5 Ways To Shift Your Fitness Mindset

Shifting your mindset is the most important aspect to successfully incorporate exercise in your daily life. 

You already know that exercising will be beneficial to your wellbeing, yet somehow it falls down your list of priorities time and time again. 

You tell yourself that you’re too busy, you’ll start next year but it never happens. Or you attempt to make it part of your routine, only to feel defeated that you missed one, two, three sessions and now you’ve decided it’s not going to fit into your already bursting schedule.

Well, here’s some hard hitting news for you; there will never be a perfect time to start, you will always be busy, it’s your mindset letting you down. 

We know it can feel hard, but growth comes from stepping outside of your comfort zone. That’s where the magic happens. Where we can do and become beyond what we thought was possible.

Here are some ways to boost your motivation and make that first step:

Get Creative

When you’ve found a type of exercise that you enjoy, everything changes. 

When you think of exercise what do you picture? Usually it’s a gym, there’s weights, machines, you might have a personal trainer or be in a group class. If this isn’t for you, that’s ok! There’s plenty of other ways to exercise.

Consider for a moment what you’d actually enjoy doing. Perhaps you’d prefer to be active outside surrounded by nature. Perhaps it’s playing a team sport, hiking, wakeboarding, dancing or doing handstands.  

It’s so important to choose something active that you’ll actually enjoy. Otherwise, the likelihood of incorporating exercise into your daily life is very low.

Consider the Benefits

How will exercising in your chosen fun way benefit you?

We’re not talking about something aesthetic like “I want to look stronger” or “I want to lose weight.” 

Aesthetic goals just aren’t powerful enough to continuously trump your desires. When it comes time to exercise, desires such as “I want to binge netflix and order a pizza” or “I just want to take a nap” will most likely overrule your desire to exercise if it’s all about aesthetics. 

You’ll look better from exercising regardless. 

You need to find a benefit that will link pleasure with exercise in a way that is meaningful for you.

Yoga on the beach at sunset would be a great idea for someone that takes pleasure in watching the sun go down. Perhaps you are a social being and doing a team sport or group class would be enjoyable because you can see your friends and be part of a community of like-minded people.

Practice Positive Thinking

Recent research has found a solid correlation between the power of positive thinking and its effect on wellbeing. Relating to exercise, positive thinking pushes you to do more and boosts your awareness and assessment of your progress. 

It definitely takes some practice to make a shift in your mindset. The first thing to do is to simply begin checking in with yourself and noticing your ‘self-talk.’ Just by noticing your inner dialog, your mind already begins to change them and make a shift to a more positive mindset.

Set a timer to go off in intervals during your first exercise and try to notice any common themes surrounding your thoughts. You might do this for many sessions over many days/ weeks before you feel that you have a good understanding of any negative ‘self-talk.’

When you feel you have a good understanding of your negative ‘self-talk’ it’s time to tackle it. Create a mantra and write it down. It might be “I am capable, I am strong” or “I can do this.” Again, set a timer to go off in intervals again during your exercise session. Each time, tell yourself your positive mantra.

Researchers agree, consistency is key when shifting your fitness mindset: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24121242/

Start Small

Any exercise is better than none. 

You don’t need to overcommit yourself. 

Also, it’s super smart to concentrate on your form and quality of movement before getting too carried away and possibly sustaining an injury. 

Get a Gym Outfit

When you first consider how getting some gym clothes will help you create a positive mindset towards exercise, you might think it seems superficial. 

But, there are psychological effects that clothes have on us. 

If we feel good in our clothes, they make us feel more self assured, more powerful and more confident! 

So what are you waiting for? A great excuse to do some retail therapy!

Having a regular exercise routine is all about your mindset. 

Shifting the way you think about exercise will improve your quality of life tenfold. 

So what are you waiting for?