Sticking with your Fitness Goals

Sticking with your Fitness Goals

Now that 2017 is officially here, many of us are looking forward to the new year, the new challenges and excitement that it will bring. It’s also common to set goals during this time, including fitness goals. We’ve already talked about setting New Year’s resolutions, but what about sticking to these goals?

If you’re planning on saying “New Year, New Me” in 2017, you’ll want to make sure that you take steps to stick with your new goals. Here are some tips for sticking with fitness goals for the long term.

Mix Things Up

If one of your New Year’s resolutions is to exercise five times a week, you’ll likely get bored pretty quickly if you do the exact same workout every day. To keep yourself motivated and stick to your goals, make sure to change things up from time to time. Not only will this help keep things interesting, but it will also allow you to exercise different muscle groups.

Bring a Friend

Working out with someone else can be powerful motivation. Plus, it’s often more fun! With this is mind, why not bring a friend when you work out? Or try a personal trainer? Having someone with you to keep you going can certainly help you stick to your goals.

Leave Guilt in the Past

If you skipped a few days at the gym or sat on the couch with a slice of pizza instead of heading out for a run, leave that in the past. Feeling guilty and defeated about “slipping up” doesn’t help and it can actually cause you to skip more workouts rather than motivate you to keep going. If you miss a workout or two, recognize what happened and look forward to getting back in the swing of things.

Track your Progress

Write down how often you exercise, what you do and how you feel, or use an app to track your progress. This will keep you motivated as you will be able to easily see how your lifestyle has changed.

Reward Yourself

Break your larger fitness goals into smaller ones and reward yourself when you accomplish these goals. Did you work out 30 minutes a day, five days a week for an entire month? That’s a cause to celebrate! Go out to a movie with friends or get yourself another small gift that you’ll enjoy. This will keep you going.