Tips to Help your Brain Crave the Gym

When you’ve fallen off the bandwagon, getting yourself into a new workout routine can be tough. 

Fortunately, there are a few tricks you can use to help train your brain to actually want to workout. Sounds almost too good to be true, right?

But it’s completely doable. Try these steps below, and just remember to keep at it!

Positive Reinforcement

Giving yourself positive reinforcement after working out can help provide the motivation you need to get started. 

You can set small goals and reward yourself once they are reached, perhaps with a new pair of running sneakers or exercise pants.

Or it can be as simple as giving yourself a mental high-five for a workout well done. Don’t forget to celebrate progress, not strive for perfection.

Once exercise becomes a habit, you can rely on those endorphins and regular health benefits to convince your brain it’s time to get moving. 

Build the Willpower

Did you know you can actually build up your willpower? 

Finding the motivation to do something big, like a good sweat session, takes more willpower than something small, say, wiping down your kitchen countertops. 

But by exerting the willpower to do the small things, and doing them consistently, can help build up your willpower to do the big things.

So start with a chore you can do everyday, like making the bed or not leaving dirty dishes in the sink, and start training your brain to overcome those objections.

Just Get Started

We know you guys know that working out is good for you (why else would you be reading this blog?). 

But exercise doesn’t just help trim fat and build muscle. It also provides a ton of benefits for your brain.

Working out releases serotonin and dopamine, which make you feel good and helps give you the drive to keep going. So even just taking that first step can be the motivation you need.

Beyond just that, according to Women’s Health Magazine, exercise increases the blood flow to your brain and creates proteins that contribute to positive thoughts about working out.

Long story short, the more you workout, the better your brain feels about it, and the easier it becomes for you to get started. 

Release the Pressure

Sometimes we set high expectations for ourselves, leaving us feeling discouraged and defeated when we don’t meet them.

But the thing is, working out does not have to be one specific routine or look one certain way. 

Different workouts, times and methods can work for you. If you stick yourself to one class or one program, you lose the ability to adjust when routines get disrupted.

Don’t get me wrong, routine is important to establishing a good workout regime. But when things get thrown off, you should be able to go with the flow, instead of just giving up.

And a big part of that is cutting ourselves some slack from time to time. Not slacking off, but just having patience and grace for ourselves and our bodies when we feel like we aren’t progressing fast enough, or we run late for a class, or gain a couple pounds back.

Improving your health is a journey. But we promise if you just keep trying, and use some of these tricks to train your brain, you will see progress!