Staying Motivated

10 Tips for Sticking With Your Fitness Routine

I know I'm ahead of things, since it isn't Tuesday yet, but I won't be able to post tomorrow, and I wanted to share my thoughts about this week's topic.

I used to be a person who made fitness one of my New Year's resolution from time to time.  And usually by the end of January, I'd bagged the whole idea, and that was that.  Then, I was suddenly having major surgery twice in 5 months!  And spending a lot of time in physical therapy to recover.  Guess what? Not only did exercise help me recover from surgery, but it made me feel better, look better, and get so used to exercising, that I missed it when I didn't do it.

Over the years, I've stuck with it, though not always as dedicatedly, but as long as I'm still doing something actively, I think it's good.  So when this week's Ten on Tuesday topic was about sticking with your fitness routine, I decided to share.  Like most things, this may not work for you, but maybe there will be something here to make you give fitness a try.

1.  Tell someone your plan, or even better - post it on your blog!  If you are accountable to someone other than just yourself, you may be less likely to slack off.

2.  Set realistic goals.  So often, this is where I would fail.  But I've learned the hard way, that even if realistic doesn't sound life-changing, it may mean you'll actually do it.  For instance, due to our vacation and the holidays, I got a little bit carried away with my eating.  Rather than feel like nothing is worth it, I've decided to aim to lose 2 pounds a month.  That's not only realistic, it's even below the level of one pound a week that most doctors will recommend when you start trying to be fit.

3.  Reward yourself.  When I hit a goal, I treat myself with something small, but desired.  It can be anything, sometimes for me even a treat in the form of food - a couple of cookies, a bowl of ice cream.  Small amounts, but only if I've kept my promises to myself.

4.  Do something you LIKE TO DO.  I enjoy certain things at the gym or at home, but I also love to walk, and ride my bicycle.  Sometimes I just want to be left alone to do my thing.

5.  Make time for fitness.  I never ever used to be a morning person.  But after the aforementioned surgeries, when I would be awakened at 5:00 a.m. every morning when the doctors and medical students would be making their rounds, my internal clock reset itself.  So I got into the habit of getting up early every day, and exercising for about half an hour before anything else.  I usually manage about 3 times a week, and if nothing else, my walk with Dug gets me up and out early.

6.  Join a gym if you want to, or like group classes.  True, some gyms are ridiculously expensive, but often you can find a more reasonable one, and some allow you to take group classes for a slightly raised fee for non-members, even if you don't join up otherwise.

7.  Make yourself do it regularly for at least a month.  I know it sounds crazy, but once you get into the habit of it, it's a whole lot easier to stick to the plan.

8.   Find out if you can count on your spouse or a friend to join you, or at a minimum, be your cheerleader.  Encouraging words make a big difference.

9.  Look in the mirror.  It doesn't take long to look better.  And I don't mean look thinner, I mean look better.  More awake, healthier, and more comfortable in your body.

10.  If all else fails, make yourself walk someplace at least once a week.  Maybe around the block for half an hour.  Maybe up a couple of flights at work.  Or if you live someplace where it's possible to do so, take your walking shoes and take a walk at lunchtime during the workday.  I often walk for 1/2 hour.  Fifteen minutes, then I turn around and walk the way back, another fifteen minutes.  Then I still have half an hour for lunch.  Even this little bit can make a difference.

Remember though - if it all makes you so miserable that you only set yourself up for failure, you may need more than just suggestions to help you get healthier.

Good luck!

Next on the List ...

I've been taking my time formulating my ideas for my goals and intentions for 2013.  Because, I finally realized that they are mine, and technically don't even need to be recorded for/reported to anyone else.  However, one of the main purposes I started this blog was to write for myself, and keeping track of goals and intentions is one way to check myself throughout the year without feeling like I may have forgotten something.

One of my intentions and goals has already been reached.  I was really itching to review my stash, and did so last weekend.  I try to do it at least twice a year, but I had decided that it was just time to say goodbye to yarns that, even if I loved them and they were beautiful, I was just not likely to ever use.  I decided I was going to be ruthless.  And though I could probably have been even more ruthless than I was, I had a lot of stuff to give away and/or sell.

First - the yarn, bags, needles to give to Interim House, here in Philadelphia.  They have a Knitting Club for their residents, and it is wildly popular.  As a result, they have a hard time keeping everyone in supplies!  (Last year, we collected for them at Christmastime at Rosie's, and it was a huge success.  This year, I didn't have my act together, so it was a no-go.)  Anyway, I decided that besides "lesser" yarns that I had, the knitters deserved some of the nicer stuff as well.  By the time I was finished, I had jam-packed two large boxes (the kind that bottles of wine are shipped in) with LOTS of goodies.

I always like knowing that I can find a new and good home for my yarn.  :-)

The yarn that I didn't send to Interim House, I was going to sell on Ravelry.  But then I realized that there was so much, by the time I photographed it, uploaded it, and described it, months might pass.  And the whole purpose of this exercise was to move things out of here NOW.  So, I've decided to so something a little bit different, and create "Mystery Boxes."  What are those?  Well, I'll take a few boxes, fill them with various yarns, and sell them for an all-inclusive price.  Any given box could contain laceweight yarn, sock yarn, a sweater's worth of yarn - you get the idea.  I queried a couple of Ravelry forums about this idea, and though some responses made it sound as if I were trying to send Komodo dragons in the mail they were so incensed at the idea, there were a lot of people who thought it sounded like fun.  I figure it's worth a try.  So stay tuned, 'cause I'll be posting the Mystery Boxes here for your perusal as well.

Reviewing my stash is such a good thing for me.  It reminds me of what I already have, what I can let go, and what things I am likely to actually use.  I am really going to try my best to knit from my stash as much as it's possible this year, and ideally, I would like to have made a reasonable dent in the remaining stash by the time I am ready to review it again.  Granted, some of the yarn is already designated for specific projects, but unless those projects actually get started or finished, the yarn isn't going anywhere, right?

Next up: trying to decide what to knit/who to knit for this year.  That's gonna take me a little bit longer to determine.  But I'm on my way!