No More Excuses! 10 Tips to Stick with your Workouts

It's getting warmer! For me that means more gardening, more outdoor running, more yard work and longer days so just more activity and more calorie burn in general. BUT, it also means more parties, more BBQs, more grilling, more excuses to sit outside on a lovely summer evening and drink wine . . . .

More poolside time, shorter shorts, skirts and smaller/less clothes in general means that the lumps and bumps that were easily camouflaged with leggings, boots and long sweaters are not so easy to disguise if you want to beat the heat or hang with the kiddos at the water attractions. Soooo what's the answer? Well, you know me, I'm always going to say WORK OUT MORE!

I know for some people this just seems like an impossible goal to achieve -- the dreaded daily workout. However, there are ways to develop a workout routine and make it a habit!! Here's the Top Ten!

1. Make it about more than weight loss: For many women, working out is simply a means to the end of losing weight. If you look at your workouts as a way to stay younger, have more energy and improve your health, then you won't be discouraged when the scale doesn't sway and quit.
2. Put your motivation front & center: Having goals of increased endurance, muscle tone, energy and stamina and then visualizing what that looks like on a vision board can help remind you when your energy is waning why you should overcome that voice in your head and "Just do it." Powerful motivational quotes, reminders on your calendar, phone, and computer all keep that message in the forefront of your day and once you check it off, you're done! Which leads to . . . .
3. "Eat That Frog": To coin a phrase from Mark Twain, used by Brian Tracy in his book of the same title. If you're not to the point in your life or workouts where you enjoy the exercise you are doing, then the best way to ensure that it gets done is to eat the frog first thing in the morning. The sense of accomplishment and increased mood and brain function will improve the rest of your day right from the get-go. Don't want to get up an hour earlier? Then see number four. . .
   
4. Do shorter workouts. Who ever came up with the idea that a workout had to be an hour long? It doesn't! It can be as little as 5, 10, 15 or 30 minutes -- longer if you want -- but if you work out HARD enough and at maximum intensity, you can get as much or more of the physiological benefits, enhanced metabolism and increased endurance as a 60-minute-plus workout.
5. Publicize your goals: Telling friends, Facebook, your spouse and family that you are undertaking a workout regimen and asking people for their help and support will help to keep you accountable, along with number six . . .
   
6. Get an accountability partner. Ask a close friend, another stay-at-home mom, a coworker or someone who maintains a similar schedule to you if they will either work out with you or do a specific program with you. This forces you to do number seven . . .
   
7. Have a PLAN. "I'm going to start working out on Monday" ain't a plan. A plan is, "I have registered for a half-marathon on June 3rd and have 12 weeks to train," plug the training schedule into your calendar and set a time/pace goal to achieve. My sister just put it out there that her goal is to put 100 miles on her pedometer by next Sunday (I'm so proud of her, by the way). Purchase a workout PROGRAM -- home DVDs, a package of sessions with a personal trainer -- that has a specific CALENDAR which also will lead to progression and fend off adaptation and stagnation. But that costs money, you say? See number eight . . .
   
8. Put some skin in the game! If you lay out some investment for personal training, it's an additional incentive to stick with your program AND to do your prescribed workouts on your trainer "off" days (or to get out and do something at home if you can't make it to the gym). If you're looking to drop pounds, spending some dough on workout gear, programs, a trainer or clothing will likely dissuade you from splurging on that $5 latte or a spin through the fast-food drive-thru -- make your spending habits reflective of your priorities. If you're not willing to spend money on your health now, you will be forced to spend money on your sickness later.
   
9. Work it into your life. If you have small children, get a jogging stroller and get everyone out of the house during the day. Just one child, use a backpack and hike nature trails or strap a baby on for housework and extra trips up and down the stairs to do laundry. Have lots of computer work? Use a stability ball for a chair and do 5 minutes of core work every 2 hours. Invest in a recumbent bike and do computer work or watch TV while cycling. Listen to personal development audio on your music player when you walk or run or go to the gym or work out at home with friends so you can gossip and socialize while you're doing your exercising. I'm all about the multitasking!
10. Dress for Success: The reason they're called "lounge pants" is because that's what you do when you're wearing them! Of course, some people "lounge" in "sweats" too, but I digress. If you get up in the morning or get home from work and put on relaxed clothes, you're probably going to relax. Grab your workout gear right away so that when the mood strikes or timing is right, you are ready to go! Also in line with #8, if you invest in cute workout clothes you're more likely to wear them, and work out in them!

You have to realize that YOU ARE WORTH IT! And so is your family. Exercise reduces your stress, can eliminate many expensive medications you may be taking, can reduce or eliminate depression, helps you sleep better and improves your sex drive. Even if you don't "lose weight," don't those benefits seem worth it?? But the fact is, you probably will, or at the very least tone up, stave off osteoporosis by working on creating more lean muscle mass in your body and be able to eat more calories by increasing your BMI through resistance training.

More about resistance training tomorrow!