No one goal happens overnight. You don’t just wake up one day and voila - you are where you are in your fitness journey and all of your most desired life goals are reached. Even when you have finally gotten into a solid fitness routine and began to eat better, there will be bumps in the road, ups and downs. Fitness, just like life in general, is a never-ending journey.
Before you jump right into it, understand that mindset and other motivational factors are everything. Buckle up and get ready for some major, positive life changes, emotions and more. Read on for ways to make this infinite journey to fitness that best it can be!
Change Your Mindset
A major part of the fitness puzzle is mental. There will be times where your body is fully capable of completing that final repetition or you are almost across the finish line; but if your mental capacity is running on empty, it makes it harder to reach that goal. Our minds can play a lot of tricks on us including convincing us that we can or cannot complete a task. So how do you change your mindset over to a more positive note when it comes to reaching your desired fitness goals?
Mental fitness is defined as “a state of well-being and having a positive sense of how we feel, think, and act.” It means keeping your brain and emotional health in good shape. There are ways you can exercise your mind in order to gain all of the health benefits, just like you can gain physical benefits. Putting your mind at a healthier state can make your fitness journey more doable and successful - even for the days you hit a wall or find yourself in a rut.
Physical fitness gives us the ability to do amazing things with our bodies, and mental fitness helps in a similar way. It provides us more space to choose how to respond to a situation, whether in a situation or a feeling. Therefore, we are less likely to sustain (or cause) emotional and relational injury. This goes for our relationships, careers, parenting and more.
Ways you can exercise your brain is by meditation (mindfulness), exercise daily, eat healthy, practice body awareness, be aware of new things around you and practice noticing your thoughts. Being more mindful and present all around can relate to a healthier brain.
Understand the Difference Between “Finite” and “Infinite”
A “finite” goal is something that ends - such as the end of your race, finally landing the new job or finishing a project. What comes after that is “infinite” meaning it is ongoing and never ends. New challenges arise and new problems and solutions. This is fitness. Let’s say you have reached your goal weight. But what comes after that? Maintaining it, which can be harder than having reached your goal in the first place. Maintaining it means you now have to figure out how to redirect your lifestyle habits to staying in a happy place, and no one said that would ever be easy.
The only person to beat the man or woman you were yesterday is you. Knowing you are better today than you were yesterday is a start to being better for yourself and not comparing yourself to anyone else.
Framing it this way, you can start to ask better questions. Like, what skills can you develop to help you get better results tomorrow? This can help you to understand that a weight loss plan that doesn’t look beyond six weeks isn’t going to be sustainable long term. So you focus on better, more realistic solutions by now understanding your triggers, eating habits and looking for a training program that you can do long-term.
Give Yourself Grace
You need to give yourself some grace during your fitness journey. Not every day will feel the same and you are a human being which means you have feelings and emotions. Some days will be harder than others, and you may feel like you are weaker one day than you were the day before, but a lot of that depends on lifestyle factors, rest, your mental and physical state. Practicing to not get down on yourself and to be happy with the strong body you are creating is key to enjoying your individual fitness journey makes it more fun and rewarding. Know that it is never too late to start again.
Set Realistic Goals
Some of us make the mistake of setting unrealistic goals which can lead to disappointment and giving up. Instead, think about goals that are right for you and your lifestyle and no one else:
Make a point to walk more often. If you enjoy walking, hiking or jogging, add it to your weekly schedule and make it a point to go a little longer or harder week-by-week.
Get stronger glutes, improve upper body strength or build a stronger core. You can aim to strengthen any specific body part - these are just some examples. If you don’t know where to begin, tell your trainer what you would like to strengthen and they will create a workout program that focuses on what you goals are.
Boost your cardio endurance. Your trainer can help with this, too! Adding more endurance exercises to your workout program and adding endurance focused workouts to your routine is a start.
Lift weights. Enough said. If your goal is to get stronger, begin by lifting more weights. If you have no idea where to begin and have never lifted anything heavier than you groceries before, find a personal trainer to be safe!
Increase your flexibility. Join a yoga class and stretch often! Every little bit helps.
Learn a new skill. This is always a great goal. You empower yourself when you learn anything new, plus you can share it with others. Do you really want to master that elbow stand in yoga class? Spend 15 minutes per day (or as often as you can!) until you master it. Doesn’t that achievement feel good?
Fitness is truly an infinite journey. It is a journey you will be on the rest of your life but that doesn’t mean you have to go through it alone. Ask a good friend who has similar interests and goals to join you and find a personal trainer who can help keep you accountable, guide you and create the perfect program that will help make your infinite journey enjoyable, possible and sustainable. Head to trainersspot.com to find a trainer, join a class and more.