One of the most common problems when it comes to starting an exercise program is procrastination. We know what we want to do and should do. But still we end up making all kinds of excuses and spending hours upon hours watching TV, surfing the internet or listening to music.
Now, nothing wrong with an escape from time to time, but if you procrastinate too much you will not reach your fitness goals. Soon you will find yourself gaining more weight and also send yourself into negative spirals where your self-esteem takes a nose dive and you spend your days in a negative funk with no results.
So what can you do? Here are three simple tips to help you to stop procrastinating and start living your life more fully.
1. Stop thinking. Start doing.
A bit of planning can certainly help you to achieve your weight loss goals. A lot of planning and thinking tends to have the opposite effect.
By over thinking you tend to put things off because you are not only trying to protect yourself from the muscle pain that you will experience when you first start your exercise program. You also make mountains out of molehills because you are dwelling on it. And so it expands in your mind. And since you are putting it off you are probably thinking about it in a negative way. This makes a little thing a big giant, a horrible beast that is threatening to ruin your health.
Often you don’t even have to plan, you have been there before and you know what needs to be done. So stop thinking and just do it no matter how you feel and what you think.
2. Just take the first step.
Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, “You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.”
When you start to look at how much weight you want to lose it can seem close to impossible. You begin to shut down because you become overwhelmed and start eating more and more.
You should just focus on taking the first step. That is all you need to focus on, nothing else. By taking the first step you change your mental state from procrastination to “hey, I’m working out and I feel good”. You put yourself in state where you become more positive and open minded a state where you gain enthusiasm because you are making progress.
3. Finish it.
Not taking the first step to start your exercise program can make you feel bad. But not finishing what you have started can also leave you in a sort of negative funk. You feel sluggish or stressed and sometimes you don’t even know why. It’s like someone zapped your inner power. Once you start commit to it. Ask yourself what’s more important to you – Going out to a fast food restaurant and eating 800 calorie or going to Zumba class and burning 800 calories? The former might bring you some temporal gratification, but the latter is what truly gives you satisfaction. The rewards you get from doing the latter are rewards which you’ll continue to reap long afterward. Remember always finish strong, if you fail, try and try again, never give up!
