Making Exercise a Habit

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The results are in! According to past studies, it takes 21 days to create a habit. This seems doable, right?! Well according to the latest studies, it actually takes 66 days to form a habit! Ahhh! This is good news if you’ve found yourself hooked on peanut butter chocolate ice cream for the last 20 days. Just put the spoon down and you’re fine! You’re MONTHS away from an official ice cream addiction! Exercise though…. if you’ve been a diligent 6am-er for the last 2 months, are you hooked for life? Is it still a major struggle to NOT push snooze or smash your alarm to pieces each morning?!

I’M HERE TO GIVE YOU HOPE!! Creating an exercise routine you LOVE takes some dedication. Once you know what works for you and you start to reap the mental and physical rewards, you WILL be hooked. Is it still hard to roll out of bed and put your stretch pants on? Yes….. but the thought of NOT exercising is even worse. So you just suck it up and do it. Getting up and ready is the hardest part, I promise.

Here are my best tips and tricks to get you OUT the door to the gym or INTO the workout area of your house.

1- Set a daily time that WORKS. There may be days you have to exercise at a different hour, but stick to your schedule as best as you can so your daily routine becomes clockwork.

2- Have your clothes SET OUT or PUT ON in advance! When you’re groggy in the morning, the thought of picking an outfit will be your deterrent. If you workout in the evening, put your exercise gear on BEFORE you put the kids in bed and throw your body on the couch. It’s too easy to justify skipping your workout at this point. “I’m too tired”. “I’ve been working all day”. “I’ve gotta clean the house”. “I’ve gotta watch the Bachelor”. You catch my drift.

3-Set mini goals. Guess what, you’re not going to lose 10 pounds by Saturday. But you might be able to lose one! And you can keep losing a pound a week all year and amazingly, it will stay off MUCH easier than if you crash dieted and lost it too quickly. Those results are almost always temporary. The same goes for weightlifting. Expect to start noticing some definition and added strength next month, not tomorrow. The results are definitely worth the wait as long as you keep working hard!

4- Don’t let yourself starve! Grab a banana and some type of pre-workout drink before you exercise. Tell yourself that you get to eat a healthy snack or meal as soon as you get home also! The funny thing is, you will crave something healthy; and by eating healthy foods often during the day, you won’t get to the point where all you want to do is tear open a box of Pop Tarts! Starving yourself is the worst thing you can do!

5- Listen to good music, a great book or a podcast. Why? First of all, it’s a good chance to catch up on some reading or education. Also, it keeps you from getting bored. It’s a great distraction! People that don’t like to work out might find it more tolerable if they pair something they love with it; like a good drink and a great book! I’ve even seen people watching your favorite shows on Netflix while they run on the treadmill. You could binge watch Parenthood and stay on that thing for six hours 😜

6- Get a Partner. Honestly, I usually work out alone. I like catching up on books while I work out. However, I know a lot of people that work out with a partner or a group. You are held accountable to them! They are expecting you to work out with them at a certain time and work out in a certain way. It’s also a lot of fun to have somebody to chat with while you exercise! The time flies! You’ll also find that you have more energy and often times, the excitement turns into coming up with meal plans and other ways to stay healthy throughout the day.

7- Get a New Outfit! You don’t have to spend $1000, but run to TJ Maxx and get a new pair of leggings or splurge on a new pair of shoes. It’s amazing how having something new gets you excited to put it on and work out. Maybe reward yourself each month with one thing for your workout wardrobe. I don’t think I ever spent more than $16 on a tank top or a pair of leggings because I know I need to refresh my wardrobe often to keep me motivated! Ha ha.

There you have it! My top tips to making exercise a habit. You can do this! Soon enough, it will be something you habitually do that you totally look forward to. Please comment below and tell me if these tips are working for you! Also, if you have some great tips I have made exercising better for you, I’d love to hear them!

If you drop the ball on day 3….. who cares!! As long as you pick it up on day 4.

–Steff