by Tami Raco Personal Trainer and Health & Nutrition Coach
Almost everyone knows that regular physical activity, mindful healthy eating and stress reduction are the keys to healthy living. But when it comes to the hustle and bustle of our busy lives, it is difficult to make necessary changes. The one big factor that helps convert a behavior into a lifestyle is consistency. Consistency is the key to long term success.
When it comes to making exercise a regular part of your lifestyle, focusing on the positive aspects of change can help make it a more pleasurable experience. This is an important consideration as the brain rewards what it sees as pleasurable by increasing good mood hormones like dopamine and serotonin. Learning to enjoy the process of physical activity (aka exercise) can help increase these levels making exercise a more rewarding and lasting experience.
Use the five following tips to help shift your focus to making exercise an enjoyable and consistent part of your lifestyle.
1. Schedule Your Workouts: Book your workouts into your schedule like you do a professional or health care appointment. If you take the time to plan your schedule and include times for exercise it is more likely to become a habit. Then if something or someone tries to creep into the space you designated for exercise you can say, “Sorry but I have a commitment at that time.”
2. Practice journaling: Use a journal either digital or on paper to track your progress and record how you feel after you exercise. Use the notes on your phone, a voice recording, an app or a little note pad. Simply state a few statements on how you feel. Did you feel like you accomplished something? Did you feel energized? Writing down the positive aspects of how you feel helps shift your mindset to perceiving exercise as something positive. This, in the long term, will help you make it a lifestyle and not a whim.
3. Find a workout buddy: A workout buddy can add a layer of accountability to help you stay on track and have fun in the process. Enlisting a friend, spouse or family member to workout with will help the time pass faster, make the time more enjoyable and makes you less likely to blow off a workout. If you cannot find a person who is likely to be as committed as you (or even more committed) consider hiring a personal trainer for a few sessions a month to help get you on track. Some gyms even offer small workout groups led by a trainer at a less expensive rate than one on one sessions.
4. Treat Yourself: Give yourself small rewards after you complete a full week of scheduled workouts. This does not mean a cheeseburger and fries but something small that you like. Set bigger goals like a 1-month goal and after you reach that goal treat yourself to a new piece of exercise clothing. By treating yourself for the workouts you are activating the pleasure centers in your brain, creating positive pathways linked to the behavior you want to become a lifestyle.
5. 66 Days to the Sweet Spot: There is a big difference between discipline and habit. Habits require less energy than discipline. But you need to put up with the discipline to turn it into a habit. Research on behaviors show that it takes an average of 66 days to acquire a new habit and turn it to the point of “automaticity.” Do not give up too soon. Give it the proper chance to turn from a disciplined effort to a natural part of your life. Do not be a disciplined person. Be a person of powerful habits.
Take these steps to help you fix your mind on the positive aspects of exercise and not only will your body improve but so will your perception of living a healthier life!
