How Do I Stay Motivated to Work Out? – 

Some people are always fired up to hit the gym, but others find it harder to get moving and stay moving.

If you struggle with motivation at times, here are four tips to help you!

1. Set a Goal

The best thing you can do to stay motivated is set a specific goal that’s important to you. 

What do you want to accomplish in the gym?

Here are a few common goals: lose weight, gain muscle, look better, feel better, get stronger, live longer, have more energy, reduce stress, prevent injury,  etc.

Think about what you want as a result of training. If you can focus on the reward, putting in the work will be much easier. 

For example: “I’m worn out, but I want to be a good role model for my kid. I’ll hit the gym even though I’m tired.”

Goals are powerful. Set one today. If you want to amplify the power of the goal, tell someone—like your coach!

2. Do Things You Enjoy

Remember the “no pain, no gain” catchphrase? It’s only partially true.

Yes, you must put in work to get results, but you don’t have to be miserable while you do it. The old-school approach of suffering through workouts you hate actually kills motivation.

For example, maybe you dislike the treadmill and feel like a hamster when you’re stuck running on one. No problem! Your workout plan can involve other types of movement, weights or a combination of both. 

If you don’t enjoy lifting barbells, a great coach can help you find success with other things, like dumbbells or kettlebells.

The point: Find activities that make you happy and use them to work toward your goals.

3. Gather wins to change your mindset

Motivation doesn’t produce success. Motivation comes from success! That means you must find small victories every day to stoke your fire. These are the little things that add up to big things. 

Say you just got home from the gym but feel hopeless about accomplishing your long-term goal of losing 20 lb. “I’ll never get there. I’m wasting my time!” you say, as the motivation drains out of you. 

Here’s how you reframe that: “I get to work out today, and take a huge step toward my big goal. Every workout is a step in the right direction.”

See the difference? 

How about this one: “I did 8 reps today when I could only do 7 last week!” 

Perspective is everything. After every workout, find one reason it was successful – chalk it up to a win for the day. The more wins you collect, the easier the motivation will come. 

4. Call for Backup

It’s very easy to lose steam on your own. It can be hard to see progress, break old habits and push on without feedback or encouragement.  At AYG, we have coaches who can push you and hold you accountable but we also have a community that will support you unconditionally. 

A coach can make a world of difference by seeing things you miss: “Wow—you’re so much stronger than you were last month!” Or “did you just do 5 push-ups in a row?” OR “Do you realize how far you’ve come in just three months?”

Our members become your new workout partner(s) – accountability can come from our community too.  It’s really easy to give your all when you see the person beside you pushing themselves to be their best.  The biggest perk of group fitness is the push you get from those around you.  When motivation surrounds you, it’s so much easier to hop on the band wagon. 

At AYG, our coaches and members will help you stay motivated and focused. In our gym, we ALL take great pride in helping clients move toward their goals every day. 

If you’re struggling with motivation or just want to move toward your goals faster, send us an email at gord@areyougame.ca.