6 Ways to get Motivated and Refresh your Exercise Routine

From getting a fitfam to freeing yourself from guilt, here’s how to embark on your fitness journey

Text: Tiff H & Rebecca Morais

Wake up and workout

Weight gain during the pandemic and the festive seasons is totally a thing. Nearly a third of Singaporeans experienced weight gain. Stress, stagnant routines and simply lack of movement were all contributing factors.

It’s no secret that exercise does wonders for both your body and your mind; our bodies are designed for movement. So how do we turn those new year fitness resolutions that slip into guilt by mid-month into a sustainable workout that will last for the long-run? You’ve got to refresh your exercise routine that’s how! The Soothe pick our top six ways to get motivated to get your athleisure on and your heart rate racing. 

Keep track of your progress

1.    Keep track of your progress

One of the best ways to get (and stay) motivated to stick to your workout routine is by tracking your progress. You can do so through apps, online or an old-school fitness journal. Setting your own personal goals — whether it’s completing all the rings on your apple watch, running for 5 more minutes or lifting heavier — means that you’ll be able to see improvements that will encourage you to keep going.

2.    Self-guilt is a destructive and ultimately pointless emotion

Just because you don’t see constant improvements despite attempts to refresh your workout routine doesn’t mean you’ve failed. We get it; January is hard going. Give yourself some leeway for rest days or even missing a day or two to allow you to come back to your workout routine refreshed and energised. Don’t force yourself to exercise if you really don’t feel like it as this will create a cycle of resentment.

Keep yourself accountable

3.    Keep yourself accountable

In addition to tracking your process, a good way to stay focused and motivated to stick to your workout routine is getting other people involved in your fitness journey. If you’re working out with your #fitfam either in-studio or at home, the social element comes into play and you’re less likely to back out of an exercise session.

4.    Get organised and prep ahead

Pack your gym kit and change of clothes the night before so you can either jump straight into them when your morning alarm goes off, or take them with you to work, leaving you no excuses to skip your workout.

Find what works for you

5.    Find what works for you, everyone’s different

Every individual is unique and this is reflected in how you approach exercise. Get motivated by facing your truth. If you’re not a morning person, don’t drag yourself to those 7am spin classes. If you have weak knees, don’t run a 10km every day. With such a myriad of options for exercise, from traditional strength workouts to the more unique ones such as ballet or trampoline workouts, identify what you enjoy and mix it up if need be.

6.    Reward yourself

While long-term goals and milestones are important, smaller rewards within your fitness journey are key to keeping you motivated. Charles Duhigg, author of The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business advises making the benefits of working out more tangible, such as by treating yourself to a smoothie, new workout leggings or an episode of Friends afterwards.

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