How to stay motivated during lockdown

Getting motivated to keep up a regular fitness routine can be hard at the best of times, but during lockdown, with gyms closed and the cold weather and rain to contend with, summoning up motivation is even harder than usual.

 

However, one of the amazing benefits of doing exercise is that it has the power to give you an instant mood boost. So, once you push through the negative thoughts that are stopping you from getting started, you will soon get into a rhythm and won’t need to convince yourself to do exercise anymore, you will enjoy it and start to see the results, both mentally and physically.

 

If you are struggling for motivation right now, here are some top tips:

 

Set targets

 

Having goals to aim for help will help you to stay motivated to keep doing exercise. Make sure your targets are realistic for your fitness level, as you will be more likely to stick to your challenges.

 

Make it fun

 

Try to choose fitness activities that you enjoy the most, rather than opting purely for the highest calorie-burning activities. The more you enjoy doing the exercise, the more often you will want to do it, which will give you a better outcome than doing an exercise you do not enjoy and therefore do less frequently. Listening to your favourite music can also make the activity more fun and studies show that high tempo music can improve exertion levels.

 

Write down your ‘why’

 

Write down the reasons why you want to exercise, whether that is to lose weight, to give yourself a mental boost, to tone certain areas, or any other reasons you may have. Whenever you are being hesitant about whether to do exercise, look at your reasons to remind yourself.

 

Workout with friends

 

You an do many virtual workouts online with your friends, whether that be the same spin class or you call each other whilst doing your treadmill runs! Having a friend there can keep you motivated and make you less likely to put off your exercise.

 

Keep it varied

 

Doing the same exercise each week will soon become mundane, so try and keep mixing things up. Trying different types of exercises and switching between cardio and resistance training. If you feel you are getting bored with your exercise routine, try something new.

 

Making sure that you have the right equipment and workout gear is also important to help to stay motivated. Get your home workout routine set up by taking a look at the range of fitness equipment and accessories from Fit4Home®.