One of the biggest obstacles to attaining fitness goals is staying motivated. Maintaining a health and fitness plan may be difficult for you if you become bored with your routine or if you fail to see dramatic results immediately.
There are many diet and fitness tricks that claim to help you shed weight quickly but a good weight loss plan is one that does not promise overnight results with little or no exercise.
While you may be able to see results after a few weeks of following your health plan by religiously dieting and exercising, if you slacken off after a few months, you may find all the weight you lost gradually comes back. The only way to keep off the excess weight permanently is to maintain a healthy diet and regular physical exercise.
Staying motivated in the face of occasional laziness, diet temptations, monotony and a diet plateau requires focus, determination and will power. Here is what will keep you motivated:
Set realistic goals
You may start to feel hopeless when nothing you do seems to bring you any nearer to your weight loss target. Remember that it may have taken you years of mindless bingeing and snacking to gain your excess weight so that it may also take some time for you to burn all that stored fat.
Try breaking down your weight loss goal into smaller targets of say 10 to 15% of your excess weight and keep at it. When you are able to accomplish the small goals, you feel good about yourself and are motivated to do the other tasks that ultimately lead to your main fitness goal.
Find support
A friend, partner, spouse, boyfriend, or girlfriend who shares the same fitness and health ideas can help you stay on track with your fitness goals. It helps when you are not alone in your struggle to lose weight or maintain your ideal weight. Find a gym buddy or a group of friends who share the same interest in sports.
Dine out with friends who prefer healthier cuisine. You need not be limited to your immediate circle of friends. Look for community groups that believe in the same health ideals.
Social networks like Facebook and Twitter also have online groups that promote health and wellness. An online service that organises offline get togethers for people with a common interest is MeetUp.com. See if there is one in your area.Your support group may not only provide you with encouragement and company but may also be a source of new ideas to keep you motivated.
Have fun and variety
Stay motivated by engaging in what you love and by being open to other types of physical activities. In between gym days, try biking with friends, playing golf, badminton, basketball or tennis. Ask your trainer to add new routines to your regimen or sign up for dance classes if you enjoy dancing. For some, loading up their iPod with new music to listen to while they work out, jog or run also keeps the fun level up. Add variety to your diet by trying new dishes and by substituting certain ingredients in your salads. Use the internet to take a peek into the Mediterranean diet that is both tasty and healthy.
Reward yourself
Stay motivated by treating yourself at the end of a long week with a relaxing massage. Buy a new outfit to celebrate your new shape or simply give in to your food craving by having a small piece of dessert. The occasional treat is something to look forward to and can break the monotony of your health plan.
Originally published on Aug 28, 2009
