Let’s face it life is tough and leading a healthy life can feel like the tougher test of all! It requires sacrifice, hard work and dedication. After all, it’s easier to press the snooze button than get up for a run and it’s easier to reach for fast food than preparing a healthy meal. Striving to reach your fitness goals is a difficult, uphill climb, but “difficult doesn’t mean impossible – it just means you have to work harder”.
To overcome the ‘difficult’ takes hard work and planning. You can resist the snooze button and you can prepare a balanced lunch ahead of time! Hard work will always overcome difficult but it all depends on how hard you’re willing to work for it.
What’s your goal?
Your goal doesn’t have to be running a marathon, climbing a mountain or losing five stone, goals are often more effective if they’re very simple, like exercising three times a week. The easier and more measurable the goal, the more attainable it is (but it still needs to be challenging). Write your goals down and record your progress – take regular measurements or photos.
The first step is the hardest
When exercise is more of a chore than a habit it’s easier to push it aside and find other things to do. The hardest part of any fitness plan is getting started. Once your exercise becomes routine, you get into a rhythm and just get on with it. Some studies show that exercising at the same time every day helps to create that sense of routine and that people who exercise in the morning are more likely to stick with it. Consistency is great but it can’t work for all so don’t beat yourself up – just get on and do it!
Hang in there!
Sometimes you might think that you were wrong to take on a new challenge because it’s too hard. Hard doesn’t mean it’s wrong, it just means it is HARD! You can tweak how you tackle the difficult goal but don’t give up. Remember, if the plan doesn’t work, change the plan, not the goal. You will experience setbacks on your fitness journey but you will also make progress. If you need to start again, that’s fine, as long as you’re moving forwards. It’s all about being determined to reach your goal and focused on how to get there.
At Gemma Pearce Fitness we believe that exercising with other people really helps to get through those difficult times when you feel like giving up or your progress has plateaued. Whether it’s Zumba or Boxfit, Pilates or Barre Fitness, online exercise buddies are true supporters of each other. Find out which of our wide range of online classes would work best for you at www.gemmapearcefitness.co.uk