to think about and write down 3 commitments you can make. Take this week to think about it; if you can, start following through with them this week because that would be awesome!!!!!

Commitment 1;__________________________________________________________________

Commitment 2;__________________________________________________________________

Commitment 3;__________________________________________________________________

When you bring this back to show me and I take a photocopy of it, it helps to solidify these commitments because now, someone else knows about them, someone else can hold you accountable to the commitments you made by yourself and for yourself.

Take this home, fill it out, bring it back next week or when you come into the gym for your own workout, just pop it into your individual folders. This is a great foundation to rebuild your motivation and help you tackle your goals. Remember your trainers are here to help. USE US!!!! We want you to succeed and will do anything we can to help you do so. You’re never alone in this journey.

Deb

Personal Trainer Narellan

Difference Personal Training Narellan