GET YOUR MOJO BACK
THERE is a magic drug that exists that can help prevent and treat most illness and disease. If you could put its benefits in a tablet you would have a drug more powerful that some of the most effective drugs out there. This drug is ‘Exercise’. Exercise not laughter really is the best medicine. We have all been told about the health benefits; we know we should do more. It’s great for our mental as well as physical well-being. But still it can be hard to motivate ourselves to do this. This is especially difficult now, when our normal daily routines have been disrupted. We may not be able to attend our gyms or fitness classes but there is still plenty of ways that we can be active in our own homes and surrounds all we need is some creativity and MOTIVATION.
So how do I rediscover my mojo and motivate myself to be more active now and in the future? Here are some top tips.
1. Find ‘your thing’. The best exercise is the one you enjoy and that you want to do. You don’t have to go to a gym. Find something that gives you a sense of satisfaction, achievement and genuine purpose. Something that you are actually going to do. It needs to suit your ‘ lockdown’ lifestyle, fitness level and available time. Something that captures your interest and excites you.
2. Set a goal. Create ways to engage with those feelings of satisfaction and achievement by setting some challenging but realistic goals. It might not be possible to enter a 10k race now but you can still set a goal to complete your challenge on a specified future date. Far away goals can remain far away so build smaller goals along the way to keep focus. If I want to run 10 k by this date I need to be able to walk/run 5k by this date. Build up slowly and allow your body time to adjust to new exercises. A good guide is never more than 10% increase in total exercise load in 1 week to avoid injury. If you do a long walk one day the rest of the week should be a bit shorter to allow your body recover. The race is long.
3. Make a plan. Make a stepby-step action plan and write it down. Stick it on the fridge or blackboard or use an app. Think about what barriers might be in place and how to get around them. Be realistic in the level of time and commitment you have. Be flexible and monitor progress or lack of. Review the plan and change if necessary.
4. Find your triggers. Think about what cues or situations ‘prompt’ or aid you to be active without too much thought. These give rise to habits which make it easier to sustain our efforts in the longer term. These can be situations or objects that prompt a particular automatic response or feeling that prompt or make it easier to exercise. This could be leaving gym clothes out before bed, or put your car keys in your runners or playing music at a particular time or write your goal down in a visible place or as your screen saver to remind you.
5. Do it together. Connection with others is crucial to sustaining motivation. Why not invite friends or family to join or compete with you on your journey. They can offer encouragement. Share your targets with them. It helps if you are accountable to somebody. You can do it in a group, even a virtual group posting times and selfies to motivate each other.
6. Make it Fun. We are more likely to continue with things we enjoy. Think outside the box, build a mini challenge into a run. While listening to the news, every time you hear a particular word like ‘Donald Trump’ or ‘EU’ stand up and down 5 or 10 times. Give your partner a different word or pair of words and see who does more? Doing the same thing all the time is boring so vary what you do on different days or weeks. For example Monday’s cycling, Wednesday online gym class, Saturdays online dance class. Invest some time in researching different options that excite you.
I hope that these tips help to keep you motivated during these times and beyond. Remember the importance of exercise for your physical and mental well-being. It you have pain or injury that is holding you back and preventing you from exercising, see your local Chartered Physiotherapist for expert advice on how to get you back living your best life or log onto askthephysio.ie