Moffat Mungazi
Try one new workout every month
HAVING a fitness routine is important, but always having the same fitness routine? Not exactly beneficial.
For one reason, your body gets used to the same movements, kilometres, or weights, and to keep getting stronger, you should always be challenging yourself.
More importantly, if you stick to the same exact workout routine every day, you will get bored.
Being bored will make you less likely to want to work out, and the key to consistent exercise is not willpower, it’s enjoyment.
News flash: Exercise should be fun.
How to accomplish it:
Go for the opposite workout than what you are used to.
If you are a gym rat who prefers weight training, try a dance class, or if you are a die hard yogi, try a HIIT workout.
Changing up the routine will not only help your body get stronger, but will also help you enjoy the process too.
Schedule workouts in your calendar
When appointments, meetings, or tasks are on your calendar, you know they are going to get done.
And you will probably show up on time, be fully prepared, and never skip. Just because a workout is not a work meeting does not mean you should not prioritise it as such.
Honour your fitness goals like you would any other appointment on your schedule.
For example, either sign up for an online workout class in advance or put “going on a jog” in your calendar.
How to accomplish it:
Schedule workouts in your calendar at the beginning of each week instead of planning to get to a workout “sometime.”
Sign up for workout classes (either virtual or in-person) in advance.
The cancellation fee itself will be enough to ensure you show up, and the strict start time will make sure you are not late or push it off.
Honour the workout as you would a business meeting (since both belong on your calendar!): Show up on time, plan ahead, and be prepared.
Perfect your form
You could be working out every day or doing hundreds of reps, but if you don’t have the right form, you might not be strengthening as much as you think (or worse, you could actually be causing injuries and long-term damage).
Proper form helps you maximise a workout by using your energy for the extra push, meaning that no movement goes to waste.
If you have improper form, you might be targeting unintended muscles and setting yourself up for injury.
Plus, good form means you can run faster, jump higher, and push harder (yes, you will feel like Superman).
Knowing exactly how to perfect your form (no matter what type of workout it is) is crucial for properly protecting your body, strengthening your muscles, and keeping your body healthy.
How to accomplish it:
If you have the option, utilise a free personal training session at your gym to have a trainer give you one-on-one attention for perfecting your form or look up the proper form of your most common movements on YouTube (like squats) to learn the best way to perform the move.
It might feel tedious, but the education and practice will be worth it in the long run.
If you are a fan of fitness classes, utilise the instructor.
Don’t be afraid to call over the instructor if it is a class like barre or pilates where the instructors are there to help you check your form or hang back after class to discuss the movements you’re not sure about and or may feel pain in a negative way doing.
Don’t go up in weight or reps until you know that your form won’t be compromised, and focus on form even more when your body is feeling tired (AKA when we typically begin to forget about form).
Do something active every week that makes you feel calm
Fitness should not be all about working as hard as you can, as much as you can. You have to be just as serious about your rest days as you are about your workout days and focus on the mental benefits of fitness just as much as the physical.
Instead of sticking to intense, heart-pumping, sweat-dripping workouts, add an activity every week that makes you feel calm.
Now that is a fitness goal that you can stick to (and will make a major difference in your well-being).
How to accomplish it:
Instead of a fifth day at the gym or the same HIIT class you do every day, opt for a calming yoga class at the end of the week or do your own flow at home
If it is nice outside or you need some fresh air, don’t force yourself into a gym or on the yoga mat in your living room.
Take a walk instead. Listen to a podcast, put on your comfy shoes, and take some time for yourself while you are moving your body.
Incorporate meditation. It will quiet your mind while your body rests too.
Walk instead of drive whenever you can
You might have heard that a healthy person gets 10 000 steps a day. While I am not personally a fan of defining our health based on numbers (our well-being is much more subjective than that), walking is undeniably good for our health.
The body is meant to be consistently active throughout the day, but most of us are sitting 24/7 (at your desk, in the car, or on the couch for a Netflix binge).
How to accomplish it:
Close out the Uber app or put away the car keys and make the most of warmer weather by walking.
Make sure you plan ahead to allow for a longer commute time, wear comfortable shoes (no more blisters, please!), and cue up a good podcast or playlist.
If you are going somewhere too far to walk, get off the train a couple of stops early, park in a farther garage, or have your Uber drop you off a few blocks away.
Make easy swaps in your routine to up your step count.
For example, use the farthest bathroom instead of the closest, treat yourself to a latte at a walkable coffee stop instead of making your own, or go to the grocery store more often (because walking down food aisles counts too).
Remind yourself of your “why” every day
New Year’s resolutions often fail (or are forgotten by February) because we forget our “why.”
The first step to holding yourself accountable is to put meaning behind the goals you set.
For example, “going to the gym every day” is fine, but you need to look at the bigger-picture goal as well.
Why do you want to go to the gym every day?
Is it to be stronger, feel more confident, or live longer?
If you are not looking at the reason, the goal will never feel motivating enough to actually achieve.
How to accomplish it:
Instead of thinking you are supposed to go on a run, attend a workout class, or get up early for exercise before work, remind yourself why you want to do something.
Tell yourself you want to work out before work because it makes you feel better during the day or you want to lift some weights because feeling stronger helps you feel more confident.
Take some time to reflect or journal about why accomplishing this goal is important to you and how it will make a difference in your life.
Tape affirmations or your “why” somewhere you’ll see it every day, like on your fridge, mirror, or laptop.
Drink more water
Staying hydrated is a tale as old as time, but there is a reason just about every expert on the planet recommends it. Your body uses water for every function of the body.
No surprise that water is not only an overall health goal but also crucial for you to achieve your strongest, fittest self.
As with everything else, the amount of water the body needs for optimal health varies from person to person because of factors like lifestyle, activity level, and bio-individuality, but it is a good rule of thumb to be drinking half of your body weight in ounces a day—or just as much as possible.
How to accomplish it:
Find the type of water bottle you like the best and buy multiple.
This sounds so simple, and yet it’s the easiest way to trick yourself into drinking more.
Do you prefer tumblers with straws, glass bottles, or steel canisters?
Figure it out!
Set smaller daily goals for yourself that are easy to follow, like “drink three water bottles full of water before lunch” or “after dinner, I’m going to drink two cups before going to bed.”
Add fresh ingredients to your water like lemons, mint, cucumbers, ginger, or fruit.
Not only will it boost the nutrients, but it will also boost the taste Drink a glass of water every single morning before you have a cup of coffee or a bite of food.
Compliment yourself every day
By now, I don’t need to tell you the importance of self-love and body positivity when it comes to achieving your goals.
The more you believe in yourself and love yourself, the more likely you are to achieve your goals because you’ll be achieving them for the right reasons.
Putting yourself down or feeling like you’re not reaching goals fast enough will make you feel like you’ve already failed instead of motivating you to work harder.
The secret to achieving any goal is to realise you already have what it takes to be your best right now.
In fact, the only thing keeping you from being the strongest, healthiest version of yourself is your own belief that you are not already there.
How to accomplish it:
Start a gratitude journal. Write what you are grateful for about your body: how your thighs are so strong, how you can run so fast, or even just that you are healthy and alive.
Stare in the mirror and give yourself a compliment.
Look for the good in yourself, and tell yourself you are beautiful for a million other reasons besides the way you look. Eventually, you will start to believe it.
After every workout, make it a habit to silently say “thank you” to your body for working so hard and getting you through the workout. — Online.
