How to Stay Motivated to Work Out: Top 5 Ways to Stick It Out and Get It Done

It can be easy to start things, but even harder to follow them through to completion.  When it comes to working out, plenty of people make fitness goals for the New Year, the summer, or the month.  However, when hard work is involved and life gets in the way, it can be easy to get bored of a workout routine, especially if the results you want to see are coming too slowly.
If you need help sticking to a fitness routine, and are looking for ways to stay motivated to work out, we have 5 motivating steps that you can use to help you stick to your work out and stay motivated.

Step 1:  Motivate Your Inner Voice

• Ask yourself this question: Why do you workout?  Are you doing it to lose weight, to make new friends in a fitness class, or to live longer?  Everyone has their own reasons, and it is up to you to find the one particular reason that is your workout motivation.  Once you find your reason, stick to it and keep focused.
• Strengthen your inner voice:  If your inner voice is not strong, try to ignore the primary logic behind working out, or the things that make you not want to go to the gym.  Instead, focus on getting what you want.  Hone in on motivation and action, and your motivation will come easier to you.
• Use positive self talk:  If you talk down to yourself or try to punish yourself verbally for not working out, then working out is not going to be any fun.  Do not think about what will happen if you do not exercise.  Instead, focus on the food that will come from it when you do make the time to stay fit and in shape.  If you focus on the negativity, you will never be able to appreciate what you do.  Think of the positives and say things like, “I will”, “I can”, and “I did”.  These little inner talks will help you get yourself motivated and stay motivated to work out.

Step 2:  Set a goal

• Split it up:  It can be tough to motivate yourself to do anything if you do not have a goal in mind.  You can set up a goal for yourself at any point in this process, and it does not even have to be the end goal that you are looking to achieve.  In other words, you can simply set up a goal to achieve by the end of the day, week, or month.  For instance, if you want to lose 20 pounds altogether, and then make it a goal to lose 4 pounds by the end of the month.  This is 1 pound a week, and this will definitely seem a lot more manageable.  Your aim is to find ways to keep yourself motivated without getting overwhelmed.
• Commit to something:  Signing up for a walk or run can be a motivation for you to work out.  Once you have something that you feel like you need to work towards, you will have more motivation to get there.  Plus, the feeling of accomplishment once your goal is achieved will be reward enough from the process.
• Reward yourself:  Working out is tough, so if you have a goal then you might as well have a reward to make the end point seem more enticing.  Try to train your brain to want to work out.  For instance, after you complete a workout everyday for one week, treat yourself to a movie, a night out with friends, or to your favorite restaurant.  Basically, do what it takes to keep yourself going.
• Cut yourself some slack:  When it comes to working out, it can be easy to compare yourself to others or beat yourself up if you start feeling tired.  The thing to remember here is that working out is hard and it requires a lot of energy.  Once you have your goal, take it slow and do not worry if you stumble, fall, or want to quit – that is all a part of the process.

Step 3:  Take care of your body

Working out requires your full body’s attention.  As such, you are going to want to take care and nurture your body as best you can during this time.

• Eat healthy:  Regardless of whether you are working out or not, eating a healthy diet will help you stay motivated.  How can you work out if you do not feel good?  Working out and diet go hand in hand.  Remember that the healthier you eat, the healthier you will feel.  A good way to ensure that you have a healthy day is to start your day off with a healthy breakfast.  This will keep you energized throughout the day, help you maintain a healthy weight, and keep you feeling strong.
• Look good:  Looking good and feeling good also go hand in hand.  Perhaps a new pair of workout shoes or pants will motivate you to workout.  However, you should not have to spend a load of money to try to motivate yourself.  Keep it simple and use some new workout gear as a reward or incentive to get active.
• Change little things:  There are little things in our day that we can do to take care of our body.  For example, instead of sitting down to watch a show after your dinner, get up and go to the park for a brisk evening walk or talk a short jog around the block.  Little things like this can change how you feel about yourself and make you want to work out more.

Step 4:  Change your routine

• Go halfway:  If you find it hard to get up and work out, just get halfway there.  Usually, if you are already almost at the gym, park, or towards your fitness class, you are going to be less likely to turn around and head home.
• Keep your work outs varied:  It can be easy to get tired of the same workout routine and lose motivation.  If you are walking everyday and taking the same route, consider trying something different to kill your boredom.  For instance, try taking a kick boxing class online such as this one, swim at the local pool, or invite some friends to go on a hike.
• Invite some friends:  A great way to change up your routine and keep you wanting to work out is to get someone else to do it along with you.  This is going to help make you accountable and it will also motivate you to work out because doing it with someone else is usually a lot more fun than going at it alone.

Step 5:  Keep it positive

• Write it down:  Keep yourself motivated and accountable also by writing in a journal.  Track your daily workout routines and count calories to record your progress.  At the end of the week, you can look back and use your journal as motivation to see how far you have gone.
• Surround yourself with positivity:  When you need motivation, the worst thing that you can do is compare yourself to others or be around people who do not motivate you or put you down.  The good news is there are plenty of people who are looking for motivation as well.  Your job?  Find these people and work together to accomplish something.  Remember: strength in numbers is powerful

Kick Your Motivation Into Shape

Finding ways to stay motivated to work out can be tough.  We all have days where we do not what to do things that we know are good for us, but just remember that you are not alone in motivating struggles.  The great thing about working out is that you have the potential to feel amazing after a good work out.

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