I have been exercising for 20 years...
When I say 20 years I mean 20 years. I only take two weeks vacation every year and never miss a day unless I have an emergency. Thank God my emergencies are very rare in my life.
I exercise when I am sick, I exercise when I am hurt, I exercise when I am tired, I exercise when I am disappointed, I exercise when I feel depressed, I exercise when I get very good news or bad news, I exercise when my life drastically changes, I exercise on holidays, I exercise on weekends when I miss a day, I exercise when I am angry, I exercise when I don’t have energy, I exercise when I work doubles… You probably get the point by now.
If you are human, you are going to struggle many times to exercise...
Therefore, you may relapse on your weight loss program. I know how you feel. I have the same feelings you have towards exercise. The only difference between you and me that may exist is that I exercise no matter what and you give up when life interferes.
What sets me apart from you is something you can learn. I am not special and just like you I struggle in many areas of my life, but I have many tools that help me not to relapse or relapse less frequently- proven ways to stay motivated on your weight loss program.
I am going to share with you the 5 tools I use to be consistent in my exercise and other good behaviors that allow me to lose weight, stay healthy, progress and be happy. If you use these tools, you will be unstoppable.
1. Recall the pain. When you started your weight loss program, there was some discomfort in your life that gave you the motivation to change. For example, you were getting divorce, you were diagnosed with a chronic disease, you were embarrassed of your family pictures you took last time because you noticed you gained a lot of weight. You only know the trigger that got you off your comfort zone.
Take your time to write down all the painful reasons...
Feel the pain and don’t you ever forget the pain that is giving you the motivation to change. If you don’t want to ever be there again, you will never stop doing what is helping you to get out of such pain.
2. See the future you. Always have in mind how your life will become easy when you become healthier. You would be able to do anything you want. You will be free to run, hike, bike, buy the clothes you want, take as many pictures you want without being concerned about your look. You will be free of diseases created by your lifestyle. Think about how different you will be from the rest and how you are in the minority of healthy people. That should make you proud.
Also make sure to write down all the future and current benefits...
you will and are getting from being active. This also gives you a boost to go to exercise when you don’t feel like it
3. Think about your family. You can’t lead by words. You can only lead by example. If you don’t want your family to be sick and overweight, don’t give them a bad example. Talk to yourself each time you don’t want to exercise and understand how important your family is. You can only prove to yourself how important your family is by acting, not by saying it.
4. Learn about anatomy. Understand that you are getting old and the only way to stay young is by having an active life and eating healthy. There is no other way. If you understand that, you would not want to miss a day of exercise because you are getting old and losing everything you work for after 72 hours of your last exercise.
5. This too shall pass. Pain, depression, stress, being ill and all you can think about, shall pass. You can’t stay still waiting for it to pass and then go back after many months. You must be proactive in the middle of the storm or pandemic to help yourself to overcome such difficulties. Think that whatever you are going through it would not be forever.
These are my 5 top tools- proven ways to stay motivated on your weight loss program...
These are the reasons why I am very extroverted, work a lot, have a lot of energy and don’t miss a day at the gym, work, my reading, my meditation and anything you can think that improves my life.