There’s no denying that sometimes going to the gym is the last thing we feel like doing. I’m sure we’ve all turned off the last-nights-good-intention 5am alarm or foregone that spin class for a night out with the girls. It can be difficult to stay motivated and exercise regularly, after all, we are only human. So to get you leaping out of bed and pounding the pavement, ex-bachie and qualified personal trainer, Tim Robards (who knows a thing or two about staying fit) shares five rules he swears by for keeping fit and staying motivated.
5 top tips for staying fit and motivated
1. Make exercise easy
Find a form of exercise that is time efficient, accessible, fun and preferably cheap. This is what I have developed with The Robards Method. It is body-weighted training that you can do in the gym, in the park or even at home. With city governments pushing for outdoor workout stations, you’ll never be far from an exercise spot.
2. Stand, stand, stand
Sitting should break up our standing, not the other way around. At work, try using a standing desk. You burn so much more energy standing and it’s great for your posture.
3. Test your limits
If you want your body to change for the better, you actually need to stress it in a good way. The body adapts to the environment unless the environment is far too stressful or largely toxic. I always tell people to learn what your 10 out of 10 is of hard training and then try to push it to an 11. Your body is amazing. It will adapt. Don’t set limits before you even start.
4. Don’t go it alone
Find a training partner that pushes you and keeps you accountable. It’s great to have someone to train with. A training partner, someone to push you and keep you accountable. But it can work the other way around. If your training partner is your partner and you’re on your way home from work, and you say ‘do you want to train today?’ and she says ‘oh, not really’ then you might just want to go home and keep her company.
5. Learn to love yourself
Another important aspect is learning to love yourself, which reflects in the way you talk to yourself. When you look at yourself in the mirror are you saying, god, you look ugly today? Your body listens to you. It comes down to certain expectations. A lot of depression starts with unrealistic expectations from yourself or someone else. So if you’re down on yourself or someone else, reassess your expectations.
