Exercise is often associated with the physical benefits such as a good looking physique, healthy heart, low blood pressure etc however by exercising regularly you are also benefiting your mental health by improving your concentration, sharpening your memory, enhancing your creativity and lower your stress.
I don't know about you but I can struggle to exercise regularly but how is it that the most successful people in the world have mastered the 'regular fitness hack?' Is it coincidence that they exercise regularly and are successful or is it just by chance? Or is it because they make it a priority?
So together, let's stop with the whole 'I don't have enough time to exercise' excuse and discuss 6 ways in which you can make exercise a regular occurrence in your routine and help you build success.
Make Time
Long gone are the days whereby you don't have time or you're too busy to go on a run. The new you is someone who makes time no matter how busy their schedule is. Got a long day at work? Exercise in the morning. Finished work earlier than expected? Don't waste your extra time by scrolling on your phone, get up and do a HIIT workout.
We need to create a fitness mindset whereby you are not just benefiting your physical health but also your mental health. By exercising you are looking after yourself, putting yourself first. Let's try and remove the mindset that exercise is a chore or something to be done out of choice. Exercising regularly is a must! Not only for your overall health but for a strong mindset too.
Focus On One Exercise You Like and Master It
Once you find an exercise you like such as: swimming, at home workouts, yoga, walking etc stick with it and become a master in it. The reason why this is important is so you don't waste your time flitting between different exercises before you settle for one you like. Become your own expert in running for example. Get all the gear, watch all the technique videos, join a running club, make a conscious effort to find new routes etc.
Exercise Doesn't Have To Be Time Consuming
In order to reap the benefits of exercise you don't necessarily have to go full on and spend multiple hours in the gym working out. It has been proven that short, high intensity bursts of exercise is to be more effective than long cardio sessions. The reason being is the harder you workout the longer it takes your body to get back to normal therefore burning more calories. So if you're pushed for time when you are scheduled for your next workout, make it a high intensity workout of 20-30 minutes and you will be working twice as hard than going for a long run.
Keep on Track
Recording your progress is super effective as you can see how far you have come and it will keep you on track to your goals. By holding yourself accountable towards a particular goal or routine it is harder for you to not commit and complete it as you are less likely to want to miss a day.
Be Competitive With Yourself
The only person that is going to make you improve and do better is you. I'm not saying that you should make exercise a competition but what I am saying is that if you struggle to keep a habit up and you are a competitive person then make exercise more of a competition. Can you lift a heavy weight? Can you run a little longer? Try and improve yourself and take yourself out of your comfort zone.
Record How You Feel After
Whether you make a journal entry after each session or use a mood tracker: find a way of tracking how you feel after completing your exercise class or regime. 99% of the time you will feel so much better for going so it is good to remind yourself of how good you felt for the days when you don't want to exercise so you can remind yourself that it will be worth it.
So to conclude, if you are looking to build successful habits and become successful in everything you do then it is strongly advised that you take time for yourself and exercise regularly. Use exercise as a challenge to unlock your true potential. Let me know in the comments how often you exercise and how you feel afterwards to help inspire others.
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