Everyone starts working out with a lot of dedication. Unfortunately it can fade fast. These are our best tips for workout motivation to meet your goals.
Working out isn’t something you can do every once in a while or whenever you feel like it if you really want to see results. It requires you to show up every single day. You have to be dedicated to your workout routine, learn how to create healthy eating habits, and start taking better care of yourself as a whole.
That’s when the physical and mental transformations begin to happen.
However, it is common for people to experience some ups and downs on their fitness journey – like struggling to find workout motivation or stick to their diet. Everyone goes through these things at one point or another, but it’s on each person in the gym to push past them.
If you’ve been having a serious lack of motivation to get in the gym and work toward your goals, use these tips to build your drive back up.
1. Put on Your Workout Clothes
This is the simplest thing you can do to get your mind into workout mode. Putting on your workout clothes doesn’t mean that you have to go to the gym right away, but it does help significantly in making sure you show up.
If you seriously don’t feel like going to the gym today, try this trick. Grab your favorite workout outfit, put it on, and see how you feel once you look in the mirror or even in the next hour or so. You’ll be surprised how much of a difference this little trick makes.
2. Try Different Kinds of Workouts
Maybe the issue with your workout motivation right now isn’t that you’re not showing up to the gym, but that you can’t wait to leave once you’re there. Maybe you’re bored with your
workouts or feel like they’ve plateaued.
The quick fix for this is to switch up your routine.
Try out different kinds of workouts until you find what engages you the most. For some people, there’s no better way to do cardio than to take a spin or Zumba class. For others, lifting becomes a lot more fun in a CrossFit gym or some other group setting
Keep in mind you don’t have to do one single kind of workout, either. It’s possible to do yoga on Monday, lift on Tuesday, then run on Wednesday and still reach your goals!
3. Stop Comparing Yourself to Others
No matter where you are or what you’re doing to exercise, remember that you’re there to work on you. This means you have to focus on what your body needs to do to get a good pump and stop paying attention to what other people are doing.
You won’t be as buff as the strongest person in the gym right away and you’re not going to be as fast or as slim as them, either. More so, you have to keep in mind that they were once in your shoes as the newbie to working out and being fit.
Work on putting all your energy into your fitness journey instead of others’. This will do wonders to motivate you to keep going and work harder than you have in a while.
4. Stay Hydrated All Day Long
Comparing yourself to others is a mind game that does you no good. But, there could be a physical reason why you’re not feeling motivated to workout – like the fact that you’re dehydrated.
Water plays a significant role in every single thing your body does. It affects your mental focus, energy levels, digestion, and how well you rest, too.
If the body can’t perform such functions like its supposed to, it’s definitely not going to feel up for the challenge of working out. When you drink a good amount of water throughout the day, though, you increase your chances of getting it done!
5. Focus on That “Pumped Up” Feeling
Speaking of getting it done, take a moment to think about how amazing you feel when you finish a workout. There’s nothing that can match that sense of accomplishment when you walk out of the gym super sweaty or with your muscles shaking a bit.
Not to mention, the build-up of your pump and reaching that sense of accomplishment is also pretty cool. There’s something special about walking into the gym with low energy and walking out feeling like you can take on anything – especially if you’re making progress in how heavy you’re lifting or how much endurance your body has as a whole.
6. Take Advantage of Your Rest Days
Here’s something else to consider: maybe your motivation to go to the gym hasn’t disappeared, maybe it has completely run out (for now).
That’s what happens when you overwork your body and push yourself too hard. There’s a big difference between being dedicated and showing up, and not knowing how to listen to what your body is telling you.
You need to have a rest day.
Even if it’s an active rest day, you have to be able to let your body relax. This is the precious time that your muscles need to rebuild themselves after working so hard in the gym. It’s also your chance to do something with your time other than working out that benefits you in a different way.
7. Reward Yourself with Cheat Meals
One of the best things about rest days is that this is usually when people have their cheat meals. Cheat meals help you curb cravings and stick to your long-term goals. They’re also a great reward to give yourself after crushing your workouts, and they serve as a nice boost of motivation as cheat day gets closer and closer.
Keep in mind that there’s a difference between enjoying one well-deserved cheat meal and going completely off the rails, though. You risk guilting yourself and losing even more motivation to workout if you take cheat day too far. But, enjoying it mindfully offers many benefits.
8. Remember Why You Started
Another way to find the workout motivation you need is to take a look at the goals you’ve written down. Keep these at the front of your mind as you do every single rep, when you sit down to eat, and as you go about the rest of your day.
Whether you’re trying to grow 10 pounds of muscle or lose 20 pounds of fat, you have to remember why you started. This is the motivation you need when you’re thinking about skipping your last set or when you’re trying to cheat your reps. It’s what makes you show up at the gym in the first place and reminds you to work hard while you’re there.
9. Change Your Perspective
As smart as it is to remember why you started, you may discover there’s a deeper issue at play if you’re having to find workout motivation every single day. Working out really shouldn’t be a chore; it should be something that you genuinely want to do instead of a task that you feel obligated to complete.
If this isn’t the mindset you have right now, it’s time to change your perspective. Take a step back for a second and try to identify what it is about working out that you don’t like. Figure out the barriers you’ve created in your mind, then work past them.
Find ways to improve your relationship with working out. Do workouts that are more enjoyable to you or at least try not to be so hard on yourself.
10. Have Someone Hold You Accountable
The final way to boost your workout motivation is to have someone do it for you. Not to say that you should rely on them, but rather, commit to showing up for them as well as for yourself.
Get a gym partner to hold you accountable when you’re trying to skip out of a workout, or even better, hire a personal trainer! This is someone you can lean on when you’re really not feeling your workout for the day.
But, you’re still the one who has to put in the work.
That work does become a lot easier to do when you have someone making sure you show up and lifting you up throughout the workout. They’re there to offer you support, call you out when you’re cheating yourself, and remind you of the inner strength you have to keep going.
