6 Motivational Tips for Getting in Shape in 2015

6 Motivational Tips for Getting in Shape in 2015 It’s a familiar story: you set a New Year’s resolution to start a new fitness program or rev up your existing exercise routine, only to throw in the towel days or weeks later. Whether your mission for 2015 is to lose weight, add muscle mass, or simply improve your endurance and cardiovascular health, we’ve compiled some tips to help get you motivated and reach your goals. #1: Make Workouts Fun but Challenging Perhaps the biggest reason people fail to start a fitness routine or slack on their existing one is because it feels like work. The good news is that there are innumerable ways to get in shape doing things you love. From weight training programs, to tennis, to hiking, to group classes, your workouts can feel as great as the results you achieve. #2: Turn Your Commute into a Workout Incorporating exercise into your commute is a sure way to get exercise in every day of the workweek. There are many ways to do it—carpool with others in the morning and jog home from work, or ride your bike to and from work if you live within a few miles of work, or take public transportation to work and bike, jog, or walk home. Making your commute your daily exercise routine is an ideal strategy for people who are busy from morning to night and have a hard time setting aside time for exercise. #3: Don’t Put Away Your Exercise Gear If you work out at home, leave your exercise gear out where you can see it. Rather than putting your workout clothes and tennis shoes away, keep them visible, and keep the dumbbells, jump rope, and workout videos on the table. Visual cues help keep exercise at the forefront of your mind and, with the myriad distractions we face today, from TV, to the Internet, to demanding kids and pets, we need all the help we can get. To give you a boost of energy during your workout, eat a protein bar, such as the nutritious lower sugar energy bars by Promax Nutrition, 30-60 minutes before exercising. #4: Drop the All-or-Nothing Attitude We often put obstacles in our own way when it comes to fitness. We might get discouraged when we miss a workout during the week, and throw in the towel, or make starting an exercise routine into a mountain instead of a molehill. Set goals, but don’t beat yourself up if you can’t stick to them 100% of the time. Doing something is better than nothing. If you can only get 15 minutes of cardio in today rather than the hour you had hoped for, so be it. Congratulate yourself for putting forth the effort and do more the next day. #5: Apply Problem-Solving Techniques to Overcome Obstacles It has long been thought that positive thinking is an effective motivational strategy—visualize your new body and you’ll make it happen—or so it’s been said. Fantasies alone, however, aren’t enough to help you achieve your goals. Couple those positive thoughts with real problem-solving techniques. Identify what’s holding you back from achieving your goals (food cravings, for example), and then come up with a plan to counter those obstacles. #6: Make It a Contest

Creating an exercise contest with friends is a tried-and-tested way to improve results. Whether there is a monetary prize, or just bragging rights, being part of a contest turns an otherwise solitary pursuit into a social activity. The contest can be for just about anything—most hours spent at the gym, highest percentage of body weight lost, most miles walked or jogged, and so on. Here are some weight loss contest ideas. Limiting the competition to four to six weeks with weekly check-ins, will help keep members engaged and motivated.