Get fit and don't quit
15th January 2020
It can be hard to find the motivation to exercise during winter months; it’s cold outside and those extra layers help hide our extra layers. Yet many of us will be making it our New Year’s resolution to get in shape and improve our fitness. So we want to help you get fit and not quit!
Because it’s not all about what’s going on externally; exercise and physical fitness are extremely important for our bodies internally. And remember, our body is the only real home we have.
It is medically proven that people who do regular physical activity reduce their risk of serious medical problems. Exercise reduces the risk of diabetes 50%, heart disease and strokes by 35% and depression and dementia by 30%[1]. Which is why we’re here to help.
In the UK, the most common New Year’s resolution is to exercise more and the second is to lose weight[2]. The reason these are so common is because they’re difficult to stick to. As a consequence the resolution ends up being repeated each year. In fact, most people don’t even manage a month of their new fitness regime, In fact the 12th January has been coined “Quitters’ Day”, since it’s the day that most people give up.
We want to help you get past “Quitters’ Day” and far beyond, so have devised some tips to help you stay on track.
When people quit, it’s usually for one of the following 4 reasons:
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Not seeing results quick enough
The key way to counteract the problem of not seeing results quick enough and therefore thinking that the exercise isn’t working, is to use an app to track your body measurement, calorie burn and BMI. It can be difficult to see changes to your body until your clothes start to feel a bit loser, but tracking your progress will enable you to see the gradual improvements and could push you to and achieve your goals.
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Reaching your goal and considering it job done
To overcome the issue of giving up once you’ve reached your fitness goal is to find exercises that you enjoy and get into a routine. It has been found that it takes an average of 66 days for a habit to be formed[3]. Therefore, once you’ve managed to exercise for 66 days, you should begin to find it easier to get into the mind-set for exercising.
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Unrealistic goals
Setting unrealistic goals will leave you feeling deflated and demotivated when you fail to reach your target. If you know you hate running, don’t set yourself the target of running 10k within a 2 months. This goal is unlikely to be achievable because you won’t enjoy exercising so will make excuses not to. Instead, choose an exercise you think you might enjoy and start slow, building up your fitness gradually. If you rush in and try to do too much you risk an injury, which could set you back and prevent you exercising altogether. It is important to have a goal though, whether it’s fitting into an old dress, being able to swim 10 lengths or walking up a flight of stairs without feeling out of breath. These goals are a way to measure your improvements and are a great source of motivation.
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Boredom
If you find you get bored of exercising quickly, try and do a range of exercises so they don’t become boring and monotonous.
It has also been found that working out with friends greatly increases the likelihood that you’ll stick to your workout[4]. So why not take your friend or partner along and motivate each other?
If you’re interested in signing up for one of our classes, or simply want to find out more, you can sign up to our free Move More programme.
Joining a class may seem a bit daunting, particularly if you’ve never done one or you feel too unfit. Because we understand this, we also have a couple of apps; Active 10 and Couch to 5k. These apps help you to gradually increase your output with tips to help you improve. Once you feel ready, speak to a member of our team who will explain the classes and hopefully put you at ease.
[1] https://www.oneyouharingey.org/move-more/
[2] https://www.telegraph.co.uk/health-fitness/body/common-new-years-resolutions-stick/
[3] https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/ejsp.674
[4] https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/10/161004081548.htm