Setbacks along your fitness journey are a completely normal phenomenon. You might not always know what is the best way for you to exercise while achieving your goals, enjoying it and living the rest of your life at the same time. No matter what caused you to go off your exercise routine there’s no need to panic. You can turn the situation around and come out stronger and more knowledgeable as a result. Here are some things you could try to help you get back on track and stay there.
1. Accept that it’s ok and you shouldn’t give up
Perhaps you tried training with a PT or promised yourself to go for a run every morning. Maybe you tried going to every morning class before work. Whatever it is you tried you weren’t able to stay motivated and keep it going. And it’s absolutely fine. The road to success is never straightforward.
Setbacks happen but should not be a reason to stop trying. Taking up exercise as an adult is not always an easy task and might take a few trials and errors. Even if you have started several exercise regimens but were not able to adhere to any of them, take it as a learning opportunity rather than a failure.
2. Think of the reasons it happened
Identifying why you were not able to stick to your routine will help you avoid the same mistakes in the future. Maybe you were trying to train too many times a week or maybe you got assigned a programme at a gym which you were not sure how to follow.
Many things can affect your exercise routine when you are just starting off. They can directly relate to your routine (choosing the wrong exercise activity) or your life (choosing an approach that is not sustainable with your other commitments). Knowing what caused you to stop exercising will help you choose a better way to exercise and stay on track next time.
3. Review your attitude towards exercise
Viewing exercise as a “punishment” for delicious foods you ate or a “chore” is the mindset you want to get rid of if you actually want to succeed. If you have a negative connotation with exercise in your head it is going to be much harder to stay committed for a long period of time. Instead, think of exercise as an investment in your health and longevity.
You probably have a pension fund with some money regularly going into it. Imagine, you also have a “health fund” and every time you exercise you will be adding a little bit towards a better quality of life for longer. Exercising and staying active is so much more than just a tool for burning calories or achieving a better physique. Do it for your health.
4. Figure out what kind of physical activity you actually enjoy
Not everyone needs to lift very heavy or run marathons to be fit. If you are trying out a particular way to exercise just because it’s popular or it’s what Instagram tells you to do, that doesn’t mean it is the best way to keep fit for you.
Try out a few different ways to exercise – boot camps, online sessions, group exercise classes (from Zumba to pilates), training alone or with friends. Choose the one you enjoy most, the one you can see yourself doing for years to come regardless of ever-changing life circumstances.
It is also very possible that your preferences will change as you keep exercising. For example, you might start with pilates classes and then get into lifting weights in a gym in the future. Just start with the exercise activity you currently enjoy doing most.
5. Start with small steps to get back into it
Sometimes even going for a walk or a hike is a good way to start introducing exercise back into your life. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself and don’t try to do too much too soon.
One of the biggest causes of not sticking to a routine is trying to do more than you can sustain for a long period of time. When you already went off track once or several times you want to make sure you ease yourself back in. Take your time and focus on consistency over time.
6. Work on developing positive habits/be accountable
Developing positive habits can be very helpful to stay on track with your exercise routine. If, for example, you decide that every Monday you will go to an exercise class and every Wednesday and Friday you will go for a long brisk walk it will be easier to turn it into a habit. If you set a few specific days aside per week and plan a certain exercise activity you are more likely to actually get it done compared to doing things at random times.
Setting specific days for exercise will also help you to keep yourself accountable. For example, you missed your Monday class due to unforeseen circumstances. Instead of feeling bad about it, you know that on Wednesday you have another activity scheduled which you will attend.
Keeping yourself accountable can also be a good indicator of whether the activity you’ve chosen is right for you. For example, you keep going on your walks but tend to miss classes you signed up to without any specific reason. If that’s the case you might want to look for an alternative class or activity.
7. Include diversity in your exercise routine
Do the activity you like but attempt not to focus all of your efforts on only one area of fitness. Let’s say you enjoy running and want to work towards improving your results. However, apart from doing actual running, you might also want to include some reasonable resistance training. Having strong muscles will help with your running technique which in turn will save you from injuries. If you don’t get injuries or aches you are more likely to stick to your exercise routine.
Similarly, if you like intense group exercise classes but find doing certain exercises uncomfortable due to the lack of range of motion, you might want to add some mobility work to your routine. This will ensure you keep doing what you love pain and injury-free. And with the number of exercise options available, you can still enjoy what you do while improving your cardiovascular fitness, your muscle strength and mobility/flexibility.
8. Give yourself credit for even small achievements
Being kind to yourself and giving yourself credit for even small improvements will help you continue with your exercise routine.
It might be easy to disregard small achievements and be hard on yourself if you don’t make immense progress in your physical fitness right away. It is important to remember that improving your fitness is a long journey. Feeling proud for simply showing up on a day when you didn’t feel like doing anything will help you feel more positive about exercise and will help you stay on track.
Everybody has their own reasons for going off track. Similarly, there is no one correct answer on how to avoid that in the future. Different things will work for different people. The best thing you can do is figure out what works for you and stick with it.