MOTIVATING YOURSELF INTO A ROUTINE THAT WORKS FOR YOU

You are not your past. If you are having a tricky time getting started, remember you are not alone. Tons of us are all the same and know we should get started but keep on falling back into our old ways.  There are very few of us that spring out of bed in the morning and say "Time to change my life today!" Things are different in reality. 

Failing is okay and part of the process.  Most of us expect a little too much from ourselves and when we don't live up to our expectations things fall apart.  Sometimes we are all too familiar with this vicious circle: start something with the best of intentions, run into a few road blocks, start to get down and finally push it to the side an give up.  Hey we have all been there and that's part of learning.  It's okay to derail but it's important to jump back in. 

It's not all about 100% or 0%.   Exercise doesn't have to be complicated or even structured.  Doing anything is better than nothing at all.  Remember to focus on what you are doing and not what you are not doing.  It's super easy to let the "I'm not doing enough get in the way of doing anything at all."  Do what you can and when you can.  The most important part is consistency and adjust along the way.  

Keep in mind how habits work.  Getting into a routine is the best way to form habits. That's a little easier said than done. If you've ever seen a movie where theres a montage of the success that came from someone who changed their life with exercise or sports, then you know how awesome that would be and how motivated you would always be.  Unfortunately that's not reality so we need to find something that puts us into the mood each time until we have formed that habit and sometimes that just doing it. 

If you know why you are lazy you probably have it backwards.  You are not exercising because you are lazy, it is usually you are not yet in shape so you are lazy.  Think about it, going for a little run takes a pile of energy if you are not used to running.  Now remember you're not getting in shape to compare yourself to the person down the street that runs 10 miles a day.  This is for you!

Keep it fun! Whatever you do it is super important to keep it fun.  Find someone to workout with, look for a new sport to join, find a cool gym to join, go for a hike.....whatever it is make sure you look forward to it.  Fitness is not all about running a zillion miles or doing crunches till your abs fall off.