It's easy to fall into an unmotivated state of mind. Maybe you keep thinking, "okay, one more episode, then I'll head to the gym", but "one more episode" turns into three and you still have yet to remove yourself from the couch. I get it, we've all been there. BUT, what we don't want is this one unmotivated day to be the beginning of several. Try these sly strategies to subtly trick yourself into getting up and heading off to the gym.
1. Put on tennis shoes. Once you slip them on, you will instantly feel a bit more motivated to put them to use! Plus, why waste all the effort you put into tying your shoes?
2. Get outside. More often than not, if you are outside you're probably going to do more than sit on a chair and bask in the sun. Go for a walk! Try that quick outdoor workout you saw on KATHLETICS Facebook page! Whatever you do, get movin'!
3. Go for a walk and bring your dog. Walking is an excellent choice of exercise. It gets the blood pumping and allows you to "get out of your head". Make this your daily routine so you and your pup can exercise together!
4. Call a friend. See if a fit friend or family member will hit the gym with you. Then you can encourage each other and keep one another in check. A little friendly competition never hurt anyone either. :)
5. Make use of TV commercials. It's easy to get sucked into an episode of Law & Order: SVU (trust me, I know), then you look at the clock to realize you've watched three, hour-long episodes. Whoops... If you're going to watch endless amounts of TV and/or Netflix, at least utilize the commercials for some exercise! Challenge yourself - see how many jumping jacks you can during the commercials. Or, switch exercises when the commercial changes. For example, 1 min mountain climbers into 30 sec reverse crunches into 30 sec burpees, etc.
6. Turn up the beats. Play some pump up music and get movin'! NEWS FLASH: Dancing is an incredible workout (and highly preferred/recommended by yours truly). So you might as well shake what yo' mama gave ya!
7. Stretch. Lay out a yoga mat and reach for your toes. Stretching increases mobility and promotes blood flow. The likelihood of you working out or practicing yoga after you stretch will definitely increase. You should be stretching before you exercise anyway, so think of this as an intro to your workout routine.
8. Scroll through the 'gram. Instagram has SO many fitness influencers out there that provide FREE workouts daily. Follow your favs for your daily dose of motivation. I hear KATHLETICS has a few. ;)
Let's get motivated!
XOXO
- Katharine