When it comes to building healthy habits, the New Year is a popular time to get started. However, for many of us, those New Year’s resolutions often go out the window after just a few short weeks, and we find ourselves struggling to get back on track. In honor of American Heart Month, we’re sharing our tips for creating a fitness routine that really sticks.
Know yourself.
Habit formation isn’t one-size-fits-all. Before you get started, think about how you have successfully formed new habits in the past. How do you respond to expectations from yourself and others? Happiness and habits expert Gretchen Rubin has created a free quiz based on her Four Tendencies framework, which helps us determine exactly that. Different personality types will form habits in different ways. Some of us might benefit from outer accountability, such as joining a fitness group, having a workout buddy, or participating in some friendly competition at work. Others may benefit from sticking to a schedule or using a fitness tracker to stay focused. Take the quiz and think about what will work best for you!
Set action goals, not outcome goals.
While your ultimate goal may be to lose a certain amount of weight or to lower your blood pressure, it may not be realistic to set a goal based on an outcome you don’t have full control over. Instead of focusing your goals on those outcomes, center your goals around certain habits you want to incorporate. For example, instead of setting the goal of “losing 20 pounds this year,” try “exercising 30 minutes a day for four days a week.” Be realistic when crafting these goals so that you don’t set yourself up for failure. If you were not working out at all in 2020, then deciding to work out every day in 2021 may be too big of a jump. Look for ways to improve upon what you were doing before, but don’t put so much pressure on yourself in the early days that you ultimately give up within a few weeks.
Do something you enjoy.
Working out doesn’t have to feel like a chore. There are countless exercise options out there, from gyms to at-home workouts, so test the waters and see what works best for you. POPSUGAR Fitness offers hundreds of free workout videos on their YouTube channel, including high intensity interval training, yoga and pilates, hip-hop and body weight exercises. If you don’t know where to start or are new to the world of fitness, it may make sense to sample a few of those videos to find out what resonates most with you.
Working out doesn’t have to take place in a traditional setting, so long as you are incorporating movement into your day. If you enjoy the outdoors and the weather allows for it, why not take walks in nature? AllTrails is a great resource for discovering parks and hiking trails in your area, and it includes information about the difficulty level, length of the trail, parking, wildlife sightings and more.
Incorporate more movement into your non-workout activities.
Make small swaps in your day to create major shifts in your overall activity level. Consider taking the stairs instead of the elevator or parking a little farther from the store than you normally would. Instead of going to lunch with a friend, invite that person on a walk somewhere. We have so much sedentary time in our days, so look for ways to add a little more movement when you can.
Mindset is everything.
Approach your fitness routine from a place of self-love rather than punishment. While exercise can certainly help you achieve weight loss and other physical milestones, it also has a powerful effect on your mind. It can relieve stress, boost your energy, help you concentrate and even aid your sleep. Don’t think of exercise as a way to punish yourself for eating “too much” or not looking like a certain celebrity, but rather as a way to improve your entire state of being. Be gentle with yourself, and don’t neglect that mind-body connection. Consider journaling, meditation, or gratitude practices to enhance your mental wellness.
Whatever your fitness goals may be in 2021, we wish you the best in achieving them!
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