How to make yourself enjoy working out
It may sound cliché, but it’s true: exercising is good for you. It’s good for your mind, body and soul, because it keeps you healthy, improves your mood, makes you strong and reduces stress. We’re sure that you know all of this. Enough reasons to hit the gym daily, but let’s be honest, for most people this is not the case. You know all the benefits of exercising and still, you have a love/hate-relationship with it. Especially when you’re not yet used to going to the gym, exercising can be uncomfortable. Gasping for air on the treadmill, not being able to bend your knees for 3 days because of the muscle pain. We get it, it’s not the best. But you know how they say that every beginning is difficult? It is the same with exercising. Once you’re absolutely in love with your fitness routine, going to the gym will be easy peasy. That’s why in this blog, we’re sharing our best tips on ‘how to make yourself enjoy working out’. Curious? Keep on reading!
Love at first sight?
There are basically two types of people:
- People who immediately enjoy exercising
- People who need to learn how to love exercising.
In which of the two categories you’ll fall will depend on your personality, preferences, fitness goals and past experiences.
That being said, research suggests that enjoying your workout is a key factor in whether you’ll stick with it long-term. That’s why it’s important to find a type of exercise that you really like. It will make it easier to commit to it. In other words, if you don’t like running, don’t sign up for a marathon. Instead, figure out what kind of sport you DO like, so you can fall in love with it.
It’s also important to remember that Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither is your dream body. The more you stick to your workouts, the more results you will see, and the more you’ll love going to the gym to maintain your results and improve.
11 ways to yourself enjoy working out
1. Start Small
One of the biggest mistakes people make when starting a new exercise routine, is that they set unrealistic goals. It’s unrealistic that you’ll be able to squat 80 kg in two weeks if you have never lifted weights before.
When you set unrealistic goals, chances are that you will get demotivated. You won’t hit your goals, and you may even struggle. Instead, start with small goals and slowly increase the intensity and duration of your workouts.
You don’t have to spend hours at the gym every day to reap the benefits of exercising. Even a 10-minute walk around the block or a short yoga session can be beneficial for your health.
Set small, attainable goals for yourself, and slowly increase the intensity and duration of your workouts as you become more comfortable.
2. Find Sport That You Enjoy
The key to sticking to an exercise routine is finding an activity you enjoy. If you hate running on a treadmill, don’t force yourself to do it. There are plenty of other ways to exercise that are just as effective and more enjoyable.
Some people enjoy dancing, swimming, cycling, hiking, strength training or playing a sport. Want to know if becoming a gym member is something for you? Sign up for our free day pass and try out our gyms.
Experiment with different sport types until you find one that you genuinely enjoy. When you enjoy the activity, exercising won’t feel like a chore, and you’ll be more likely to stick to your routine.
3. Have a set workout Schedule
Don’t know about your calendar, but ours usually fills up fast. That’s why it’s important to set a regular schedule for your workouts. ‘Cause when you have a set time for exercise, you’re more likely to stick to it.
Instead of letting life and it circumstances run your planning, take control. Put your workouts in your calendar, and plan other commitments like family and work around it. This way, your workouts become holy. This type of commitment will help you also on a subconscious level to stick to your workouts. And the more you do something, the easier it will be to like it.
Oh, and if you have trouble sticking to a schedule, make exercise part of your daily routine. For example, you could go for a walk after dinner or do a quick gym session before bed. Working with a personal trainer can also help you to make your exercise part of your routine.
4. Make Exercise a Social Activity
Exercising with friends or family members can make working out more enjoyable and motivating. When you have someone to exercise with, you’re more likely to stick to your routine and have fun while doing it. If you exercise with a friend, it will also give you a social activity that you can look forward to. That will for sure help you fall in love with your exercise routine.
5. Track Your Progress
Tracking your progress can help you stay motivated and see the results of your hard work. Wanna bet that this will motivate you, and make you come back to the gym for more?
You can keep a record of your workouts, including the duration, intensity, and type of exercise you did. You can also track your weight, body measurements, and fitness level. When you see progress over time, you’ll feel more motivated to continue with your exercise routine. And this will feel good too!
6. Reward Yourself
Eyes on the price, baby! It will be a big motivator if you reward yourself for reaching your exercise goals. Treat yourself to a massage, a cryotherapy session, a new workout outfit, or a night out with friends. Having something to look forward to at the end of the finish line, will keep you motivated and make you fall in love with showing up at the gym.
7. Change It Up
“Been there, done that”, is not the mindset you need in the gym. Doing the same workout every day can quickly become boring and monotonous. So, mix up your routine by trying new activities, changing the intensity or duration of your workouts, or adding in strength training exercises. When you challenge yourself, you have something new and exciting to look forward too. Also, you’ll see progress faster, which will make your workout feel more rewarding.
8. Focus on the Benefits
When you’re feeling unmotivated to exercise, focus on what you’re doing it for. Remind yourself of how good you feel after a workout, how it reduces your stress, and how good it will feel when you reach your goals. Focus on the positive aspects of exercise. This will make it so much easier to stay motivated and fall in love with working out.
9. Stop looking for a quick fix
If you’re only exercising to get results fast because you’re unhappy with your current situation, then this is not going to help you like exercising. Instead of looking for quick fixes (that are influenced by something that needs to be fixed), go for long-lasting results with a positive motivation.
10. Get professional help
Don’t like going the gym because you don’t know what you’re doing? We get that! Working with a personal trainer can help you with this. This way, you have a professional by your side that can help you reach your goals. That will make exercising way more fun and so much easier! With our Personal Training membership, it’s also really easy to commit to working with a professional on a weekly basis.
As a TrainMore member you get a welcome session with a personal trainer for free. Together you can create a plan for your first few weeks.
11. Have a backup plan
No matter how hard you’ll try, there will be days when you won’t be able to do your workout as planned. This can of course happen, but what will you do on those days? Having a back-up plan in your pocket, will help you on the days when life happens, but your workout doesn’t.
Have a ‘if this, then that’ scenario ready. If you usually go to the gym for 30 minutes before work, your backup plan could be to take a 30-minute walk during your lunch break. That way, even if you unexpectedly spend your morning fixing a bike tire, you’ll still get your workout in.
Already in love?
If you tell yourself that exercising is fun, sooner or later it will be. The best way to make yourself fall in love with exercising is doing something that you love, for a goal that you love. Keep this in mind, and before you know it, you’ll be a professional gym rat for sure!
Which of these tips are you going to try?
