It’s 2021 and you’ve decided to make fitness a part of your New Year’s resolution. You tell yourself that you’ll start on the very first day of the first month. Next thing you know, it’s already past Valentine’s and your dating chances fall short because you don’t feel confident enough.
But fitness isn’t concerned with resolutions and dates. It has more to do with your willingness to change the way you live your life. A healthy routine is better than nothing at all so you should congratulate yourself if you’re reading this article. That means you have taken a step forward and decided to improve your health.
“I don’t know anything about fitness…I just want to look like the next Instagram model”
Many people only want to involve themselves with fitness activities because they want to post pictures on Instagram, or guarantee themselves some likes for their appearance. And that’s totally fine. That means you know what you want. But that’s just a bonus. Being fit does more for yourself than other people so commit to the following steps.
Step 1: Set Your Sights On What You Want
It’s important to have a goal so that you have a sense of progress. If you’re simply doing something out of instinct, then chances are you may lose it in the long run. Making sure you have a realistic and achievable goal will motivate you once you complete it.
Any of your fitness goals could look like this:
- I want to lose weight.
- I want to be stronger.
- I do not want to develop heart disease.
For anyone who wants the track for muscle gains, you may consider asking professional advice from gym trainers. Places like Fit BodyBoot Camp and LA Fitness have experienced trainers who can give you the information you need about weightlifting and fitness related activities.
Each of these goals could be anyone’s. Make them personal and specific. Instead of saying “I want to lose weight,” you can tell yourself “I want to lose 10 pounds from the chocolate I’ve eaten this Valentines day for being alone.” Of course we jest.
You can tell yourself “I want to lose 10 pounds this February.” This gives it a sense of urgency. The deadline should enable you to jump into action as soon as you write it down. You can have this as your wallpaper, your mantra, or even your screensaver on your phone or computer. Make sure you are always reminded.
Step 2: Check Available Resources
So you’ve decided to lose weight. What’s the next step? Naturally, beginners would start with their diet and cut down on carbohydrates and follow the next popular fad diet. It’s good you have an idea on what to focus on but you should always check for the things you’re going to need, how much time you’re going to allocate, and the place you’re going to do. Planning is as important as an execution.
If you’re planning to lose weight then this is how it can play out:
- Plan a jogging route.
- Start jogging at 5 in the morning, everyday.
- Swap bacon for breakfast including oatmeal and bananas instead.
- Spend less time commuting to the nearby shopping mall and walk instead.
All of these activities involve the most mundane such as walking but these will help you progress in your goal to lose weight.
Step 3: Committing to the Plan
Let’s say you’ve started jogging at 5 AM everyday, then suddenly, you have more workload you can handle. Most people’s response would be to remove other commitments like cooking dinner for the family, or maybe pulling out of their driving classes.
This is not an option, unless some of your commitments are time sensitive. To achieve your goals, you will have to put in more effort into keeping committed. This where people fail most of the time. If you can keep the commitment for 30 days, you will have no problems achieving your goal in the future.
Step 4: Change of Pace
Once you’ve gone past the 30 days rule, you may find yourself bored. You may have already ticked off the list that you’ve lost 10 pounds for February, and you’re left wondering what to do next. The trick here is to up your goals. If you’ve lost 10 pounds for February, you can double that number for March.
Your new goal for March would become the following: “I want to lose 20 more pounds for March, and level up my meal plans.”
This statement reinforces your habit and keeps you disciplined, while simultaneously giving you a new target to accomplish. In the rare case that you fail to meet your target for February, consider changing the time frame. You can change one month to two weeks. This will trick the mind into thinking that the very same goal looks different.
The process for achieving your desired fitness goals is cyclic in nature. It’s all ideation, planning, execution, and commitment. It’s the same four steps and is very familiar. Ask any health nut or expert and they will tell you different routines but it’s all the exact same steps.