Help with consistency

[Golden]

Hey!
I'm on a mission to get in shape and take care of my health. I want to create good habits for my future self, since I'm young there's no better time to do begin.

But I have one huge problem and as you may have guessed, it's consistency. I began working out last year around the same time and I was making good progress but then I went on vacation, got sick, and then school took up all my time and I just couldn't bring myself to do a little bit of exercising a day. I'm finishing my exams in a few weeks so I thought about getting back to it and while researching found this website and that's been a blessing.

I'm trying to do half an hour every day and doing upper or lower body to recuperate but I've been breaking my streak so many times (as in working out for a day or two and then not working out for a week kind of thing) and it's making me loose progress especially regarding weight loss.

Basically what I'm asking is did you have the same problem and what are your solutions/how did you manage to get over that problem?

 

[Dustmouse]

Me, too. I have no answers! I'm hoping other people answer your question.

 

[graoumia]

Hi and welcome! Did you read Build to last ?

 

[TopNotch]

I think everyone has that problem. There are ways to try to get over it.
One way is to do something that you really enjoy. That will make you want to do whatever it is. I think a lot of people think of exercise as a scary sort of beast that they must placate by working out for a set period of time every day. It's not.
@Golden You said that you were trying to work out for half an hour a day. That is a lot, especially if you haven't already got into the habit. Try starting with one of the Challenges. Some can take a while, but most take a minute or two. Get into the habit of doing that every day, and then there you are - you've exercised every day. Build from there.
Another way is to have a goal to achieve. It is a simple as it sounds. I'm not talking a long-term goal initially, though they can be good too. Pick a goal you can achieve within a relatively short period of time - say a month or two. Make it something you really want to achieve, not something you think you ought to achieve. Then you have something to aim for. You work out what you have to do to get there, and move forward.
A third way is to change what you consider "exercise" to be. Do you see exercise as running on the treadmill or lifting weights, or punishing bodyweight work? Or do you see exercise simply as moving your body? Dancing while dusting, squatting while waiting for the kettle to boil, calf raises while flossing - this is all exercise. When walking somewhere, walk a little more briskly. Move intentionally - by which I mean, when you move, think about it. When taking the stairs, think about driving upward through your heel, tensing that thigh.
The fourth way is one I don't think many people like or want to hear. You simply have to do it. You are the only one who can make you stick to an exercise routine. A coach or training buddy can help you for a while, but the impetus must come from inside you, not outside. This really is the most important thing you can do. You can choose something you love, you can set yourself a goal, you can exercise in little bite-sized pieces, but unless you actually tell yourself to do it, nothing is going to happen.
But you found us here, and we Bees are pretty good at helping people keep going. Starting a thread here, and updating it regularly can help you with your consistency. Reading other people's logs can inspire you, as you read that we all have our ups and downs, and you're not alone.
Hope this helps.

 

[AquaMarie]

What really helped me was to find the right time to exercise. I tried for years to do a daily workout after I got home from work and never managed to be consistent. When I decided to switch to workouts before work every day, it became almost automatic. Now I have to make a conscious choice to skip a day (because sometimes I hurt or am exhausted and I need that rest). What can I say, brains are weird.

You can also try pairing your workout with something you already do every day. After you brush your teeth, say, or after your first bathroom break of the day. If you have a pet and you start exercizing right before you feed them, it won't be long until they become your personal trainer and start reminding you to workout every day.

Hope this helps! Good luck on your fitness journey!

 

[Golden]

I think everyone has that problem. There are ways to try to get over it.
One way is to do something that you really enjoy. That will make you want to do whatever it is. I think a lot of people think of exercise as a scary sort of beast that they must placate by working out for a set period of time every day. It's not.
@Golden You said that you were trying to work out for half an hour a day. That is a lot, especially if you haven't already got into the habit. Try starting with one of the Challenges. Some can take a while, but most take a minute or two. Get into the habit of doing that every day, and then there you are - you've exercised every day. Build from there.
Another way is to have a goal to achieve. It is a simple as it sounds. I'm not talking a long-term goal initially, though they can be good too. Pick a goal you can achieve within a relatively short period of time - say a month or two. Make it something you really want to achieve, not something you think you ought to achieve. Then you have something to aim for. You work out what you have to do to get there, and move forward.
A third way is to change what you consider "exercise" to be. Do you see exercise as running on the treadmill or lifting weights, or punishing bodyweight work? Or do you see exercise simply as moving your body? Dancing while dusting, squatting while waiting for the kettle to boil, calf raises while flossing - this is all exercise. When walking somewhere, walk a little more briskly. Move intentionally - by which I mean, when you move, think about it. When taking the stairs, think about driving upward through your heel, tensing that thigh.
The fourth way is one I don't think many people like or want to hear. You simply have to do it. You are the only one who can make you stick to an exercise routine. A coach or training buddy can help you for a while, but the impetus must come from inside you, not outside. This really is the most important thing you can do. You can choose something you love, you can set yourself a goal, you can exercise in little bite-sized pieces, but unless you actually tell yourself to do it, nothing is going to happen.
But you found us here, and we Bees are pretty good at helping people keep going. Starting a thread here, and updating it regularly can help you with your consistency. Reading other people's logs can inspire you, as you read that we all have our ups and downs, and you're not alone.
Hope this helps.

Thanks a lot for the advice!

I think I'll reduce my load for now. I didn't think half an hour would be a lot because I saw that get recomanded around, but I have some health issues that make it harder for my body to recover and I didn't really take that into account.

Again thank you for taking the time to answer!

 

[Golden]

What really helped me was to find the right time to exercise. I tried for years to do a daily workout after I got home from work and never managed to be consistent. When I decided to switch to workouts before work every day, it became almost automatic. Now I have to make a conscious choice to skip a day (because sometimes I hurt or am exhausted and I need that rest). What can I say, brains are weird.

You can also try pairing your workout with something you already do every day. After you brush your teeth, say, or after your first bathroom break of the day. If you have a pet and you start exercizing right before you feed them, it won't be long until they become your personal trainer and start reminding you to workout every day.

Hope this helps! Good luck on your fitness journey!

Right! I am working out an hour after getting home and in general I'm exhausted. That surely doesn't help lmao.
Since I wake up waaaaay too early maybe I should do some thoughtfull mouvements like @TopNotch recommend. Maybe I'll even feel energized for the day!
Thank you for the feedback!

 

[Golden]

Me, too. I have no answers! I'm hoping other people answer your question.

Hope you did now!

 

[blackwolf742]

Hello

reading the book "atomic habits" by James Clear really helped me. To make it short, I was kind of lazy and I tried to exercise. Thinking like that, I couldn't be really consistent because I still was lazy in my head. To change your habits, you must change your identity first. Convincing yourself that you're not lazy, that you're already the person you want to be, sends a message to your brain. I'm consistent because that's who I am, I'm no lazy anymore.

This is a very bad summary but I encourage you to read that book, it really helped me ! Keep it up

 

[TopNotch]

Hello

reading the book "atomic habits" by James Clear really helped me. To make it short, I was kind of lazy and I tried to exercise. Thinking like that, I couldn't be really consistent because I still was lazy in my head. To change your habits, you must change your identity first. Convincing yourself that you're not lazy, that you're already the person you want to be, sends a message to your brain. I'm consistent because that's who I am, I'm no lazy anymore.

This is a very bad summary but I encourage you to read that book, it really helped me ! Keep it up

I read that book. It's not bad. I can't agree that you have to change your identity first. That's the wrong way around. You convince yourself you're not lazy by being not lazy, not by telling yourself. Habits come first, identity comes from the habits. What I mean is, you're not a footballer if you don't get out there and practice football. No matter what you tell yourself. Once you're out there practicing and playing, then your identity changes and you're a footballer.
Also "lazy" is not a good word to use in general. There is friction, something that prevents you from acting. Few people are actually lazy, most simply struggle to overcome resistance, and we all face resistance.

 

[Spartan926]

I struggled with this for years, even after I joined Darebee. What really broke it for me were two things. 1) I found the fighter training program on Darebee. It being four days on, three days off with suggested workout types helped me to settle into a rhythm. I also made sure that I set myself an alarm to do the workout at about the same time every day. 2) After I started doing that for a few months and had a good groove established for what I did when I moved into one of the 30-day fitness challenges. Once I had done a couple of those programs (on top of my regular exercises), I found that it just took care of itself as my brain would start to go "hey, I haven't done my walk/workout today."

An additional thing that helped was just checking in with some online friends to say "hey, I'm doing this thing" and having one of them in particular hold me accountable to finishing by my set timeline. The simple fact of stating it out loud and knowing that someone, somewhere, was going to ask me about it made a huge difference in my mind.

These are what worked for me, hoping that you or someone can find some use from my experience.

 

[Botenlauben]

Thank you for starting this thread. I have exactly the same problem and I found several very intelligent answers here which would not exist if you had not asked. Thanks again!

 

[Damer]

It might also be of use to checkout this video on motivation:

And this one on becoming unstoppable by handling your fitness journey goals better: