Four tips to help you ease into (and stick to) a new fitness routine
Have you promised yourself you are going to get fitter and healthier? Find out how to ease into (and stick to) a new fitness routine.
One of the more common resolutions we make is the desire to exercise more and improve our fitness routines. However, these resolutions are notorious for being broken. In fact, when it comes to New Year resolutions, the second Friday of January is known as “quitter’s day”, as it’s the day many of us break our newly set goals.
If your goal is to exercise more and you want advice on sticking to your goal, or you’re simply looking for ways to make a more consistent fitness routine, taking a softer approach may help you thrive.
By having a gentle introduction to your fitness goals, you take away some of the pressure and make the experience much more enjoyable, making it likelier for you to stick with your routine.
Looking for some inspiration on how to take a gentler approach? The fitness experts at GymEquipment.co.uk share their four tips on going easy on yourself by creating an enjoyable workout routine you can stick to.
1) Make it easier for yourself
A great way to take a gentle approach to your fitness routine is to make it as easy to do your workouts as possible. If you have to go out of the way to get to the gym after work, or you’ve set yourself the challenge of hours of outdoor workouts in miserable winter weather, you can be left feeling unmotivated and demoralised.
By making exercise as easy to achieve as possible, you can comfortably ease yourself into your new routine and make yourself much more likely to stick to it.
A good way to make workouts more convenient is to have everything you need to perform your routine at home. This allows you to fit in a workout in when you can from the comfort of your own home, meaning you don’t have to go out of the way to get a workout in.
One or two versatile pieces of equipment, such as a treadmill, a cross trainer, or barbells, can make it much easier to fit a wide range of workouts in at home and can be used for years down the line. If you aren’t ready to invest in larger pieces of fitness equipment, even smaller additions like kettlebells, medicine balls, and yoga mats can make exercising at home much more convenient.
2) Create realistic goals
A reason why many of us fail to stick to our new fitness routines is that we often aim too high. Going straight in with a gruelling schedule isn’t realistic, especially if you’ve been less active for a while.
These tough goals aren’t a great idea in the long term either, as people may struggle to fit a long workout regimen into their already busy daily schedules. And of course, motivation to work on fitness will no doubt dip when we soon realise that we won’t be able to achieve the goals we set for ourselves.
One of the most important considerations when creating realistic goals is time. Think about how often you will realistically be able to work out, taking into account not just work and chores, but other important aspects of your day-to-day life like family time and time to enjoy your already existing hobbies.
There are many different ways to fit your fitness routine into your week, including little and often when you find the time, such as in 10-minute increments, or longer training sessions to fit in once or twice a week.
You should also consider your current fitness level, as building strength and stamina is a marathon, not a sprint. Many of us don’t know how our fitness level will change in a year, so it may be better to set more regular goals instead of year-long ones, such as monthly or bimonthly aims.
3) Be flexible
While some revel in routine, some of us find it difficult to stick to a recurrent schedule. Whether you love or hate following a pattern when it comes to exercise, it’s a good idea to allow yourself flexibility. Life can easily get in the way of workouts, which can be demoralising if our hearts are set on ramping up our fitness routine. This in turn can leave us feeling unmotivated and leave us tempted to give it up altogether.
In these situations, rather than being strict with yourself, allow yourself some grace and take time off when needed. While it’s true that consistency is key when it comes to fitness, forcing yourself to exercise when you don’t have the time or you aren’t feeling up to it can make it feel much more like a chore and therefore less fun.
If you’re the type who enjoys following a detailed plan, this doesn’t mean that you have to give this up, but simply allow yourself to adjust this when necessary. Allowing fitness to fit into your schedule rather than building your life around your fitness routine can give you a much healthier approach to working out in the long term.
4) Choose activities for your personality type
A key factor when it comes to how likely you are to stick to your routine is how much you enjoy your workouts. So, in order to create a fitness schedule you love, it’s a good idea to consider which exercises work best with your personality. For example, if you’re outgoing and sociable, group activities can be a great way to get to know other people and enjoy your workout at the same time.
Alternatively, you can invite a friend over to exercise in your home gym, or even just the living room. This is a great option if you’re more outgoing but less keen on exercising in front of a group of strangers. Or if you’re more introverted and like your alone time, you may want to invest in gym equipment and exercise accessories to get the most out of your solo home workouts.
Remember, taking a gentler approach to your fitness routine doesn’t necessarily mean starting with gentle exercise if this isn’t to your liking. If you’re lively and often have a lot of energy to burn, something like dance, Zumba, or kickboxing could be ideal for you.
That being said, those who enjoy the slow life and are more laid-back may prefer softer forms of movement, such as yoga, walks, or the recent cosy cardio trend, which involves doing low-impact cardio from the comfort of your own home, in your cosiest clothing and soft lighting to create the perfect chilled out atmosphere.
A gentle and flexible approach will help you ease into your new workout
Times like the new year, or the approach of summer bring a great opportunity for a fitness routine refresh, whether you’re looking to mix it up, increase your time spent exercising, or try something new.
Whatever your goals are, a gentle and flexible approach will help you ease yourself into your new workout schedule and make you feel much more motivated to keep it up in the long run. You can do this by finding a workout you love and going easy on yourself as you adapt to your new routine.
It can be difficult to find the motivation to get out of the house for a workout in the chilly winter months, so try being kind to yourself by getting everything you need to enjoy a workout at home. If you have plans to ramp up your fitness routine for the months and years ahead, you may even want to invest in a home gym, which can be a cheaper alternative to a pricey gym membership in the long term.
Author: Will Broome, GymEquipment.co.uk
