How to Stay Motivated with Your Workouts

For most of us, the onset of fall is a sign of temperatures dropping, days getting shorter, and meals getting a little more indulgent. As we head into this new season, the warmth of our beds and sofas can seem a lot more enticing than getting up and staying active in the cold. Whatever your preferred workout, it can be tough to stick to schedules and goals this time of year, but the biggest favor you can do for yourself is to keep up your motivation and maintain positivity. This way, you can look forward to your workouts and count them as an important part of your routine, whatever the season.

Need an extra push? Try the following tips on how to stay motivated year-round to reach your fitness and aesthetic goals.

5 Ways to Motivate Yourself to Work out

Try a Group Workout

A group fitness class that you attend regularly, particularly one that might encourage a little healthy competition, is a great way to encourage yourself to show up and keep pushing. It’s a result of the Köhler Effect, which is the theory that we push ourselves a little harder when we work out with those we perceive to be at a higher level of fitness than us. It encourages us to go the extra mile so as to not be seen as the weakest in the group. This perceived pressure can play an instrumental role in motivating us to stick to our routines and step out of our comfort zones with each new class. If the Köhler Effect works for you, the payoff in staying motivated year-round may be worth the investment in group fitness classes. Furthermore, adding some variety to the classes you choose can mix up the muscle groups you’re exercising and prevent you from getting stuck in a lamp.

Change Up Your Regular Workout Time

It can get darker and colder for early morning or after-work sessions that can leave you less motivated to get active. Maybe switch some of your workouts to your lunch break or incorporate some in-office activity. This can help you stay active even when all you might want to do is curl up under a warm blanket. This little bit of flexibility can also help defeat an all-or-nothing mindset, in which you might consider the day a loss if you don’t get up and work out before work. If you feel you absolutely cannot change your morning workout routine, adjust your thermostat timer so that your home is toasty warm when it’s time to get up. This can better encourage you to crawl out from under those sheets and get to the gym. If you have an independent heater or radiator, lay your workout outfit on top the night before for an easier and warmer change-up the following morning. If you work out in the evening, consider rewarding yourself for braving the cold and sticking to your workout schedule with a warm bath or hot cup of herbal tea before bed.

Test Out a Micro-Goal Approach

Big fitness and body goals can seem overwhelming and elusive if you’re not making progress as quickly as you may have hoped, making it tougher to stick with your workouts. Add freezing temperatures and cozy fireplaces, and you’ve got yourself ample reason to skip the gym altogether. Rather than aiming for six-pack abs, test out a micro-goal approach by breaking down your bigger goal into small, easier-to-hit targets. Some of these smaller goals may be losing five percent body weight, holding your plank position for 2 minutes without losing form, or running your first mile at a steady pace without a break. All of these micro-goals can add up to one ultimate, definable goal that can help to hold you accountable and motivated.

Bet on Yourself

Putting money where your mouth is can be a significant motivating factor. In fact, according to a study published in The Journal of the American Medical Association, dieters who imposed a financial incentive to stick to a healthy diet, exercise plan, and weight loss goal were more likely to find success than those who didn’t risk betting on themselves. To help you stay motivated, make a bet with a friend, colleague, or workout partner and actually put money on the line. For example, you might bet $5 that you can complete three one-hour workouts during your lunch breaks. If you miss a workout, you lose the money to whom you set the bet with (and vice-versa). If you’re both successful, leave your $5 in the betting pool and carry it forward to the next week for an increased incentive. If you find you’re successful, determine a goal that once reached, you get to spend some of the money won on a reward or perhaps even to cover your registration fee for that marathon you want to run.

Acknowledge It Won’t Always Be Fun

It may be the honest truth, but sometimes having to pull ourselves out of the warmth and into the cold to show up for gym workouts just won’t be fun. It can be tough to consistently stay motivated and shine a positive light on something you’re just not looking forward to that day. In those moments, it might be worth considering, though, that the more you pull yourself out of your comfort zone and stick to your goals, the stronger, more determined, and prouder you’ll feel for it. This mindset can also help us to better embrace other challenges and obstacles in our daily lives. Of course, the “feel good” benefits of exercising can also improve your attitude towards a workout, with a boost in serotonin and norepinephrine, and a reduction in your body’s stress levels.

Bonus Tip: Opt for Body Treatments to Boost Motivation

Seeing results from complementary treatments may motivate you to stick to your regular workout routine to better maintain your weight loss and aesthetic goals, while ensuring you adapt to a healthier, more active lifestyle in the long-term. Which aesthetic treatments may be recommended to enhance your current healthy, active life choices and keep you feeling motivated? The answer depends on your unique goals, but there are two options that typically top the list of aesthetic treatments to boost your motivation.

Non-Surgical Body Slimming Treatments

Custom body slimming treatment plans can prove useful in helping to tackle stubborn fat you just can’t seem to kick with diet and exercise alone. Using advanced technology that’s safe for all skin types, radio frequency-based body slimming treatments deliver thermal energy deep beneath the skin’s surface, targeting and shrinking stubborn fat cells. Sessions last about 30 minutes each, making it easier to achieve the results you’re looking for around a busy holiday schedule. The result is a slimmer, more defined shape in the targeted treatment area that can help to boost confidence and offer motivation to maintain your new appearance through improved lifestyle choices year-round.

Non-Surgical Skin Tightening Treatments

Loose or sagging skin post-weight loss can leave many of us feeling a little self-conscious. While regular workouts are a necessity to maintain results, they can’t do much to firm up lax skin. Instead, the solution needs to dig deep to improve skin’s collagen and elastin levels and restore a firmer appearance. Non-surgical skin tightening procedures like Trim & Tite™ may be the answer you need to maintain motivation. These treatments work to kickstart your skin’s natural production of collagen and elastin fibers for healthy skin cell renewal and further tone targeted treatment areas. The result is smoother, firmer, younger-looking skin that perfectly complements your workout and weight loss efforts. 

Interested in learning more about your aesthetic treatment options to boost your motivation? Locate a provider near you using the search field below.