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There are a lot of reasons that you might want to work out. Exercise helps keep you healthy, it tones your body, and can boost self-esteem. Exercise is one of the most important things for helping to maintain physical and mental health.
But sometimes it’s hard. Not everyone is able to jump up every day and pour hours into their exercise routine. What is it that separates the people who hit the gym every day from the rest of us? Time? Money? Supplements?
Neither of those – it’s motivation. If you’re motivated enough to get strong and healthy, then you’ll find a time and a place to do it regardless of your finances. In this article, we’re going to discuss some of the best motivation tips to encourage you to work out.
Why workout motivation is crucial
We all know that exercise is good for us. However, not all of us are bodybuilders or athletes. Many of us aren’t even fit. Why is this?
One of the main reasons that not everyone reaches their desired level of fitness is because of a lack of motivation. Working out is hard work, certainly. However, the mental workout of actually psyching yourself up enough to get to the gym is often more intense than the workout itself.
Sometimes, it’s easy to forget that a workout is called a workout because it involves a lot of work. When we are idealizing and fantasizing about our workout, it can seem a lot less daunting. However, when we are faced with going to work out, the reality sets in and it can become a lot harder to motivate ourselves.
It’s not as easy as just looking at a workout motivation meme and jumping up out of your computer chair. Learning some tips and tricks to help you develop motivational skills can be extremely important for helping to guide your workouts.
Importance of workout motivation for bodybuilders
Bodybuilders and athletes require a great deal more motivation than the average individual. Bodybuilders require constant motivation. If they’re going to achieve their goals, then they need to be on the ball all the time.
Bodybuilders need to be focussed – all the time, not just while they’re at the gym.
A professional bodybuilder needs to develop motivation skills that they can carry with them everywhere, always. They will constantly be tempted by unhealthy food, activities, or to miss their workouts for social mingling. If they’re truly motivated to get their body into the shape that they want it, they’ll have to prioritize bodybuilding.
Workout motivation tips
Some people are naturally motivated, and some people aren’t. If you struggle with finding motivation, these tips can help you.
Start Small
Remember to start small. Starting an exercise routine with unrealistic expectations is a great way to set yourself up for failure.
Many people find that they have a hard time motivating themselves to exercise for an hour a day. If you have spent the majority of your life without exercise, of course this will be difficult! Trying to keep up with a routine that you’re not prepared for can discourage you and potentially lead to failure.
10-Minute Rule (Commit Less)
This works with the tip mentioned above. One of the best ways to start a new workout routine is to commit to the 10-minute rule. It’s really quite simple – commit to doing simply 10 minutes of exercise.
If you feel like stopping after 10 minutes, then feel free – but you’ll probably find that you want to continue.
The hardest part about starting a new workout is committing to a long period of high-intensity exercise. The 10 minute rule allows you to treat yourself by only committing to a short stint of exercise.
Start small. Do a short, 10-minute workout mixing pushups and crunches. Run around the block. Get your heart going, but don’t set the bar too high – literally.
Write Down Your Goals
Write down your goals. This is one of the best ways to stay motivated. Working out can sometimes seem like a fruitless endeavour – the benefits and the results of your workouts often seem so far away.
If you lose sight of your goals, then it’s going to be easy to lose sight of your exercise routine. One of the best ways to stay motivated and in gear is to write down your goals and stick with them.
Try the Buddy System
Working with a friend is one of the best ways to remain motivated. Creating a system with a good friend is a great way to encourage yourself to work out.
One of the easiest ways to do this is to find a friend whose schedule works with yours.
You don’t even need to actually work out with your friend for this to work. You can simply motivate each other by sharing workout details and results with each other.
Plan Ahead
One of the best ways to ensure that you actually follow through with your workout is to make sure that you plan it ahead of time. Most successful professional bodybuilders and athletes know this.
It’s hard to maintain a routine if you don’t actually have a routine. A spontaneous workout can be great, however, you can’t rely on spontaneity if you’re hoping to achieve a goal. For this reason, it’s best to make sure that you have a solid workout plan set out for yourself.
Use the Tunes
One of the best ways to encourage yourself to workout is to use workout motivation music. Having a playlist of some of your favourite, upbeat music ready can be great for helping to get your spirits lifted.
Music is motivating, there’s no doubt about that. Some people find that it’s so motivating that they prefer to use it to ramp themselves up before they’re even at the gym. Watching one of your favorite music videos can be one of the best ways to psych yourself up for exercise.
Combine Exercise and Hobbies
Another fantastic way to motivate yourself to workout is to combine your work out with one of your other hobbies. We’ve already mentioned workout motivation music, but there are other hobbies that you can combine with workouts.
Do you like watching movies? Put on a movie before jumping on the treadmill. You can walk or jog for the duration of the movie instead of sitting down on your couch. This is a great way to get more than an hour of exercise – plus, if it’s a good movie, it’ll feel like no time has passed.
You can even combine playing video games and working out, if you have the right equipment. If you play games on your computer, you can invest in a desk treadmill. You can also play video games on the TV while you’re using an exercise bike.
Get Competitive
If you have a competitive side, working out is one of the best ways to embrace it. Taking part in a workout program like CrossFit can be a great way to engage your competitive side and enhance your motivation to work out. Competition has been shown to be one of the most effective workout motivators.
Feel Your Mood
Exhausted woman lying on floor breathing and resting after heavy cardio training in home gym
One way to get discouraged is to do some type of exercise that you’re not feeling. Lots of people don’t take this into consideration. You should tailor your workout to be effective for how you feel during the day if you want the motivation to workout.
For example, if you’ve been stuck inside all day and you’re feeling claustrophobic, you might want to go outside and go for a run. If you’re angry, then you might want to hit heavy weights. If you’re tired, lethargic, or depressed, you might only be able to motivate yourself to participate in a yoga class.
Stop Before You’re Exhausted
If you’ve lost motivation to workout, one thing to consider is how far you’re pushing yourself. Make sure that you stop exercising before you’re completely exhausted.
f you work out until you’re absolutely drained, you’ll start to associate exhaustion with exercise. This would make it a lot more difficult for you to actually get motivated to go back to the gym. Try to stop while you still have a bit of energy left, and while you’re feeling good.
Find Something You Like
Try to make sure that you can find an exercise that you actually enjoy. Don’t just hit the gym because that’s what everyone else is doing – do it because you enjoy it. If you don’t enjoy it, try something different.
There are many different types of exercise out there. You could try kickboxing, doing yoga, taking a dance class, walking, biking, swimming, mountain climbing, or playing sports. Find something that suits you, and you won’t have to motivate yourself much at all.
Workout Motivation Quotes
If you need a quick burst of motivation, workout motivation quotes can be one of the best ways to do this. There are tons of workout motivation quotes that can be found, from bodybuilders, athletes, famous individuals.
Here’s one to get you started.
“Bodybuilding is much like any other sport. To be successful, you must dedicate yourself 100% to your training, diet and mental approach” – Arnold Schwarzenegger
Conclusion
It can be very difficult to find the motivation to work out. Hopefully, these tips and tricks will help you find that spark of motivation. Good luck, and happy exercising.
