You’re in for a treat today because I’m very excited to let you in on the top 5 ways that will finally help you get motivated to exercise! So if you want to learn how to get motivated to workout in the morning and start on your journey of discovering the beautiful benefits exercise makes, then stop skimming and start reading! You’re in for a treat!
Set an alarm instead of a snooze button
Set an alarm instead of a snooze button. You know the drill: Your phone goes off, you shut it off, roll over and go back to sleep. The snooze button can be your enemy when it comes to waking up early — even if it’s just five minutes, it’s easy to doze off again after hitting snooze once. Instead of having your phone go off every five or 10 minutes, invest in an alarm clock that has one long ring instead of multiple short ones (or use your phone’s alarm settings). This will make it harder for you to fall back asleep.
Get your gear ready the night before
You’re less likely to skip a workout if you prepare your exercise clothes, shoes and music the night before. Don’t forget to set your alarm and put it out of reach — that way, you have to get out of bed to turn it off! You may be more tempted to stay in bed if it’s right next to you, so keep it on the floor or across the room.
Layout your workout clothes, tie your shoes and get everything you need in one easy-to-reach spot
The hardest part of getting a morning workout in is just getting started. Once you’re up, dressed and out the door, it’s usually all downhill from there.
The night before, layout your workout clothes, tie your shoes and get everything you need in one easy-to-reach spot, preferably near the door. This way all you have to do is get up and go. If you already have everything ready to go, the last thing you’ll want to do is make yourself go back to bed, lose those sweet kicks, and not be able to find them again in the morning!
Tell someone what you’re going to do and ask them to hold you accountable
People who exercise regularly often say they don’t mind doing it, but they hate getting started. They’d much rather stay in bed, or work on the computer, or do something else.
Getting out of bed to exercise can be especially difficult in the winter, when it’s dark and cold outside.
Here are some tips for getting motivated:
Tell someone what you’re going to do and ask them to hold you accountable. That might mean calling a friend in the morning and saying, “I’m exercising at 7 a.m.” If you don’t show up at 7 a.m., he’ll call to find out why. Or you can post on social media that you’re going for a run at 6 p.m., knowing that your friends will check on you later to see if you followed through.
For every day you exercise, put a dime or quarter (or whatever amount) in a jar by your bed. At the end of the month, take all that cash and spend it on something nice for yourself, like new workout clothes or a pedicure. Regular reinforcement will help create good habits.
Donate money to charity for every day you miss your goal — that way, you have an incentive to follow through and are supporting a
Start with just three days a week at first
While some people may feel like they’re ready to go from zero to 60 with fitness, that’s not always the case. If you’re just getting started, it can be helpful to ease into your exercise routine. Here are some tips for setting up a workout schedule that will work for you:
Start with just three days a week at first. You can always build up to more, but it’s important to start where you’ll be successful so you don’t get discouraged right away.
Keep your workouts short at first — 20 minutes or less. That can make it easier to manage your time and help you work out consistently while establishing a habit.
Give yourself a day’s rest each week. It’s important to give your body time to recover between workouts so you don’t overdo it and get hurt or burned out before you even get going.
Start small and work up
Start with a small amount of exercise, like five minutes of walking, and then gradually increase that amount by one or two minutes every week. Once you are comfortable with one type of exercise, add another to your routine.
Keep a calendar to check off each day as you go
Keep a calendar in your office — or the room where you work
Get a big wall calendar and put it in the center of wherever you spend most of your time working. Then, every day when you get up, write down what type of exercise you plan to do that day. It could be as simple as walking around the block or using an exercise bike for 20 minutes. If you have time for more, great. The point is to keep yourself accountable and moving every day, even if it’s just a little bit.
Check off each day as you go, and put a star next to days when you’ve done at least 30 minutes of exercise. Even if your schedule gets crazy, seeing that star will motivate you to stay on track because it reminds you of how good it feels when you’ve accomplished something important.
It’s hard to get motivated in the morning to do something you can’t see results from. If you want to exercise, go for it! You can take smaller steps in terms of exercise. They will still help your fitness level overall and motivate you to exercise more often. What’s more, it doesn’t have to be all or nothing! Give yourself positive reinforcement, try new things and don’t compare yourself to anyone else!
