You have time somewhere; just find the time of day you can commit to some form of exercise and stick to it at least 2-3 days/week. Everyone has time to do 30 minutes of exercise 3 days a week even if it’s just a brisk walk at lunch, before or after work, at your child’s game/practice or shopping. If you start here and keep an eye on your calorie intake so that you’re body/weight is moving in the right direction, you will be motivated to find time to get the gym regularly where you can add resistance exercise and different forms of cardio activities. And you still don’t need much more than 3-days/week for 30 minutes once you are at the facility. Do 15 minutes of resistance exercise, 15 minutes of cardio and you can add a little more walking throughout any other time of the day.
The point is to start with what you can do, make sure your body improves by simply watching your diet and you will for sure be motivated to make time to exercise. One good turn deserves another, meaning once you feel and look better, you will want to progress. Use the dotFIT armband to help motivate you to burn more calories. Knowing your numbers and seeing immediate feedback makes motivation far less necessary to succeed. The armband teaches you that the entire world is your gym.
Also, try to find a form of exercise you truly enjoy and get a partner, this will also motivate you to find time – again EVERYONE has 30 minutes. And on days you just can’t find time for the gym, read this article for tips http://www.dotfit.com/content-1491.html.
You must be the creator of your program or you won’t be the master
The only way you will own a behavioral change is if you create it. Start the client anyway you can, sticking to this simple rule: burn more calories than you consume, on average, until you reach your goal. Just follow the number. The good news is that “one good turn deserves another,” meaning as the body changes and the client starts to look and feel better, they will also do things better. BUT the first turn has to come easily and on their terms, or they are set to fail or eventually give up. Square pegs don’t fit in round holes – they need to own their program because it fits the life they choose, not a life someone else chooses for them. Everyone wants to be lean but they must arrive their way. Your guidance and using the dotFIT program allows total flexibility thus dramatically lowering the need for motivation. NO one can stick to a program they can’t or won’t want to do forever. Show them that the world is the gym: keep moving anyway you can; and their food is their diet: they can eat ANYTHING they want, just not EVERYTHING they want. Knowing your numbers and seeing immediate feedback makes motivation far less necessary to succeed.
All that said there are some proven motivational tips listed below and remember that creating new habits is a continual process but has the best chance of leading to lasting change.
➢ Create a vision of your ideal self
➢ Set 90 day goals
➢ Set weekly SMART goals
➢ Track success rate weekly
➢ Adjust along the way
➢ Use setbacks to learn and grow
Outline of Steps:
1. Create a vision
- Write down the answers to these questions:
- What do you value most?
- How does your health and fitness relate to what’s important to you?
- Envision your ideal self. What do you look like?
- What do you feel like?
- What are you doing?
- What are you NOT doing?
- What are the benefits to realizing your vision?
- What are your strengths that will help you?
- When have you been successful in the past? How did that feel?
- What accomplishments are you proud of?
- Who can provide support?
- What resources can you use along the way?
- What would life be like if you reached your vision?
- What would life be like if you didn’t?
2. Commit to your vision
- Write it down in the present, sign your name and share it with someone
- Post cues to remind you of your vision
- Sticky note on mirror
- Schedule daily appt to review
- Find a photo or paint an image
3. Set 90-day goals
- What do you want to accomplish in the next 90 days?
- What behaviors will help you reach your vision?
- Write down 3-5 in order of importance
4. Set weekly SMART Goals - specific actions needed to reach 90 day goals and vision
- Identify 1-5 things you’d like to work on
- S – specific – what, when
- M – measureable – how much
- A – action-based
- R – relevant - to the 90 day goal
- T – time-bound
- Vague vs. SMART goals
- I will drink more water VS. I will drink 1 glass of water with lunch and dinner 5 days a week
- I will workout regularly VS. I will do an aerobic class after work, 3 days a week
- I will eat 5 servings of fruits and vegetables a day VS. I will eat a piece of fruit at breakfast and snack 4 days a week.
5. Review what went well on a weekly basis and make adjustments.
- Recall your best experiences over the past week.
- For your weekly SMART goals, calculate your percent success rate. Example:
- Goal: Drink 1 glass of water at lunch and dinner 5 days/week
- Result: 3 days = 60% success
- Questions to answer:
- What contributed to your success?
- What could have made it higher?
- What challenges did you face?
- Is this goal too ambitious or too easy?
- What are you getting out of this goal?
- ON a scale of 1 to 10, how confident are you that you can maintain this behavior in the next few weeks? If you’re not at least a 7, consider revising the goal.
6. Turn setbacks into learning experiences. Trial and correction, not trial and error leads to success
- Evaluate setback
- Identify triggers that put you at risk - people, places, environments, situations
- Make a list of ways to modify or eliminate trigger and do it now or set a SMART goal.