So we are at the third Monday in January, the bank balance is low, its cold, still dark in the mornings. Christmas and new year are a distant memory and the resolutions we made with such enthusiasm are taking a back seat. No wonder this day is considered the most depressing day of the year.
Some good news though things get better, after all if this is the most depressing day it can't get any worse! We are still only 19 days into the year that's 346.25 more opportunities to make the right choices. Here are a few strategies to keep you on track.
1. ASK FOR HELP
This is the one most of us have trouble with. Every January I see it, people coming to the gym with so much energy, its infectious it rubs off on others the place is buzzing. Then they hit a wall too many machines, the choice of classes, "do I do weights or cardio or both? What's a kettlebell? How does a Bulgarian bag work?"Add in conflicting advice from web sites, magazines, friends and general and you have a recipe for confusion.
Don't worry most gyms don't think of the users as an inconvenience in fact they employ people to answer questions and talk about training. Fitness instructors and personal trainers love training so much they make it their job and they love to talk about training.
2. STAY MOTIVATED
Its your goal, you chose it, nobody else its all yours. Only one person can make it happen....you. Its something personal that you spent ages planning it and wanting it, so why are you finding it hard to get motivated? A technique I often use is to close my eyes and imagine how good its going to feel when I hit my goal and get excited about it, often that's enough to refocus my mind and find that energy to keep going. If that doesn't quite cut it you can try it from the other side. I remember how I felt before I started. Think of why you started remember how you used to feel.
Either way get fired up! You can't get there if you don't have the drive to do it.
3. SET MARKERS
Setting smaller goals along the way is a great way of checking your progress. It let's you check your on the right track and helps keep you motivated. Smaller goals snowball into bigger ones, every one you hit gives you a little more confidence that your going to make it all the way.
4. ENJOY THE PROCESS
Every goal is a product of the process it took to get there, you can't go to work in the morning without doing certain things. Getting out of bed, having a shower, leaving the house, getting the bus they all add up to the end result of you arriving at work. Some of these things may not be pleasant. Getting out of a warm bed on a cold morning and waiting at a bus stop in the rain are two of my pet hates but I still do them. I know that the end result is something that I love doing and that outweighs any discomfort I feel.
5. REALISE ITS GOING TO TAKE TIME
Everything takes time, we live in a world where things happen quickly. Unfortunately things don't happen quickly enough for some people, don't get disheartened. Athletes develop over years in some cases decades, nobody ever started off a world champion. It takes hours of hard work, all the time there is a risk that person will give up before the goal has been reached and all the work up to that point will be lost. Those who don't give up, who stay the course even when it seems like little or no progress is being made are the ones who reap biggest rewards.
Hopefully these techniques will help you break through those barriers that sometimes creep up.
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