It’s been three weeks of early morning workouts and reheating Tupperware containers of chicken and broccoli, and you’re over it. Rather than giving up, here are some expert-backed strategies to help you keep your new year’s fitness resolution.
According to finder.com, 79 per cent of Australians committed to a new year’s resolution in 2020. More than half of those resolutions (53 per cent) are related to losing weight or stepping up a fitness regime to get in shape. But research by the University of Pennsylvania suggests that only 8 per cent of people who make new year’s resolutions achieve them.Is there a secret to staying motivated?
Motivation gets you started; discipline keeps you going
Cameron Paulinich, a personal trainer and founder of Sydney personal training studio CP Fitness, says motivation is unreliable: it is an emotional state that can’t last forever. After a few weeks of grinding at the new routine, your motivation will begin to wane. And that’s where discipline must take over.
“Discipline requires consistency, even when it’s hard or boring,” says Paulinich. “If you remain disciplined, your routine will, in time, become a habit – which makes things easier because you don’t have to think or battle at every step. Discipline also leads to a great sense of personal achievement and can improve your mental strength.”