#1 Victorian uni for graduate employment1
#1 in the world for sport science2
#1 Victorian uni for course satisfaction3
NEXT UP ON this.
Let’s face it – exercising isn’t always easy. ‘Getting fit’ just about tops the list of most sought-after New Year’s resolutions but, with Australians spending nearly $2 billion on unused gym memberships, it seems that getting the motivation to workout can sometimes be harder than the workout itself.
We know that exercise can improve our mental health and that at least 30 minutes each day can give us a whole range of physical benefits. So, how do we get motivated to workout so that we can reap those rewards? With the help of Deakin University’s Jackson Fyfe, we explore.
Before we understand how to get motivated to workout, let’s take a closer look at how motivation works in general.
‘Motivation is usually described as the internal drive that pushes us towards certain actions,’ says Fyfe. ‘In reality, motivation is not constant and fluctuates across a day, which is why relying on it alone to exercise can be risky.’
That last point is important because, while getting motivated to workout is obviously a key part of the process, it’s not the only factor at play.
‘Even people who exercise consistently aren’t always motivated, they’ve just found a way to get started and keep going regardless,’ Fyfe says. ‘This could include having a plan or intention to exercise but also being willing to adapt it (making it shorter, doing something different) if motivation ends up being low or plans change.’
Anyone who has set an exercise goal and missed it can confirm – sometimes it can be tough to get motivated to workout. Fyfe says that, when it comes to physical activities and fitness goals, there are some common roadblocks that might prevent us from feeling motivated at the critical moment:
We’re talking about it in the context of physical fitness, but how does motivation actually work in our brains? In terms of behavioural neuroscience, we can think of motivation in our brains as the result of a cost-benefit analysis.
Costs might include ‘physical effort, mental effort, time, loss of potential opportunities, discomfort, and danger,’ while benefits could be fulfilling certain mental and physical needs or avoiding some of those costs.
The result of weighing up those costs and benefits is our level of motivation, and it can have a big impact on whether we end up doing the things we want to.
So, when it comes to getting the motivation to workout, there’s a lot of psychological bargaining going on behind the scenes.
While it’s great to have ambitious dreams of lifting weights at the gym five times a week or jogging the Tan before your 9am start, Fyfe says the best goals are achievable ones.
If you’re struggling with getting motivated to workout, it might be time to bring it back to basics.
You might find it easier to get motivated to workout at home or very close by. Removing barriers – like travel, or the cost of a gym membership – might be just the ticket to getting that surge in motivation.
‘Consider a much shorter or easier version of your planned workout, a walk around the block, or a set or two of bodyweight movements at home,’ Fyfe says. ‘Taking the first step tends to create momentum that leads to more motivation, so from there it can get easier to keep going.’
While working out with a partner or in a group has been shown to improve exercise adherence, for many of us, working out is a personal pursuit. Whether you find group fitness classes a bit overwhelming or training en masse is simply not your jam, finding the motivation to workout when you prefer to do it alone can be really challenging.
For Fyfe, the key is not waiting to get motivated to workout – it’s finding a way to spark that motivation. Here are a few of his suggestions:
There’s a quote attributed to Mark Twain that usually goes something like this: ‘If it’s your job to eat a frog, it’s best to do it first thing in the morning.’
In other words, if you need do something tough, do it first thing. The day can only get better from there!
When it comes to working out, this philosophy works for some. But for others, – alarm snoozers, we feel you! – eating the frog at the end of the day is more palatable.
Motivating yourself to workout after work isn’t always easy – you might be tired, hungry, unfocused or ready to relax. One good way to shortcut the lack of motivation is to make your exercise something you actually enjoy doing. Maybe it’s rock climbing, shooting hoops, swimming at the local pool or beating some personal running records. While it might not work all the time, if the exercise activity is enjoyable, at least you’ll feel motivated by more than just fitness.
Wherever and however you do it, getting yourself motivated to workout isn’t always easy – and that’s okay.
‘I think most people would agree that motivation tends to dip when it’s late in the day (and energy is low), the weather is bad, you’ve had a stressful day, or when you’re working out alone (and miss the social element),’ says Fyfe.
In these cases, Fyfe says keeping yourself motivated to workout is about focusing on the little things. ‘It becomes not so much about the exercise itself, but other factors that can make the choice easier – like laying out clothes ahead of a session the next morning, or planning to meet a friend to exercise together.’
Getting motivated to workout isn’t always easy – and that’s okay. The important thing is that, with just a few small steps and the right mindset, we can gradually find that motivation (and hopefully tick off a few New Year’s resolutions in the process). Whether it’s laying out your exercise clothes ahead of time, finding a fun new way to workout or just starting small, there are plenty of things to try. Remember: you got this.
