Congratulations on wanting to get fit! It is not easy to commit to fitness but it will soon become part of your lifestyle. Deciding to improve your life by getting fit and healthy is one of the best decisions you will make. Getting healthier will only improve all other aspects of your life. In this blog post, I will share how fitness became a part of my lifestyle and how it can become a part of yours.
Getting Fit | My Fitness Journey
The truth is, I wasn’t always into fitness but as soon as I started college, my life became more stressful and I needed an outlet to escape. I enrolled myself in a couple of fitness classes in college and it sort of became my drug, a good drug.
It’s been proven that exercise reduces the body’s levels of stress hormones, such as adrenaline and cortisol. It also stimulates the production of endorphins, chemicals in the brain that are the body’s natural painkillers and mood elevators. All I knew was that exercise made me feel good and it was a healthy thing to do so I wanted to keep on doing it. I never stopped from there and I continue to learn more about fitness to this day. Here are my tips to motivate yourself to get started.
1. Motivate Yourself
You will be your #1 motivator. Find a reason to commit to getting fit. Why are you doing it? Is it to have more energy for work, your family, to be healthier for your kids, or yourself. You are likely less likely to quit if you have a goal of why you are doing it. Have a photo of your goals to motivate yourself to keep going. Don’t rely on others to motivate you. Some will even try to question you and say it’s a waste of time, but it isn’t.
2. Getting fit is a lifestyle
I’m sure you’ve heard this before but getting fit is only part of the equation. It is a total turnaround in the way you live your life. Yes, you can exercise and eat the same but chances are you will fall off the wagon. Food is fuel and if you eat junk food, chances are you will not have the required energy to want to workout.
Other things come into play such as sleep, stress levels, way of thinking, etc. For example, let’s say you eat a hamburger and stay up until 1am watching movies. Do you think you will wake up early for that morning run? No.
It is important to take baby steps. If you go too fast you might give up. It all depends on what level you are at. If you haven’t worked out in years, then I suggest starting small by going on walks and cutting out some bad foods.
3. Start Small
The point is to get started with whatever you can do as of now. Anything counts as a start. For example, I used to take 10 min walks during my lunch breaks at work. I would listen to music and just walk a bit. I felt much more energized to continue work after my walk. It beat sitting there scrolling through Instagram. Find a time that works for you and do at least 30 min of physical activity a day. You can increase the time later.
PS: If you have a dog, you already have a forever workout buddy. Lucky you!
4. Research & Get Inspired
Well, you are reading this blog so chances are you are already doing it. Nobody is born knowing how to live to their full potential so make sure you do your research. You can watch Youtube videos on the proper form to do workouts, what to eat before and after workouts, how to sleep better, and ways to reduce stress. Here are a couple of inspiring fitness people I follow:
Also, find workouts you enjoy doing. This will help in keeping you motivated and less likely to quit. Put on your favorite music as well to pump you up.
Change your mindset. Little by little change your way of thinking more positively. Read books, blogs, listen to inspiring podcasts, or watch self-help videos. I have a personal development section on my blog where you can find topics on improving your way of thinking. Check it out HERE. : )
5. Be Diciplined
I know you love your friends and family but are they encouraging you or pushing you away from your goals of getting fit and healthy? This is something that is not easy to do. Trust me, I’ve had to cut off some people that I loved and cared for that were not encouraging me in my goals. It is important to LOVE yourself enough to have the courage to say NO when you want to.
Let’s say your friends invite you over for tacos & drinks but you want to get to the gym and stay on track with your healthy meals. What do you do? Politely decline and put YOURSELF first on what YOU want to do. If you let this slide, it will always slide.
Here’s a good way to look at it. Let’s say you’ve let your friends know about your new fitness goals and that you want to improve your way of eating. You might feel like a mean person saying “No” to them but, isn’t mean for them to ask you to come out for drinks and junk food when they know you are on your fitness journey? Give that a thought!
I hope I inspired you to get started. Check out this post on Strengthening Your Immune System. It will help you eat healthier for your new life.
xoxo
Xio💚
