HELD TO ACCOUNT

You might want to think about shouting your fitness goals from the rooftops, if expert advice on motivation is anything to go by...

Five sure-fire ways to make you stick to your fitness goals

Should one of your overly blunt mates choose to hit you with a few home truths – who knows why they’re having that bad a day – you probably already know what they’d be: an inability to share food, talking too loudly in public, judging babies by their looks. But letting people down? No chance, not you. Unless, of course, the person you’re about to let down happens to be yourself, and the consequence is missing out on achieving your fitness goals.

It’s weird, isn’t it, how much more likely you are to flake on yourself than you are on others. Or how much more likely plans or challenges are to become set in stone once you share them with someone else, commit them to a wearable or attach them to a fundraising page. Well, it’s called accountability and, while not next-gen or rocket science, it could make the difference between nailing or reneging on that new fitness regime.

‘In motivation psychology, we talk about intrinsic and extrinsic motivation,’ explains chartered psychologist and University of Nottingham research fellow Charlotte Emma Hilton. ‘Intrinsic stems from doing something naturally satisfying to you – so, exercising for no other reason than because you enjoy it – while the extrinsic kind is about external reward, be that praise from others, the fact you’ll get to socialise with a friend or the fuzzy feeling from raising money. The notion of accountability in exercise is linked to extrinsic motivation.’ And while it would be great to think that every time you sweat you’re doing so because you bloody love it, the reality is that getting it done can prove difficult when life, or lack of motivation, gets in the way. So, the question is, how can you tap into that extrinsic motivation to ensure that you never skip another yoga class or training run? The truth is, just like the perfect nude lip, it’s different for everyone, but the following accountability hacks should help you on your way to exercise success.

LET TEAMWORK MAKE YOUR DREAM WORK

It’s 6pm, you’re exhausted and new episodes of Line Of Duty are calling. But you’ve arranged to hit the tennis court with a mate, and the thought of having to send a cancellation text is intertwined with feelings of guilt. Why? Because teaming up with others not only provides a reason not to flake, but delivers emotional support and encouragement you don’t get when you go it alone – which slots nicely into that idea of reward. A 2017 study from the University of New England, Australia, found that there are major benefits to group exercise over solo workouts. Of 69 participants, those who took part in group fitness classes over 12 weeks saw a 26% increase in self-reported emotional health, a 25% spike in self-reported physical health and a 26% drop in their perceived stress levels. Meanwhile, the participants who exercised alone by running or weight lifting saw no substantial changes in those scores. Want to take it further? Partner with someone you perceive to be fitter than you. Research from Santa Clara University in the US found that women who cycled with ‘high fit’ partners exerted themselves more than those biking with ‘low fit’ types who admitted to hating exercise, reaching an average heart rate 14bpm faster.

MAKE YOUR WEARABLE A WINNER

If you haven’t jogged round your neighbourhood in the dead of night to close the rings on your Apple Watch, you haven’t lived. And there’s nothing like a Fitbit notification to get you off your bum and into the pool for 40 lengths. Indeed, in a study from the University of South Australia, 81% of activitytracker users reported that it encourages them to increase the amount of physical activity they include in their day. Hilton agrees that fitness wearables are particularly useful when you’re starting a new exercise programme. ‘Seeing metrics change and being able to monitor your progress is self-affirming,’ she says, herself a triathlete who admits that she’s answerable to her Polar watch.

‘It monitors my recovery status, which I never want to drop below a certain level. That keeps me going.’

PUT YOUR MONEY WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS

Wouldn’t spin for a doughnut but would spin for cold hard cash? Yeah, that’s a thing. Working off the formula that paying out for a gym membership makes you go more, apps and programmes that reward you financially the more you move are popping up everywhere. Stickk was created by a Yale University professor of behavioural economics and is based on research showing that you’re more likely to succeed if you sign a contract obliging you to achieve your goals. It’s an app that lets you commit to a task – say, exercising three times a week over three months – and pledge that every time you bail on your promise, a set amount of your money is paid to charity. Vitality, the health and life insurance provider, offers something similar. Members get an Apple Watch by paying £99 upfront, then your monthly payments will range from nothing to £12.50, depending on how much of a sweat you worked up that month – basically, the more rings you close, the less you pay.

SHOUT OUT ON SOCIAL MEDIA

The 2019 fitness equivalent of installing a swear jar in the office, #fitspo can work in your favour if you’re not averse to sharing your goals with followers. ‘Public commitment increases the likelihood of compliance to a course of action,’ says Tonya Williams Bradford, assistant professor of marketing at the University of California, Irvine. WH Deputy Editor Victoria Joy signs up to this way of thinking. ‘If I start mentally talking myself out of a session the evening before, I’ll post something on social media admitting as much and telling people I need them to hold me to account,’ she says. ‘It always works because I feel obligated to post a photo proving that I’ve turned up.’

PUSH IT WITH A PT

Sometimes, nothing beats having your hand held. Enter: the expert, whether that’s a PT, triathlon coach or Pilates teacher. ‘There’s a real benefit to making a commitment to a trainer,’ says Jeff Breckon, an exercise psychologist at Sheffield Hallam University. ‘They can help you to set achievable goals and you’re also making both a financial and a personal commitment. Over time, you forge a relationship with your trainer and you don’t want to let them down.’ The stats certainly stack up for getting a pro on board – a survey published last year for gym software company Mindbody found that one in five people see the right instructor as the most important factor in sticking with a new regime. Excuses: exhausted.