Regular exercise and physical activity are vital to allowing you to Retire Healthier and feel better in the short term as well.1 But how do you maintain a regular exercise routine so you can get the many benefits of exercise?
When it comes to starting or revamping or even staying consistent with your exercise routine the best way I have found for myself and my clients is by integrating something I call FATE.
FATE is an acronym that stands for Fun, Accountability, Time, and Environment. If you integrate these four then you will know how to maintain an exercise routine like an absolute rockstar.
Around 50% of people stop exercising within 6 months after starting an exercise routine2 so implementing these 4 things is vital to helping you stick with it for the long haul.
FUN:
The more fun you can have while exercising the easier time you’ll have doing it.
When you perceive exercise as a chore or boring it is tougher to get yourself to do it. When you make it enjoyable, the barrier decreases turning exercise into something you look forward to.
Here are some ways you can make exercise fun.
- Pick activities you enjoy and naturally gravitate to, for me that means things like hiking in nature, lifting weights, running, dancing, etc. What are things you like? Is it playing tennis, swimming, or running with your dog – whatever it is those are great places to start. There are also activities you think could be fun that you haven’t done or that you want to try (ex. rock climbing). For new activities, they can be intimidating to start so important to get over your fear and try it (because no one wants to die with regrets) and stick with them so the intimidation factor goes away as you get more comfortable.
- Combine exercise with something you already enjoy, for example, my mom loves to walk on the treadmill and watch tennis. If you like hanging out with friends, ask them to go to the gym with you. I love to listen to music when I resistance train so I always put some tunes on to boost my mood.
BONUS TIP: If you go somewhere to exercise can you make the journey fun too? I usually work out in the morning so I have a coffee on the drive over and listen to a podcast or blast some high-energy music.
- Start with what you like. Starting your workout with something you like can make it easier to keep going. I have some of my clients start their workout by playing a game as this gets them in a good mood, laughing, and having fun.
- Play a game. Research shows that people are more likely to stick with exercise if they are playing a sport/game with other people.3 This is due to the social connections you can make with others. Look into your local area to see what options exist for you.
BONUS TIP: Don’t let self-judgment stop you from trying. Many people will let their skill level, age, or experience stop them from trying. Go and give it a real shot, that means going back multiple times to make social connections, get used to the game or sport, etc.
- Change it up every so often, novelty can make things more enjoyable and can increase exercise adherence.4 Take a different walking path, try a new exercise, do a different format of workout, etc. I have been working out for 20 years and I’m not bored yet because once I start to get tired of a way of doing things then I simply shake things up.
- Avoid what you hate, despise, or dread. I HATE swimming as exercise, I love to swim in the ocean or a lake for fun but I despise swimming for cardio so I don’t. When you are trying to get into an exercise routine your goal is to get into a routine. A routine filled with things you hate is a routine you will make excuses to ditch ASAP. Instead, fill your exercise routine with things you tend to gravitate towards.
- Be kind to yourself and be your cheerleader. Our mental self-talk often dictates how we feel about what we are doing and our energy levels. Use a positive mantra when you exercise like “I got this!” repeat this over and over and it will help make it 100 times more enjoyable than telling yourself “This is worse than watching Madame Web“.
- Make mini milestones/goals you can you can check off as you go through a workout. For example, “I’m going to run to that lamp post” then “I’m going to now walk to that stop sign” then “I’m going to run again until that next street” etc. Celebrate you as you check off each one because celebrating the little wins is what keeps us moving forward – so take that lamp post I ran to you!
- Don’t take it too seriously. Being too serious during your workout can make it a drag. Are you going to the Olympics? Because I sure as heck am not so why treat it like some super serious endeavor it’s exercise, it’s not inputting nuclear codes to avoid a global catastrophe.
Trying hard and challenging yourself is important but exercise doesn’t need to be a SERIOUS, no fun endeavour. Be playful, let loose, be you, whatever that means for you. If you treat your workouts like a serious, no fun zone they become a no fun zone. I like to dance between sets because it makes me happy and people probably think I’ve lost my marbles but the thing is I never had any marbles – were we supposed to get a bag of marbles when we’re born?
ACCOUNTABILITY:
When you are trying to figure out how to maintain an exercise routine a powerful motivator can be accountability.
Accountability can help so much to help build the consistency muscle. Some of my clients still hire me after years of training even though they know what to do on their own because they need accountability.
Usually, the best accountability is from an external source this could be a coach, trainer, a friend, an app, a family member, a running group, etc. My wife and I do mobility sessions together so we keep each other accountable to them.
By having someone other than yourself invested in your success you are increasing the odds of your success.
Want me to keep you accountable? Click here to find out how.
TIME:
As you are starting and working to determine how to maintain an exercise routine it is important to see what barriers exist. Often one of the biggest barriers for people is time.
If you don’t have the time to exercise you won’t so preplanning when you’re going to exercise is critical.
Many people say “I don’t have the time” The reality is most people just choose to do different things with their time. If you don’t feel like you have the time, take a time audit to see how you’re spending your time, how often you are on social media, watching TV, reading, cooking, sitting around while your kids play, etc.
These are all opportunities to integrate exercise, for example, you could skip rope while the kids play or go for a walk instead of scrolling social media when you wake up. It is about making the time to exercise and making it a priority in your life because it is a critical component for you to retire healthier.
The other important thing about time is to know when you’re going to exercise. There is no “right” time for exercise. The only time I would say it isn’t ideal is right before bed, a couple of hours before you sleep is ok.
Currently, I like to exercise in the morning but there was a time when I taught fitness classes in the mornings, had nutrition school during the day, and had evening fitness classes to teach so I would exercise in the afternoons.
The best time to pick is the time that works with your schedule and one that makes it the most likely you’ll do it. If you do not schedule it, it will not happen. Put in your calendar the times and days you are going to exercise.
My wife and I wanted to go for a hike the other week so we looked at our schedules and determined Sunday morning was the best time so we put it in the calendar. Then we knew we needed to be in bed in good time on Saturday and when we needed to get up on Sunday. When we got up we got ready and went for our hike.
Scheduling in your exercise increases the likelihood you’ll exercise and if you schedule it with accountability (trainer, friend, etc.) the odds of it happening get even better.
Another important time factor is scheduling the length of your workout. It doesn’t need to be an hour, you can get a great workout in 30 minutes but you need to be efficient with your time.
If you only have 15 minutes to exercise, that’s better than doing nothing. Don’t get stuck in a mindset that it needs to be an hour in length or no workout can happen.
Fit in what you can when you can and schedule it in something is better than nothing.
ENVIRONMENT:
When it comes to determining how to maintain an exercise routine, your environment is critical.
Your environment cues you to behave in certain ways so cultivate an environment that encourages you to move your body. If you have trouble getting yourself to exercise at home then join a gym. Once you’re there you might as well exercise.
You want your environment to reduce friction to exercising, the more friction the more likely you won’t stick with it.
For example, if you’re considering joining a gym and one of the two you’re considering is 10 minutes away, the other is only 5 minutes away. The closer one will provide less friction because it is more convenient and easier to get to.
Look at your environment and ask, what things can I do to increase the odds of sticking with an exercise routine?
If you’ve scheduled yourself a run in the morning, lay out your running clothes and shoes the night before so when you wake up you see them and it cues you to go for a run and lowers the resistance to getting out there.
Summary:
If you can integrate FATE (fun, accountability, time, and environment) then you will have much higher odds of maintaining an exercise routine.
With each one of these, it is important to tailor them to you and what works best for you as a person. Self-awareness here is critical.
Then assess and shift things if needed.
Maybe you tried swimming for exercise but the pool is too far away and it takes too long for you to get ready afterward instead try jogging outside.
Maybe you tried walking with a friend but they aren’t consistent, instead look up walking groups in the area and join one.
Maybe you tried strength training but your workouts are taking too long, try doing more supersets to reduce the time.
The best exercise routine is the one you can stick with. Use FATE to help you stay consistent so you can stop asking how to maintain an exercise routine and start telling other people how you’ve been able to stay consistent with yours for years!
0 Comments