7 top tips to get motivated to exercise

7 top tips to get motivated to exercise
Motivation is definitely one of the trickiest parts about exercise. It is a constant rollercoaster, and different things work as motivation for different people.

We have put together a little list below which will hopefully be a good starting point for you - and fingers crossed one or some of these help you get stuck in! 

1. Building the habit 
This sounds obvious - but breaking habits down can really help you make them more achievable. If your habit is you want to get your Alimba workouts done, some little building blocks you can put in place to help you achieve this habit could be: 
  • Getting your exercise gear out the night before (if you exercise in the morning);
  • Having a dedicated space to do your workouts; 
  • Treating yourself to a new activewear set, or new weights or workout mat; or
  • Meal prepping on the weekends so you have more time for workouts during your week.
We have a podcast episode about building habits here if you were interested in learning a bit more on the science around habits!

We also have the Get Set Program that we released in Jan this year. It is a 4 part series of videos and worksheets on goal setting. These are available on the membership platform. 

2. Accountability partner
We love having someone to stay accountable with us. This could be a friend or family member. Whether they are also doing Alimba or their own workout routine - if you have someone checking in on you - it can really help motivate you to get that workout done (so when they ask you can respond with a - heck yesss I did my workout today! haha). 

3. Same time each day / week & diarise it
I am a creature of habit - and I know that I feel way better when I work out in the afternoons, after work and before dinner. I feel stronger and just better than I do in the mornings! But totally appreciate it will depend on everyone's schedule, whether you have kids or shift work etc. this can get tricky.

We highly recommend trying to work out what time works best for you - and literally book it into your diary or calendar. Even better if you can actually write it down physically with pen and paper or on the whiteboard etc. (there is some really cool science around actually putting pen to paper and this helping things stick better). But if you are at least choosing the times of day when you know you will feel more energised and motivated, this can really help. 

4. Choose your motivator - not just aesthetics
We talk about this a lot in class and on socials - but we find that finding your "why" can really help you find motivation. For us, we find that health & longevity is a really powerful motivator that lasts (as opposed to/in addition to aesthetic goals). Aesthetic goals are not inherently bad, but we highly recommend pairing them with a health goal too. If you're interested in finding out more about your own "Why" we did a podcast episode on this here

Also seeing exercise as a blessing, something to look forward to and something to nourish your body (not punish it) can really help too. We talk about this a LOT in class as we think it is such a helpful mindset shift! 

5. Just starting a class
This one sounds obvious (and we don't mean to sound annoying here haha) - but I always bargain with myself and say I will just do the first set, or the first 10 minutes - and once I'm dressed and started - I always end up staying on the mat wayyyyy longer! So sometimes its as little as just saying ok - 3 seconds of courage - getting up and doing it. 

6. Music
Pump your favourite pump up songs, dance around and just get excited about your workout. Or - blast some angry songs and just get it done - whatever is your vibe on that given day! We don't have music in the classes so you can blast your own at home - and it REALLY helps motivation. 

7. Not every class will be fun - and you aren't always going to want to do it - and that's OK
Be kind to yourself. Not every day is going to be sunshine and roses and some weeks it might be a huge feat to just get one workout done. and that is OK! When you show up consistently, it helps make it easier to be kind to yourself on the weeks when you can't get as many classes done. 
Strength training is SO important, but it can get repetitive. We try our best to make every class fun & interesting (and this is one of the reasons we film fresh classes every single week, so you hear our funny stories and bloopers haha and learn and grow with us!). 

If you're interested in seeing what we are all about, check out our 14 day free trial.