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The Female Z NE

> Top 10 Reasons You Don't Exercise

It's All About You.

FITNESS:
MOTIVATION

FITNESS MOTIVATION

Getting Started, Motivated and Ready for Exercise

Preparation

Now that you have decided to start your exercise regime and you have your S.M.A.R.T. goals in place, it's time to look at how you can make it as easy as possible to follow through. That means having everything you need and getting it all ready for your workouts.

I like to prepare for my day the night before. When I wake up in the morning everything is layed out ready for action. Having all my goodies (snacks, gym boots, deodorant, etc.) packed and ready to go makes it that much easier to stay on track.

Discipline

We are all creatures of habit. Rituals like brushing your teeth every morning, having a shower or feeding the cat before you go to work, habits help us to get the things we need to do taken care of. It helps to have a regular day and time you workout so that, once that time comes, you know it's time to get busy.

Flexibility

There will be times when you simply can't stick to your routine. Perhaps you have an early morning flight to catch or you worked very late the night before. Part of being able to stick to your routine is allowing some leeway. Be willing to change your exercise routine but also try to have a backup plan in place. Rather than skipping your workout all together, think about an alternative for that day like walking up the stairs to your office rather than taking the elevator. Every little exercise effort you make to replace your regular workout helps you to stick with the program and in the end, makes you feel good. Every little bit counts!

Commitment

“Commitment unlocks the doors of imagination, allows vision, and gives us the "right stuff" to turn our dreams into reality.”
James Womack (Author)

I find that writing down my goals helps me to achieve them. Committing my goals to paper, what I want to accomplish, when, how and so on really helps me to stay on track. I stick my list on the fridge and make another copy for me office. It reminds me of my goals and shows me how far I've come in reaching them. Do whatever you can to remind yourself of your commitment to exercise.

Start now - make exercise part of your daily routine. At any age, increasing your daily activity, even by a small amount, can make a difference.

Having Fun

Now this is the fun part. Having bored you to death with words like preparation, discipline, commitment, I guess I have run the risk of the above sounding like just another duty. It's easy to forget that moving our bodies can actually be fun. Making time for unstructured, free-flowing movement can actually help you lighten up a little. Find the child in yourself. Go and roll around in a pile of long grass, play catch with the dog, have a game of ping pong with your nieces and nephews, join them in a jumping castle, make some mud pies... It doesn't matter what you do, so long as you let go and have fun! The aim here is to lighten up.

Reward Yourself

This is great! I find that motivation happens almost instantly whenever I reward myself. To explain... hell, I've washed the dog, done my 20 minute walk, stretched my muscles, walked up the stairs, walked down the stairs, spent an hour at the gym, got moving, woke up early for my walk, etc. Etc. Now it's time for me time! So what do I do? Well for me it's a visit to the spa. I spend a glorious hour or two having a massage, swim, spa and just chill out. This is my reward for putting in the hard yards and it balances everything nicely. It is the gift I give myself for all the hard work that I've done and it makes me feel good. I deserve it, and so do you!

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