How to make exercising a daily habit?

casssssssiandra · March 2012

Hi everyone!

I just wanted to know how you guys make exercising a daily habit. I know that it takes at least 21 days to develop a habit but the problem is, I don't last for 21 days!

For example, for one week I exercised EVERYDAY & I went full out while I was working out, but the next week I got lazy & just did light exercises. It's so frustrating! Help?

Another thing: How do you guys remember the feeling after you exercise? The feeling where you feel happy & energetic (that's how I feel) after work out because people say to remember that feeling, but all I think about when exercising is pretty much 'I tired' & 'When will this end!' I never think about the feeling because I so focused on the negative parts of exercising!

How can I change my thoughts from negative to positive?

aleexFIT · March 2012

For me, it just took time. It took a good few months of forcing myself to exercise before I began to enjoy it. Now I love my daily run and wouldn't be without it. But I think as well you just need to take time to find the thing that you enjoy also - for me it is outside running because I can appreciate the calm and the countryside, but it can be different for everyone. Keep at it and you will get there!!

JoolieW68 · March 2012

For me I'm able to think about the end of the exercise (I mostly run) and know how I will feel when I'm done.

You may just need to find the right exercise for you so that you aren't always thinking about 'when will this be done'. What sort of exercising are you doing?

jbahrami · March 2012

I agree. Plus, I wouldn't push too hard in the beginning, discouraging yourself from continuing. You need to exercise like you eat...in moderation. Finding the exercises that keep you wanting to do more will be the most beneficial...trial, trial, trial.

Good luck and DON'T GIVE UP! :flowerforyou:

jrodx2 · March 2012

As soon as my alarm goes off, I get up, get dressed and go workout before my mind can even process that it didn't want to be out of bed. After a few weeks, I got into the flow and was waking up just before the alarm from then on. If it's hard at first, you just have to force yourself to do it. Think about all the positive things that will happen if you do (great results, feeling better about yourself, ect) and then the negatives if you don't. That seemed to work for me at the beginning.

Now that I'm in it, I would hate to miss a workout! Can't even believe I'm saying that but it's true. It gives me energy for the day and the results I am having is making it more than worth it for me.

Stick with it, you can do it!

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therealangd · March 2012

Repetition is probably the easiest way to make it a habit. Same time, same days. Plan your exercise for the week. And stick to it.

for one week I exercised EVERYDAY & I went full out while I was working out, but the next week I got lazy & just did light exercises.

I think this might be the problem. You shouldn't be working out HARD everyday. Your body needs rest days. Your mind needs rest days. Especially starting out with a new routine. Your workouts need to be something you enjoy.

cookiet83 · March 2012

I do my workouts in the evenings when the kids are asleep but through the day i do lots of walking, it takes time to get into the exercise routine but once you've started you'll be fine. x

lkcuts · March 2012

I am with you girl. I have just started the program. My program said I need 3 workouts a week for 30 mins each. the thing is we do more than that like housework, laundry ,cooking, your work(I am a beautician and do alot of standing). All of that needs to be included in your excerize group.
I have decided to get the monitor that monitors your steps but until then I look at my calorie base, how many more calories I have left for the day and if it looks like I will be hungry if I don't excercize, I jump on the elipitical to burn some. I tell myself, If I want to eat dinner and not go over the calories I am aloted, I have to burn the calories.
If I eat what I like ,I have to face the consequences and excerize. I set my machine to what calories I want to burn and useualy get to the mark and say well, I don't feel too bad, I can go another 5 mins , or 10 mins. I start thinking about the family pizza night, I might eat more then so I need to burn some to get what I like. If I stress out on having to do it all the time I,like you, get discouraged..I mean come on, lets face it... those smiling people they show excerizeing are really grimising in pain lol. We just have to suck it up and do it,while my Hubby can hardly do anything physical and not gain a pound. Or just cut out pop and lose 5 pounds. For us,it means we HAVE to do it to save our health and lives. I wanna be around another 10 years or so..DON"T get stressed about it ,some excersize is more than we did before (which is none) and I am hoping some day I will look forward to it knowing I will feel better(Right now not so much) hang in there girl hopw you find what might work for you!!

Natty0506 · March 2012

I have a few things that I do. The first is that I set a goal for a certain amount of time. Today is day 1, week1. I have 5 weeks to do workouts 5 days a week. I figure, what's 5 weeks, right? I can do ANYTHING for 5 weeks. Then, I set up a workout schedule that is no more than 30 minutes a day. Any longer than that and I wouldn't do it. Most days, my workouts are around 20 minutes. I have a short attention span, so that's part of the problem. LOL. I also don't do the same thing every day nor do I do the same cardio workout every day. I have 3 days of cardio and two days of weights. For the next 5 weeks, Mondays are a Turbo Jam 20 minute workout, Wednesdays are Turbo Jam Fat Blaster, and on Friday I get to pick which one I do again (thus to alleviate my boredom). Tuesdays and Thursdays I do full body weight session that I got from a SELF magazine that's a part of the Drop10 program.

In all reality, you have to force yourself to do it. It sucks and you're going to be tired and you're not going to want to do it. I have to psych myself up for my workouts, so I do my workouts at 1 pm when my kids are napping. That's what works for me. You have to figure out what works for you, and just do it.

fearie_jae · March 2012

One way i stay motivated is i remember my "why". What is motivating you to work out? Nothing comes easy, you have to work for that body and you deserve it. When I dont work out, I know I'm just delaying any results I could be getting. On days I dont work out, I still try to do something like take the stairs at work.. If you push yourself TOO hard, you will want to just give it up.. you need to find that balance. Good luck!

mrsbastone · March 2012

I am very fortunate with my schedule so I am able to go workout in the morning while my kid are in school. The key for me personally is to get it out of the way before life happens. Then it's done and I have the rest of the day. It's like an important appointment I have with myself. If my friend want to go out for breakfast or anything, I do not compromise my workout schedule. That's how I have fallen off the wagon a hundred times. At first I wasn't a huge fan of going to the gym. When I started to see my weight loss go much faster, it was so motivating I went more often. A few Months later I am totally addicted and I can't wait to go. It just takes time.. I like the goal idea too. changing things up, try new classes. etc.

TundraTed · March 2012

Repetition. Set a scheduled time everyday when you workout. Schedule an hour. Do it each and everyday. It will be 2nd nature and part of your routine in no time.

MissConfidence · March 2012

Wow this sounds just like me. I love the feeling of the after but I am so full of excuses to actually do it. I wish I could tattoo the good feeling to my brain. Well, maybe not literally.

I like the suggestion of doing it first thing in the morning before you can even begin to think about it. Kinda like drinking coffee. And also the suggestion of setting low goals at first, only 10-20 minutes a day and not the same thing everyday.

Altruista75 · March 2012

I think the key is to find something that you actually enjoy doing - that way you don't considerate as something you want to get over with as fast as you can! I used to walk on my treadmill and absolutely dreaded going down to do it b/c it was boring! I then made the choice to start getting up at 4:00 am every day and doing the ChaLean Extreme program and I wanted to get up every morning and do it. After I completed that I moved on to Insanity and absolutely fell in love with it! There are some days I'd rather sleep but I know that I won't workout otherwise and I feel SO good when I'm done!!

Just hang in there and like I said, I believe the key is to find something you really enjoy doing!!

almc170 · March 2012

For me, it helped to set very specific, attainable goals. I started off slow (20 mins, 3x week) and then added another day each week. Once I got to 6 days/week, I started making the workouts longer. After I got to 30-45 mins, I focused on increasing the intensity. Since I've started weight training, my goals have become much more program specific. But always pushing myself has really helped keep me motivated.

Also, don't be afraid to try different things. If you like something, go for it. If not, don't waste your time.

How to make exercising a daily habit?

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