Fitness was a big part of my life growing up. From soccer to basketball to swimming to track & field, I played/swam/ran it all.
In high school, I stuck with just running and I looked forward to heading down to the track or the cross country trails as soon as the final bell rang each afternoon. I loved being on a team, competing, having my workouts planned out for me, and getting in shape alongside friends.
The biggest change I experienced in college, fitness-wise, is that my motivation for running/working out shifted. The competition aspect disappeared and working out became more about knowing I’d feel better if I did.
It also became something that wasn’t quite as easy to schedule into my days since I didn’t have mandatory practices every day after school, but it’s something I’ve consciously fought to keep in my schedule and not let it get crowded out because I know it’s so good for my body and for my mental health.
Here are a few ways I stay motivated to be active and work out 5-6 days per week.
1. Move in a way that feels good
Most days, running feels good to me me. On a day that I’m feeling super wiped, though, the gym might be a better bet because I can lift weights on less energy. Sometimes, just a walk feels amazing!
I think it’s so good to listen to your body and do what feels good that day, both physically and emotionally. Running just doesn’t feel good to some people, and that’s totally fine.
2. Focus on how I’ll feel after a workout
Sometimes, a workout feels awesome throughout the whole thing. Sometimes, it doesn’t. But I almost always feel accomplished and exhausted-in-a-good-way afterward, and nothing beats the endorphin rush from a great workout.
If nothing else, it’s a 45-minute (or an hour, or 30 minutes…depends on the day!) block of time that’s just for me and maybe a workout buddy where I’m not doing homework, sitting in class, working, or answering emails. I’m doing something for ME that feels good and that’s really good for me!
3. Figure out what coping mechanisms actually make me feel better and do those!
We all have different coping mechanisms we try during stressful times, some of which are healthy and some of which are not. I’ve tried the face-stuffing mechanism before and realized it didn’t actually make me feel better– it made me feel worse! I want to associate delicious food with happy times, not sad ones.
I think our natural coping mechanism are often easy ones that don’t require much effort (i.e. eating an entire bag of tortilla chips), but those generally don’t actually make us feel better.
I’ve actively worked to develop healthy coping mechanisms that do make me feel better, like taking a kickboxing class or meeting up with a friend for a walk. Sometimes, just getting off campus or away from a source of stress for a couple of hours does wonders!
It’s finals week now, and even though I’m more tired than usual, I always feel so much more energized and ready to tackle studying after I work out.
4. Push through discomfort…sometimes
The stomach flu that I had a few weeks ago? There’s no way I was dragging myself to the gym when I hadn’t kept food down for 24 hours. But sniffles? I’ll be outside running. Period cramps? Most likely, I’ll be running or hitting the gym.
When I’m feeling physically meh, one of the best things I can do for myself is go work out! If I don’t feel like it, I always tell myself to just start a workout and that I can stop anytime, and 99.8% of the time, I finish that workout because I feel better once I start and I feel soo much better afterward.
To sum this whole post up, I try to generally do the things that make me feel good, both health and fitness-wise. Like staying active and eating mostly healthy food, along with some treats, too. 🙂
So tell me…
How do you stay motivated with fitness? Anything to add?
What are your favorite healthy coping mechanisms?
I stay motivated by wearing workout clothes that make me feel like hot stuff!Great tips Liv!
Hahaha I love this one! Great tip!
You mentioned it and it shows on all of your pictures and that is having a buddy to workout with you. It’s easy to be lazy if it’s just you but if you know someone else is counting on your to show up, it gives you that extra push to just get up and go.
YES, having a buddy is key for that extra push to get out there and work out! I love all of my workout buddies!
Ok I seriously love how you emphasize that you want to do activities that energize and invigorate you. For a long time I did exercise for the totally wrong reason. I wanted to drain myself and just feel ‘spent’ instead of being energized to serve and live and do other things. When your perspective changes it’s so freeing. Now I stay motivated to work out by planning shorter workouts or going by how I feel about a workout, and if I do it that way I feel so much better afterwards. I’m so thankful God has changed my perspective. It’s been a journey.
What a great way to describe your perspective shift! I think I’ve had a similar shift in focusing less on calorie burning and more on overall/health wellness and it’s very freeing!
I stay motivated by remembering how good I feel POST workout. The truth is that sometimes I dont want to go to the gym, but when I remember how great I feel afterwards and how it makes me feel the rest of the day, I get my booty in gear! Even just a short 20 minute workout for me sets me on a good path for the day 🙂
Agreed! Starting the day on a healthy note is such a good feeling!
I stay motivated by recognizing how good it feels mentally when I exercise. Physically my body might not respond the way I want it to, but I always feel refreshed and ready to take on the rest of the day!
I like how you phrased that! Exercise doesn’t always feel easy when I’m a little tired physically, but it’s so refreshing mentally!
I stay motivate by working out with my hubby!
So fun that you two enjoy working out together and you have a built-in workout buddy!
I think I’m going through a phase where running no longer feels good- so I’m trying to be brave and venture into the gym! I don’t know what that’s going to look like, but your post served as a great reminder that I should explore other options. Exercise really should be about feeling good!
I’ve always been pretty ambivalent about going to the gym on my own other than taking a few classes that I like, but this semester, I’ve really started enjoying doing my own strength training workouts at the gym! Hope that you find what workout makes you feel the best!
With fitness I really try to find something I love. I fell in love with running for almost 6 years, but then I found zumba and I love zumba, so that is my main workout these days. My brother helps me to get to the gym and get my workout in.
So awesome that you and your brother can help motivate each other! And zumba is so much fun (says the least coordinated girl ever haha!)
Finding different coping mechanisms is huge for me. It’s so easy to bust out the tub of ice cream when I’m stressed 🙂
So true! And nothing wrong with ice cream…but at least getting a good sweat on before digging into ice cream always makes me truly feel better!
That a girl, Liv! The workouts will stimulate you for Finals!
Moving in a way that feels good is such an important tip! I used to make myself run for exercise, but the truth is that I hated it and it totally exhausted me. Nowadays, it’s easy to motivate to exercise because I do things that I love: hiking, biking, walking, and yoga for the most part. 🙂
Even though the last thing I feel doing when I have bad period cramps is moving, I’ll usually go for a slow, short walk because that helps so much!
Yes! Love that you’ve figured out how to exercise in ways that feel better for you!!
Exercise keeps me focused on staying healthy and great motivation to do other things in life
Agreed! When I’m motivated with exercise, I feel like it spills over into all other aspects of my life, too.
I remind myself how good I feel immediately after a workout!
That’s such a simple motivator, but so effective and one of my favorites, too!
I stay motivated because working out makes me feel so amazing and being strong is powerful!
Yes! Getting stronger feels awesome! I’ve been working on being able to do more pushups on my toes and whenever I’m able to add one more, it’s the best feeling of making progress!
i stay motivated with good upbeat music and family support
Oh yes!! A new playlist really helps me look forward to a workout. And support from friends and family with a healthy lifestyle is so key!
Wow such a lovely article that gives me another reason to stay motivated for my workout. By the way, you have really gone in details with this article.
Great motivational article! I think “Focus on how I’ll feel after a workout” is one of the important and valuable points to stay motivated for a workout. Anyways, work done Liv!
Thanks, Victoria! Glad you liked this post!
Your article is very good, congratulations!
Thank you so much for such a nice motivational post. Yes i must say it’s really important tips for all
Thanks so much for the recommendation and help. Now I have more ideas on preparing tips for my exercising!
Here there Liv I hope you don’t mind if I chime in here too, as I’m a guy who found your site while reading about working out and related.
You have some really good thoughts here. I’d say I try to stay motivated by getting ready of distractions and I try hard to have a routine that is consistent. That helps with part of it.
Then I basically just really think about what I’m trying accomplish and the end goal.
I’d also add that when the opportunity comes along, I give encourage to others to keep going (or not to give up) both men and women I meet. You never know if you may be that *one* person to say something that makes all the difference!
Great tips, Grant! Thanks for chiming in!! Thinking about the end goal is really helpful for me, too.
I’m extremely inspired. The point #3 is most effective (Figure out what coping mechanisms actually make me feel better and do those!) A therapist or other mental health professional can often help people develop and improve their coping skills.
Hi…..I stay motivated with my fitbit…..I get disappointed if I don’t reach my daily goal…..so this pushes me along.
I liked that you stressed the importance of focusing on how I will feel after a workout even if it does not feel that good throughout the whole thing. I gained some weight recently because of my stressful lifestyle, and I realize that fitness will be a great way to help me lose it. I will make sure to focus only on good feelings and small wins so that the process of losing way would go easier and quicker!
great advice. making sure it’s something that makes me feel good is key for me. If I don’t enjoy it, then it just turns into a grind. I finally found some workouts (and good playlists) that keep it fun.
There are so many ways you can make the most of these motivation tips.
Awesome article for anyone who is struggling with motivation to live a healthy life. My top recommendation for my friends and colleague is to hop on a bike for your daily commutes. I try to convince as many college students as possible to use the bike for transportation because it is cheap, fun and your body will help you one day. Anyways, keep the good work. I will definitely bookmark your website 🙂
As with many things in life, if we find a way to enjoy it, find a way to make it our own, then we will do it longer and ultimately get the results we want to.
Nice post!
Just wanted to mention that yoga has made me feel whole again!
It is great for bringing the mind, the body, and the spirit together so we can function properly and live happily!
Wow! So start thinking of yourself as an athlete, and not a spectator. Set a goal, enlist a friend, mark it on your calendar, and have some fun. You’ll be setting yourself up for a lifetime of better health, more happiness, and more energy for everything else in your life. Great article!
I like how you stated to ‘ focus on how your feel after workout’ I workout early in A.M. and the hardest part of the workout is the first step ot of bed.
Thanks for sharing with us these insightful tips.. Most people lack motivation to exercise and stay fit, hopefully they will read this post and change their ways.
Thank you so much for these tips!! I’ve really been lacking in the motivation department. Most of the workouts I do are at home so it’s hard to hold myself accountable. I know a lot of people on here are familiar with at home programs so i thought i might ask this here. Has anybody ever heard of bodyboss method? It’s apparently an at home program you can do on your own time. I was looking at purchasing it but then I read a negative review on it here https://definingweightloss.com/bodyboss-method-reivew/ and it made me nervous that I would be wasting me money and maybe there are better programs out there. Has anybody tried Bodyboss or have any sucess with other at-home programs that I might be able to try. Thank you!!
Great post! I would like to try Tai Chi or mixed martial arts. I tried kickboxing before but I was caught up by a hectic schedule.
My coach once told me to focus on my feelings after the workout. And it’s true! We may sometime feel exhausted from running but after a few minutes, there’s the rush of endorphins that will make us happy with our exercise. With this, I am always motivated because exercising makes me happy. After the whole day of work at the office, this is the only venue to have fun and be fit.
I would have a diary to take note of my progress in exercising. I would jot down all the happy and unhappy memories that I have. In this way, I can try to be the best version of myself. Also, I always bring my earphones with me to hear some music while exercising. I like playing some hip-hop whenever I exercise. It pumps my heart fast and makes me happy. I think everyone is unique and the kind of motivation one has may seem different. But it will all boil down in making one push until he sustains the fight.
To stay motivated, I will keep a journal or track my progress in an app. No matter how small the improvement is, I make sure I put everything in my notebook so I can get motivated.
It’s hard to push through fitness, considering there are lots of hindrances like work and family commitments. Lucky for you, you have a supportive circle of friends. I am now joining communities with the same passion as I do so I can get motivated to stay fit and lose weight. Thanks for this!
Wonderful post,Exercising actually makes us whole as human beings,our reasoning,self esteem and heath are perfected.This is why Exercising should be taken as serious as one takes religion or academics.
Another form of exercise is meditation,kindly see @https://fitnessnavy.com/benefits-of-meditation/
Hi, Liv! In my case, I love running and dancing. I would always run around our small community together with my dog. Sometimes, when the weather is bad, I would run in the thread mill. Thanks for this. Xoxo.
Hi Liv,
Awesome article! Group fitness classes keep me motivated. I look forward to seeing the other participants and the instructor. The energy of the group keeps me going in the moments that I want to quit. I feel like I’m accountable to keep at it for the full time. You never want to be the person who quits and leaves early. I do so much more than I would if I were working out on my own.
Workout with other people is extremely motivating. The gym I go to is just workout classes, but I usually meet up with a friend and knowing she’s expecting me often gets me to the gym when I otherwise wouldn’t have gone.
Fitness is very much important for each and every individual, I am looking for motivation and this post really motivated me. From now, I will start exercise and also looking for a partner too, thanks for the article!!
One of the most common mental benefits of exercise is stress relief. physical benefits of exercise can also help improve mood and reduce anxiety. Thanks for sharing such a wonderful post.
I stay motivated by reminding myself why I am doing this. It helps me work even harder. This article is really very interesting, thank you for sharing. Keep posting.
When you have your partner in life, you will definitely get motivated every time. Like my Crime Partner is my Motivation source. 😉
Exercise makes us strong. It helps us or motivate us to reduce our stress.
You have to miss those mandatory practices. You had no choice but to work out. After I got out of college I was a wildland firefighter. PT was built into our workday. We would work out for a minimum of an hour or so year round. We have to find our motivation and just get out of the door and go do it.
One of the most common mental benefits of exercise is stress relief. physical benefits of exercise can also help improve mood and reduce anxiety. Thanks for sharing such a wonderful post
Great post! I would like to try Tai Chi or mixed martial arts. I tried kickboxing before but I was caught up by a hectic schedule.
Great post! I would like to try Tai Chi or mixed martial arts. I tried kickboxing before but I was caught up in a hectic schedule.
Great post! I tried kickboxing before but I was caught up in a hectic schedule.thanks for sharing this article.
Great post! I would like to try Tai Chi or mixed martial arts. I tried kickboxing before but I was caught up in a hectic schedule.