Top 10 Tips for Gym Motivation
1. Make a gym date with a friend
You may have heard this one before, but if you find it hard to get into the gym on your own, go with a friend, especially if this friend is an avid gym goer. By buddying up, going to the gym becomes a social event where you can both motivate each other and stick to a planned set of gym dates on a weekly basis.
Not interested in a 30 minute treadmill jog? Why not make it a competition with your friend and see who can jog the longest! By going to the gym with a friend, you could be introduced to new workout routines and attend new fitness classes together. To make going to the gym even more fun, why not go for lunch or dinner afterwards too.
2. Eat breakfast beforehand
You may already be doing this one, but starting your day with a healthy breakfast is key to improving your workout performance. It has been shown through studies that consuming carbohydrates and a healthy meal before your workout actually could be enhancing your fitness routine, allowing you to push harder for longer.
Good breakfast options include healthy green smoothie bowls, granola mixed with plant milk or even high protein pancakes as these breakfast recipes are all high in carbohydrates and packed with protein to help you sustain your workout.
For more delicious vegan breakfast recipes check out our dedicated blog section on our website.
3. Pack a snack
Pre and post workout snacks are important as they provide you the vitamins, minerals, protein and carbs you need to make sure your workout is a success. If you are after a pre-exercise snack, try to eat something light like these banana and cinnamon protein bars 30-40 minutes before you start working out to ensure you have the right amount of energy to sustain your fitness routine.
However if you are hungry for a post workout snack, try consuming something high in protein and carbs within 30 minutes after your workout to make sure your muscles repair easily and your body is getting the nutrients it needs. A super easy post-workout shake such as WHOLE, covers the vitamins and minerals you may be craving after a workout.
4. Discover your workout routine
Developing a sequence of regular activities is actually quite normal for us to do. Whether you are loading your dishes into your dishwasher everyday after dinner or putting out the bins the night before bin day, these little tasks become a routine and they may be quite boring but they get done as we do them every day.
We can do the same thing when working out by planning a program for ourselves. By telling yourself you will be hitting the gym every monday evening at 5:30pm, you are setting yourself up for success because you are planning ahead.
Some days you might go to the gym and leave 10 minutes later after the elliptical because you just aren't feeling it which is perfectly fine - you still went and did a workout! Just by getting into the habit of changing into athletic clothes and getting to the gym is the start of developing your workout routine.
Once you start getting the hang of attending the gym on particular days a week, you can begin making a fitness routine around it, planning what muscles you want to work on, how many reps and sets and which gym classes you want to attend. By doing so, you will shortly notice the improvements in your fitness journey.
5. Visualise your goals
Being able to visualise what aspect of your fitness goals you want achieved is super important in helping you get gym motivated. Whether you are after six pack abs, bigger biceps or just overall improvements in your health, it’s a great start to plan ahead for what you are looking to achieve.
Keeping positive and focused is key here as visualisation is a very successful method to refining your physical performance through improving motivational levels. By visualising what you want to achieve after 6 months of working out allows you to put yourself in a better headspace of what you are looking for within your workout routine. Through this, actioning the steps will happen in order to reach your goal.
By doing so, you are able to prepare yourself for what needs to be worked on to physically put in the work to do so. Changes that you want to see will occur through visualisation, which then can impact the way you perform in the gym to make it happen.
For more information on getting goals, check out this blog on how to master a goal setting blueprint.
6. Reward yourself
This motivational tip goes really well with the one above it! If you have goals in mind that you want to reach at the gym, then creating rewards for yourself is a great way to increase your motivation.
Assign yourself a list of things you want to accomplish at the gym and then buy yourself something with that amazing self accomplishment. Now, I am not saying that you should go and buy yourself a luxe car after completing one workout, but after a month or so of going to the gym, why not get yourself some new workout clothes or protein powder!
You don't want to be too strict with yourself or unrealistic, so create goals and rewards that are achievable, affordable and enjoyable.
7. Remind yourself the benefits of workout out
Yes, working out is great for your muscle strength and physical health, but did you know it’s amazing for your brain health too?
Mental health has a clear connection to fitness as exercise enhances brain function by calming down any stress or anxiety you may be feeling which tends to get built up in running thoughts. Working out also improves the blood flow to your brain and memory functions which can help enhance your mood and line of thinking in order to benefit your headspace.
If you ever find yourself stressed over a project at work and need some inspiration or a new way of thinking, try working out to enable new ideas that could pop up when you open your mind.
8. Follow fitness professionals on social media
Seeing is believing and seeing fitness focused individuals on social media everyday can also help your levels of gym motivation.
Vegan bodybuilders and fitness influencers such as Derek Simnett, an online coach and certified nutritional practitioner, Zanna Van Dijk, vegan fitness influencer and Paul Kerton, personal trainer and nutritionist, are all amazing fitness experts who post motivational workout videos, healthy recipes and fitness suggestions daily.
By waking up and watching short but inspirational videos from bodybuilding experts, it might inspire you to hit the gym as well.
9. Take a break from the gym
It’s important to take a day out from hitting the gym once in a while and try an alternative method to working out. This could include going for a walk outside or going for a bike ride through the park.
You also have to remember that overtraining can happen quite easily in the gym environment where you are surrounded by fitness anywhere you look and want to hit your goals quicker. Doing too much heavy lifting or intense workouts can lead to extreme tiredness, fatigue and poor performance.
Just by taking out a few days of your workout schedule might be what you need to get you back to feeling gym motivated again. As long as you’re still active, your goals won't be affected in any way.
10. Do what makes you happy
You are in charge of your own fitness routine, therefore go to the gym on days that work for you, do your workout at the time of day that works best for you and most importantly, exercise your body the way that works for you.
You have to be happy while exercising and enjoying the workout you're doing because if you aren't, then it's very likely that you won't be doing that fitness routine for much longer.