Tips on staying motivated in the New Year

The New Year is over a week old, and I’m just wondering if you remember your New Year’s resolution?

If your goal is to workout more this year, I have a few tips on how to get your through some of the toughest workouts.

1. Set a goal for yourself: When you make a promise to yourself, it is difficult to break. You must hold yourself accountable for how you look and feel. If you are 10 pounds overweight, what are you going to do about it? Are you going to go out for fast food and sit home on the couch or are you going to push yourself to go the gym? It’s up to you. No one can do it for you. You are the only one who can make a change inside of you. Don’t you deserve better? Don’t you deserve to feel good? Don’t you deserve to eat right, exercise and get your rest? The answer is yes.

2. Be kind to yourself: If you are just starting a workout plan, go easy on yourself. You can’t accomplish all of your goals in one week. Change is going to take some time. You didn’t gain 10 pounds overnight and you aren’t going to lose 10 pounds overnight either. It’s a daily process. Working out is a habit. Once you get into the grove, you don’t want to stop. You actually won’t feel right if you don’t get your workout in. Don’t worry if you skip a workout. Tomorrow is always a new day.

3. Drink more water: Yes, it’s a simple as that. Drink more water. Instead of reaching for liquid calories in a can, fill up on the good stuff. A few years ago, I was drinking a few Diet Cokes a day. I think I just liked the sensation of popping the top and drinking down the pop. Then I went on a trip to Italy where a cold Diet Coke was hard to come by. Europeans don’t seem to drink as much pop as we do. Instead, their stores are filled with sparkling water and regular water. I quickly learned to love sparkling water. Now, I drink it out of a can and it gives me the same sensation as opening a can of pop. Plus it’s much healthier.

4. Don’t stop: Don’t stop moving when you are working out. You are working out for a reason. Make the most of it. Don’t cheat yourself. Whether you are in a class or simply running on your own, you have to have the motivation to keep going. If you workout for 10 minutes one day, increase it by 10 the next few days until you get up to an hour. When it’s time to workout, set aside at least an hour (or whatever is comfortable for you). Commit to that hour workout. If you put the time in, you will see the results.

5. Listen to motivating music: Music is motivating, especially when you put together your own play lists. I love my iPod. It has a fitness app that allows me to insert how many miles I want to run on any given day. The app keeps track of my workouts including my top performances. It’s nice to flip through to see how I’ve progressed from month to month. Then at the end of the year, I clear all the workouts and start fresh.

6. Stay focused: Life is going to get in the way of fitness goals you want to accomplish. There are kids that need to be taken care of, meals that need to be cooked and work that has to be done. But somewhere in a span of 24 hours, I believe you can carve out a chunk of time to take care of yourself. It will help you in all areas of your life.

Good luck.

-Theresa Neuhoff Audia