If you find yourself moping your way into the gym every single time you go after a long contemplation of deciding whether to go or not, then you’re doing it all wrong. There’s no denying there will be days where your energy levels are low and the motivation is not there.
The days where you feel you have no motives to work out as you did at the start of your journey, that’s when the self-discipline should come in. Nothing will help attain a consistently active lifestyle like self-discipline, not the pre-workout supplement that enhances your mood and boosts your energy level, not the gym buddy you brought with you, the workout plan you bought, none of it will ever amount to having self-discipline.
The foundation of which consistency is built on is self-discipline because realistically motivation won’t always be there.
A very important aspect that will be a big determiner on whether you will have an energetic, productive gym day is sleep.
The importance of sleep is not emphasized enough because without a well night’s rest there’s no point in even going to the gym. You’ll find yourself dreading each workout and workout against the comfort of your own will. According to the National Sleep Foundation, the key to winning most games for athletes is the amount and quality of the sleep they get. “REM sleep in particular provides energy to both the brain and body. If sleep is cut short, the body doesn’t have time to repair memory, consolidate memory, and release hormones,” states the National Sleep Foundation.
Try the 21/90 rule. If you can get yourself to go to the gym 21 days straight, then it could turn into a habit. Once you hit the 90-day mark, it’ll become a lifestyle.
Self-discipline means being reminded of the initial reason why you’re seeking a consistent fit lifestyle.
A helpful tip to keep the progress going is to ask yourself why you chose to start an active lifestyle. It can be to relieve from a health disease, to avoid health diseases, to attain a certain physique, or mental health reasons. If reminded of this purpose then it’ll become much easier to be consistent because it’s good to be reminded that a task is being completed for the right reasons and for one’s own good will.
Another way to be consistent with the gym is to have a consistent time schedule. Everyone gets occupied with their own responsibilities so based on that you should be able to figure out what the average daily time schedule that you’ll be able to head to the gym looks like for you. Some people have such a hectic day to day schedule so, like those people, I like to go to the gym at 5 am and if you’re a really self-disciplined person you could try sleeping at 7 p.m. and wake up at 4 a.m. and get the seven hours of sleep the average person needs.
The great thing about attending the gym for the purpose of getting in shape is that there are many ways to situate your consistent gym routine to your day-to-day life. If you can’t make it every day to the gym, there are perfect workout plans that consist of 3-day plans or going every other day. The only person that knows your availability is yourself, all you have to figure out is what works best for you.