I know it is cold during these winter months.. at least if you live in Northern Utah....:) so going on a nice walk outside isn't really feasible.. so my advice to you, is do what you can!! It can only "help" in the process of shedding those unwanted lbs that you are working on so hard already! keep it up!!!!
i found this website, zenhabits.net and I'd like to share an article i found:
4 Simple Steps to Start the Exercise Habit
I have to admit that I have my ups and downs with the exercise habit.
So I know that it’s not the easiest habit for most people, and most people’s experiences consist of starting and stopping and starting again. Which is fine — don’t beat yourself up about it. The important thing is starting again.
The Main Problems
So why do most people have trouble making exercise a regular habit? Well, there are probably a number of factors, but here are the main ones as I see it:
- Too difficult. People set out with a lot of ambition and enthusiasm, and start out with a big goal. “I’m going to go to the gym for an hour a day!” or “I’m going to run 30 minutes every day!” The problem is that the goal is too difficult to sustain for very long. You can do it for a few days, but you soon run out of energy, and it becomes a drag to do it.
- Too many goals. Often we set out to do too much. We want to run, and lift weights, and eat healthy, and quit sweets, and stop drinking soda. Well, those are multiple goals, and you cannot focus on the exercise habit if you’re trying to do all the others at the same time. Or we might start with one goal, but then get caught up in another goal (to stop procrastinating, for example), and lose our focus on the first one.
- Not enough motivation. It’s not a lack of discipline, it’s a lack of motivation. The most powerful motivators, in my experience, are logging your habit and public pressure. There are others that help as well.
So how do we solve those problems? Keep it simple. Here are the 4 simple steps to start the exercise habit (and keep it going). I should note that you can use these 4 steps to start any habit.
- Set one easy, specific, measurable goal. There are several keys to setting this crucial goal:
- Written: Write this down. Post it up. If you don’t write it down, it’s not important.
- Easy: Don’t — DO NOT — set a difficult goal. Set one that is super, super easy. Five minutes of exercise a day. You can do that. Work your way to 10 minutes after a month. Then go to 15 after 2 months. You can see what I mean: make it easy to start with, so you can build your habit, then gradually increase.
- Specific: By specific, I mean what activity are you going to do, at what time of day, and where? Don’t just say “exercise” or “I’m going to walk”. You have to set a time and place. Make it an appointment you can’t miss.
- Trigger: I recommend that you have a “trigger” right before you do your habit. For example, you might always brush your teeth right after you shower. The shower is the trigger for brushing your teeth, and because of that, you never forget to brush your teeth. Well, what will you do right before you exercise? Is it right after you wake up? Right after your coffee? Right when you get home? As soon as you take off for lunch? A trigger that you do every single day is important.
- Measurable: By measurable, I mean that you should be able to say, definitely, whether you hit or miss your goal today. Examples: run for 10 minutes. Walk 1/2 a mile. Do 3 sets of 5 push ups. Each of those has a number that you can shoot for.
- One goal: Stick to this one goal for at least a month. Two months if you can bear it. Don’t start up a second goal during that 30-day period. If you do, you are scrapping this goal.
- Log it daily. This is the key habit. If you can log your workout, you will start to see your progress, and it will motivate you to keep going. And you have to make it a habit to log it right away. Don’t put it off, and say you’ll do it before you go to bed. As soon as you’re done working out, log it. No exceptions. And don’t make the log complicated — that will only make you resist doing the log. Just the date, time, and what you did.
- Report to others. I think this is key. You can do it on your blog, on an online forum, with your spouse, or friends or family, or a workout partner, or a coach, or a group, or a class. However you set it up, make it part of the process that you have to report your daily workout to other people. It could be using an online log, or on a forum, or through email, or the phone, or just by telling your co-workers what you did this morning. But be sure that they know your goal, and that you are going to report to them, and be sure that they are expecting it every day.
- Add motivation as needed. The first three steps might be enough for you to get the habit going. But if not, don’t just give up. If you miss two consecutive workouts, you need to look at why, and add a new motivation. Rewards, more public pressure, inspiration, whatever it takes. You can add one additional motivator, and then see if it works. If you miss two more consecutive workouts at any time, add another motivator. And so on, until the exercise habit sticks.
Good luck!!! let us know what YOU do for your workout!
Hello to all, hope you are doing great!! just thought i'd give me 2 cents in....
ReplyDeleteI actually like to exercise and always have made an effort to do something 3-4 times a week. some weeks are better than others of course. It's more finding the time to work out, getting babysitters as i have kids and etc..
i do feel MUCH better when i do, it is something i get to do for ME and it gets me out of the house:)
but i was recently recommended an At-home-video workout and i LOVE it. It is called Jillian Michaels 30 day shred.
If you watch The Biggest Loser like i do, you know Jillian from that show! she is one tough girl!
but it is ONLY 20 minutes, and it is awesome! It mixes up strength training, cardio, and abs in only 20 minutes!
It works and it is kicking my butt!!! sorry..:)
I have a gym pass, and like going, i seem to stay motivated going to the classes etc they offer, because there they just tell me what to do! BUT, if you are looking for a home video to do and ONLY have 20 minutes like me
(that is how i feel most of the time) than you should try this for sure!!! i can honestly say it was fun! working out fun?
i really thought it was!
AND it is only $9.99 in stores! most videos are more $$ at least i think so...
i'm sure it is sold everywhere, but i bought mine at k-mart! there ya go, my 2 cents from me to you!
what do you like to do???
Hello Edieters!! :) I have a great work out and ANY of you can barrow it! It's called Slim in 6!! It's a great six week program and it's fun to do. Cardio plus abb-butt-thigh workout! It's great! Good luck with Ediet. I believe.
ReplyDelete