STEP 2 STACK THE ODDS IN YOUR FAVOUR

Got your processes in place? Excellent. Now it’s time for some more motivation. “Motivation in a fitness context can generally be divided into two categories, intrinsic and extrinsic,” says Jack Coxall, a sports psychologist who works as a performance director. “Intrinsic refers to an individual’s motivation centred around the individual themselves, whereas extrinsic motivation centres on the idea that an individual wants to perform well for an external source, such as a parent or spouse.”

Which one should you use? “In my opinion, in a health and fitness context, a balance between both types of motivation is the ideal scenario,” says Coxall. “So someone who’s motivated to become fitter and healthier to improve their life and daily performance for themselves and their own sense of achievement, but also has the motivation to accomplish the same for external reasons like performing better for their five-a-side team, or being able to play for longer with their children in the garden.”

Extrinsic is easy, but intrinsic is tougher. Focus on finding exercises you’d like to master or the endorphin rush you get from a good session. And calm down on the post-workout treats – in studies, volunteers who were offered rewards for completing a task put less effort into it than people doing it for the incentive of a job well done.