Oh Motivation, Where Art Thou? – Habit Lifestyle Medicine

By Lindsay Goulet

It’s a wild world we’re living in right now with isolation and social distancing guidelines in place. So, my question for you is: are you still motivated to move your body daily and get your workouts in or has your motivation to move vanished?

Gyms are closed.
Activities are cancelled.
Sporting events aren’t happening.
The classes you loved to go to are no longer running.

Many of the ways you used to get active are shut down and that can leave you feeling, well, pretty darn unmotivated.

What to do?

Listen, I know that at-home workouts may not be as “fun” as going to your gym or classes. I know that working out on your own can feel very different, particularly if you’re like me and you receive a lot of energy through the energy of others.

It’s hard to motivate yourself – until you realize you’re the only one standing in your way and you’re the only one who can reflect and remember WHY you were active before.

Perhaps your WHY has changed since isolation? And hey…that’s okay, too. But you need to know the reasons behind your motivation to workout and put those reasons forefront in your mind.

If you’ve found yourself putting obstacles in your way as to why you are unable to get active, stay motivated, etc – grab yourself a pen and paper and write down five reasons as to why being active, healthy and fit (or getting fit) are important to you. Once your five reasons are written down, put a star beside your top three reasons and keep those in mind every time you find an excuse to not get active.

Once you’ve made your “Why I want to be active and fit” list, create a fitness schedule for yourself.

Take Simple Steps Each Day…

It’s okay if you’re working out less than you were prior to COVID-19. Honestly, it’s a-ok. However, I’d like you to shoot for moving your body on purpose (i.e. completing a scheduled workout) at least three times per week and I’d like you to be physically active for 30 minutes (e.g. go for a walk, bike ride) at least five times per week (and yes, these five times can include your workout days).

No need to overwhelm yourself or complicate fitness at this point. Simply decide why taking care of your body and mind are important and put a plan into place. Try to stop standing in front of yourself and remember the incredible mental health benefits of exercise.

If you’re really stuck on how to move forward, you absolutely need to sign up for our 21-Day Power Up Health Challenge. Not only is there a daily fitness challenge, but there is daily nutrition, hydration, sleep, and self-care challenges too (not every day – just one per day!)!

Stay tuned…the new and improved Power Up Challenge will be released shortly…!