Self Help: 5 ways to stay motivated at the gym.
Welcome back, hope you're doing well! Today's entry is all about exercise. Although currently, my exercise is very limited due to pregnancy but my passion for it is still strong. I can't wait to get back to the gym to start seeing progress again.
Prior to pregnancy, I'm glad to say I have found multiple ways that can you help motivate you to keep going back to the gym, to keep doing your best and when ready, to push the limit and watch your body change 💪.
Here are my top 5 ways I stay motivated with going to the gym.
1) Keep track of your workouts 📝.
You can do this either by keep a note of your workout such as the type of exercise, how many reps/set and the weight so you can push it further by increasing the weight when you are ready. This saves you from forgetting what you did last 2 weeks for example. You can either use a physical notebook (which is what I do) or make a note on your phone. For me, ever since I started writing down my workout for each session I do, I automatically took accountable of my actions and push myself to keep going. I use my previous sessions as the baseline to see if I can increase my reps/weight and keep repeating this process until you start noticing the difference in your body.
2) Take notice of those regular gym-goers 👀
Once you start going to the same gym regularly, you will start to notice the people that come by the same day/time each week to work out, you'll start observing their gains, workouts and their consistency which in return, will motivate you to keep coming back. I know for me, this definitely works. It's a good way to make friends in the gym too. There's something about meeting people who are in the same boat as you. You may never meet/speak to these people if you saw them on the street but in the gym, the atmosphere is different and more positive. Generally, everyone is here for the same goal - to be in their space and to work on themselves. It's admirable to know that these people are taking the time to work on themselves.
3) Listen to something you enjoy 🎧
This can be a podcast, an audiobook, music, or even watch something that you keeps you interested. For me, it's music and I switch up my music on my micro-SD card all the time so I don't get bored. I listen to dance/rock/punk songs to keep my heartbeat up. As I'm a millennial, my heart lies on the 70s-early 2000s songs to keep my alert and lively.
🎵My favourite gym songs are 🎶:
- The Killers - Somebody Told Me/ Mr Brightside
- My Chemical Romance - The Black Parade/ Vampire Money
- Paramore -Misery Business
- Sweet - Ballroom Blitz
- Avril Lavigne- Everything Back But You
- Sabrina Carpenter -Feather
- Bee Gees- Stayin Alive
- DJ Fresh- Gold Dust
- Stiff Dylans - Ultraviolet
- Heathers Musical - I Say No
- Six The Musical - Six
- Dear Evan Hansen Musical - Waving Through A Window
- Lindsey Stirling - Love's Just A Feeling
4) Focus on that post workout pump/glow 🏃.
When I first started, there are times where I did not felt like going to the gym, especially on Fridays and on days where it was stressful at work. What got me going in was me focusing on how good it will improve my mood, my mental health. I focused on how exercise will help with my well being and that got me going in to the gym. Once I'm in there, I don't set high expectations to do a lot/to improve my weight/reps etc, I just go in there with the expectation of doing a light workout to keep my body moving. I also use the gym as my schedule time off to focus purely on myself.
5) Gym crush? 💞
Haha what a controversial excuse to go to the gym. Look... I'm here to share with you new reasons to stay motivated so you make it to the gym, so here's a secret that people won't admit to you out in the open 😏 Don't hate on me.
I'm not saying you need to act on it and start falling for this person but what I'm saying is, once you start going regularly, you'll notice the same people working out and eventually, you'll get inspired to push yourself if they are pushing themselves on that day OR, you might find someone who you can relate to/who helped you out before/who smiles at you. Little things like that, that keeps you wanting to come back. It doesn't matter if it's male or female. The point here is by going regularly, you are becoming more sociable at the gym and if it makes you feel comfortable, you will want to come back.
My last bonus tip is to set your own timeline. If you're in it for the long run, then you shouldn't have a time limit. Rushing only leads to injuries. Set your own timeline based on your body capabilities. Take time to rest and recover then get back straight into it again. Everyone has different recovery period and different interval to increase weight and muscle gain. Take it easy at the start but keep going.
In conclusion, these are little things that helped me stay motivated with going to the gym. You do what is best for you and don't forget to enjoy the process. At the end of the day, you're in the gym to work out for your own physical and mental health.
You just need to try to be better than your last session. If it's the same, then that's ok too so long you're feeling good and you're determine to see progress, it'll naturally push you forward.
-
I hope this has made you want to workout today, the gym community is surprisingly accepting and positive so don't feel insecure if you aren't feeling your best. 80% of the gain is showing up!
I hope you have a wonderful day,
G 😘
Comments