Many people wish they were a little more healthy than they are now, and as a result find themselves signing up for gym contracts, slimming groups and more. However, motivation can be a key problem here: after a busy day at work, sometimes the last thing you want to do is go out and exercise. If you’re one of the many people who have promised themselves a new start but are struggling to stick to their best-laid plans, then help is at hand. From watching some motivational videos to making exercise as easy as possible by getting the right gear, there’s a lot that you can do. Here are some great tips for getting your goals back on track.
Get your goals clear
The first thing to do before heading back into the fitness world is to set some achievable goals for yourself based on what you actually want. Say you would like to lose a little weight: doing exercises that are designed mainly for toning, such as push-ups, are probably not the best idea at this stage. Instead, you’re best off finding exercises that are more cardiovascular in nature. When it comes to setting a weight loss target, such as a certain number of pounds, be sure to choose a realistic one. Remember that you can always overachieve if you work really hard at your fitness plan – so a relatively low target doesn’t mean that you won’t get very far.
Motivational videos
When you’re feeling a little down in the dumps about the progress of your fitness program, it’s a good move to take a step back and get some outside advice. For the physical side of things, a personal trainer or fitness expert can help. However, for the psychological side, you may need to take a look at some motivational videos on sites such as YouTube to find out more. Plenty of users, such as MotivationGrid, share videos that can help you get to the next level with your workouts – so why not give them a try?
The right gear
If you don’t have the right clothing and other gear for exercising, then your goals will take longer to reach – and that’s no good for someone who wants to get back on the fitness bandwagon. Compression clothing is a must-have for anyone who is doing pretty much any exercise (perhaps other than swimming and water sports), as it helps your muscles to perform at their best by making sure that they get as much blood as possible. The Tommie Copper online store has plenty of items made from this sort of material, and you can see a selection over on the Tommie Copper Twitter page.
In addition, it may also be worth looking into non-clothing gear. If you’re incorporating a lot of walking into your exercise and fitness regime, for example, then having a pedometer attached to your exercise clothes can give you a big confidence boost as it can allow you to see at a glance just how many steps you’ve managed to achieve. For those who are really tech-savvy or keen to chronicle their fitness journey in numbers, meanwhile, a watch that monitors your pulse can also be a good move. These items aren’t always prohibitively expensive, either: many are available second-hand on sites such as eBay, while there are also budget versions of many pieces of “exercise tech” that don’t come with the major-brand price tags.
More shopping tips
As well as what you do buy, it’s also important to think about what not to buy. If improving your diet is a big part of your plan to get back in shape, for example, then you need to make sure that you don’t buy too much junk food – or, indeed, any at all. Going grocery shopping after you’ve just eaten a wholesome and nutritious meal is a good idea as it means that you won’t be as tempted to buy unhealthy snacks.
Getting in shape isn’t an easy task, and it’s not something that people tend to achieve overnight. However, by making some strategic choices, it is actually possible to achieve those weight loss and health outcome goals and start living your best life. From finding appropriate and comfortable workout clothing to shopping at the right time to maximize the chances of healthy choices, there are a whole host of steps you can take to ensure that your fitness journey goes in the direction of progress
