Ensure that 60% of your Instagram homepage is people like becwilcock, bitesizedfitness, sixpackguide, lydiaemillen, dannibelle, ashleymfreeman and of course, the famous jenselter.
I don't know what could be more motivating. I know that I scroll aimlessly down my Instagram when I wake up in the morning and when I'm eating my breakfast. Seeing photos posted by the above people literally make me crave the gym, and by the time I've finished my breakfast I'm already mentally choosing which gym clothes to wear. Not only do they make you want to go to the gym, but they make you feel really guilty if you don't as 90% of what they post is their sculpted bodies!
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| dannibelle ashleymfreeman jenselter |
It's also nice to see someone else's progress and how far they've come, because that's motivation in itself. I like to know that you don't have to be a weight lifter, or a cardio fiend to have a body like theirs. Often there are videos posted which show you exercises you can do in the gym to train certain parts of your body, which I've found really helpful as I hate getting bored of the same workout.
2. Track your progress
It's daunting knowing that in order to reach your goal, whether that's losing weight or toning up etc, you have to go through that initial stage where it's really bloody hard work. Something that I wish I had done is taken a photo right from when I first started going to the gym last year, and compared it every 3 months up until the present day because I know I'd be able to see a difference. By taking a photo every week, or every month you can see how far you've come. We all know that we look at ourselves in the mirror a lot during an average day and because of this we're unlikely to notice any differences in our body, especially if their small. However, I guarantee that if you were to bump into an old friend they'd notice the difference straight away. This is why it's so important to take photos of your journey, so it's not just old friends that notice, but you too!3. Find a plan that works for you
There's no point in deciding that you're going to the gym 6 days a week, with Sunday as your rest day and you're cutting out carbs, and drinking only green tea etc etc etc, when you're body is used to none of the above. Your body needs to acclimatise, it needs time to react. By radically changing your lifestyle you're likely to injure yourself, lack energy and fail which inevitably will demotivate you. Bodies like slow change. So start off by changing the small things, like swapping full fat milk to semi skimmed milk. Cut out that biscuit you normally have after lunch and replace it with a banana and a lump of peanut butter. Then create a gym plan. I work in retail, and my shifts change every week so it's hard to have continuity. As soon as I receive my rota for the next week I write into my calendar when I'm going to the gym and what I'm going to do at each gym session. This is largely down to trial and error, but you need to find a routine which best suits you. I know I benefit more from a workout in the morning rather than the evening, so I go before work on the days when I start at 12pm. Planning is an important factor in how to stay motivated.
4. Fitness friends
Find a friend who you know wants to achieve the same as you. I go to the gym with my brother when he's back from boarding school. He's been really helpful in motivating me to achieve my goals and has stood over me as I've done ab curls, making me do 5 more reps. It's annoying at the time, in fact I just want to punch him, but those extra reps really add up at the end of the workout. There are also a lot of exercises where you can work together, such as Leg Throws.
5. Persevere
It takes time, it really does.
6. Prepare
I do a huge amount of food preparation to ensure I don't skip meals or end up eating a kebab from my local down the road! I work very close to Pret, which is great, but lethal at the same time. I'm always tempted by their starchy, carby sandwiches. To ensure I don't have that midday craving I take prepared food to work. This normally consists of a bottle of water with lemons / limes / cucumber, a snack supplement shake, a banana and a scoop of peanut butter and finally my main meal, chicken with vegetables. On my days off I prepare the food for the next couple of days. This also relates to my previous post about overnight oats.
7. Invest
Obviously don't do this if you are trying to save up to move out of home... But definitely buy the correct gym kit. There is nothing better than feeling the part, as embarrassing as that is. I often treat myself to a new sports bra or capris from Reebok in Oxford, because if you like what you're wearing, then you're likely to look good too. If you don't want to invest in some new shorts or shoes, how about you buy something like a skipping rope. My gym doesn't have equipment like that which you can use so I bought a very inexpensive Nike skipping rope which I take to the gym every time I go. I can't fault a skipping rope; but that's for another post.
8. Training days
Train different parts of your body on different days. Your body is clever, it will plateau at a certain level if you continually train one part of your body. As a girl I only really want to train my bum and abs, as well as a bit of cardio. If I go to the gym 5 times a week I'm likely to do two days on abs, one day on bum, one day on cardio and one day on a full circuit in order to incorporate a bit of arms too. The exercises I do each day change week by week to ensure I'm always testing my body, and pushing it in different ways.
9. Oldest trick in the book
Drink more water. Absolute pain in the bum as water doesn't taste of anything and is a pretty bland choice of drink. However, the benefits of water are so huge I can't even explain. Water raises your metabolism, removes by products of fat, increases energy levels, clears your skin, flushes out toxins, and aids digestion. Just a few benefits, I could go on. I definitely recommend adding fruit or veg into your water bottle; makes the world of difference!
10. Cut out sugar ASAP
I'm not going to go into too much detail because I will do another post on this but you need to cut your sugar intake! Recently the World Health Organisation advised people to cut their sugar intake by halve. Why? Not only is high sugar intake related to problems such as fatty liver disease, diabetes and rotten teeth, but it's highly addictive. Easy - swap your sugary cereal for porridge and agave syrup and you're nearly there! Think about substitutes which have less sugar content and have that instead. Stay away from "low fat" foods as well - they have a HUGE amount of sugar in them.
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