How To Get Active Again
Key takeaways
Motivation: Restart your active journey with strong and attainable goals that keep true to your overall reasons for becoming active.
Own your lifestyle: Choose a workout method that suits your needs and understand the complexity of progress within fitness journeys.
All about you: Holding yourself accountable with a workout buddy and reward system will foster the best active environment
Set your goals
So, you’ve decided you want to get active again…you’ve come to the right place! First of all, say a thank you to yourself and your body for the journey you are about to begin. Any ability to engage in physical activity deserves to be recognized as you are nurturing your body, and your home. Finding your starting point can be difficult, let’s be honest no one can wake up one morning and miraculously run a marathon! To take a few steps back in the process, focusing on your motivation to become active again is a great starting point. Whatever your personal reason for starting up physical activity is, keep that close to your heart through all workout days. Some will be harder than others and bring thoughts like “this is so hard I can’t do it” or “I’m not cut out for this I may as well stop now” which is exactly when you need to remind yourself of your motivation! You are your biggest advocate and can accomplish whatever you desire if you commit to it 100%, this will guide you your entire workout journey so it’s important to start early.
Setting simple and realistic goals at the beginning of becoming active again is also a useful exercise to show concrete progress. When creating your goals and beginning activity, a difficult conversation may arise surrounding your skill level. After a few years off, you may not be at the same skill level you were during a previous workout journey. That is completely okay and important to realize early on! You do not want to hurt yourself or overwork your body, so by giving yourself grace within performance levels you allow yourself to build a stronger foundation. During your goal setting you may desire to reach your previous skill level, or even surpass it! Little by little these goals should align with your motivation and keep you on a regular workout schedule. Goals can be specific to the type of workout you are participating in, such as lifting a certain weight level or mastering a pose in yoga, but they can also be as easy as drinking a full bottle of water or taking a 30-minute outdoor walk once a week. These goals and your workout choices should match your lifestyle to see the most productive results.
Believe in yourself
The mindset you carry throughout your new active journey could make or break the progress you achieve. Having confidence in your ability to complete a workout is truly all you need to complete the workout! The beginning could be easy as you are just getting started, then further down the line your mindset starts to shift after not seeing progress. This is a perfect time to remind yourself that progress is not linear. Physical results can take time to be visible, what is most important is that you have been mentally growing in your active lifestyle. There will always be days harder than others, showcasing that nonlinear path, but if there is a path in your wake you are doing just fine! To keep a consistent mindset of working out try to plan exercise into your day. Carving out specific times to be active, whether on your own or with a guided class, proves that there is space in your life for these goals. You get to create your own workout journey, so once again it is up to you to make moves to achieve it! Obviously also plan some much-deserved rest days, balance is your biggest supporter.
Finding exercise activities that work best for you will make becoming active again fun, which is truly what it should be! Using machines at the gym or going on distance runs will always be feasible and valid options, but those certainly aren’t for everyone. Nowadays there are many other options for fun and powerful workouts such as cycle classes, pilates, adult sports teams, and dance! Being active does not have to look a traditional way, it is all about what fits into your life and goals the best. Attending a workout class can be a great way to hold yourself accountable for working out, because you are going into a community of other active members. Many places, such as Free Mind, The Studio, hold beginner level classes for people such as yourself on a new active journey! Even if in past active portions of your life dance was not your go-to method, it can be now if you would like. These beginner classes go through the basic foundations of dance and give you space to learn at your own pace. Learning new skills is a workout for both your body and your mind, two equally important factors. Free Mind supports all fitness goals and levels, come to the studio and learn for yourself!
Keep it positive
One of the best ways to motivate yourself will be to find a workout buddy! This can be someone you go on runs with or attend classes with, it can even be someone you meet specifically because of your shared workout goals. Having one specific person who understands your goals and is also working towards similar ones can pick you up on your down days. By showing you believe in someone else’s success you can transfer those thoughts and believe in your own. Make sure to be rewarding yourself for all your efforts! Be kind to yourself always, spread positivity to create an uplifting active environment for yourself. Your mindset and setting will determine the outlook you portray, so make it a happy place to be involved. Remember that any activity is enough, it takes strength to restart an active journey so starting small is the best way to normalize these new routines. Becoming active again is all about that beginning motivation, this is your individual journey, so you get to decide how it’s run. You will get out of this adventure what you put into it, so put in your all!
