Chances are that as the new year dawned you’ve promised yourself to ‘get fit’ and stay healthy. Chances are, that plan may go down the gutter before March even comes around. While there may be a few common reasons we’ve all let escape our mouths at one point or the other, here are a few tips on how you can stick to your new year fitness goals this year. From planning ahead to setting small goals – it’s all about creating a new habit.

Start small & be realistic about your goals

Whether you’re trying to get rid of the holiday weight to simply trying to stay fit and healthy throughout the year, you need to set small goals. Workout routines for beginners will aim at targeting your entire body and help you achieve your overall fitness goal. Smaller goals will help you accomplish more and the gratification you receive from hitting that goal will motivate you to keep going. Once you’ve planned out your goals, write them down and stick it somewhere you can see clearly. Either on your wardrobe door or bathroom wall, this will serve as a constant reminder to stick to your new year’s fitness resolution.

Stick to a workout routine

After a few weeks, the urgency or importance of your fitness goals might start to dwindle. What is important is to keep pushing through. After a few weeks of sticking to a routine, you might start noticing some results (depending on your goals and fitness schedule), sticking to the schedule at this particular time is important. If you miss a day, make sure you resume your workout the next day. Working out is one of the best ways to alleviate your mood. It’s not only great for your body – but also for your mind.  Whether you’re stressed out at work or home, a workout will help relieve that stress and help you focus better too.

Monitor your progress

This is especially important. Monitor your progress. Usually, a selfie is one of the easiest ways to track it. You can also maintain a record of your statistics, such as your waist, hips, leg and arm size. If your goal is to lose weight, take a picture of your body before you start and then at regular intervals, once a month and so on and before you know it, you’ll start to see the difference. If your goal is to increase your workout distance (i.e. a longer run, cycle ride, etc.), then track it on your phone or smartwatch. Tracking your progress will keep you motivated.

Partner it up

Heard of the phrase ‘two is better than one’? It applies here too! If you’re wondering how to stick to a workout routine, grab a friend to do it with you. Partnering it up with a buddy will help you see your plan through until the end. With someone to motivate you and push you, even on days when you just don’t feel like it, is just what you need to stick to your schedule.

Having a workout buddy will also help the two of you to commit to your routine.  Besides, having a friend to share your goals and accomplishments is always better than doing it alone!

Diet

A well-balanced meal is essential if your aim is to get fit and stay fit. Binge eating or ordering fast food every other night will slow down your workout progress and will eventually be a waste. An important factor to maintain your beginner’s guide to eating healthy, means incorporating a good balance of carbs, fats, proteins and essential nutrients and vitamins into your diet. Remember, the same way that fast food is bad for you, having only a salad is not the best way to go about a meal plan either. Spice up your salad with a grilled chicken leg or a slow cooked beef steak. How you cook your meals will also ensure that you enjoy the food you eat!

Recovery

Post workout recovery is important and how you get about it to ensure your body recovers in a healthy, effective way is crucial to sticking to your new year’s fitness resolution. Once you start your work out, sore muscles might be a recurring factor and something you’ll encounter as your fitness intensity increases. Plan for this too – a quicker recovery will not deter you from working out the next day. Whether you intend on home remedies or a convenient muscle recover product, schedule a day to let your body regroup. We often tend to take a ‘rest day’ that extends to 2-3 days longer if our muscles or body aches from the previous workout. Consider a warm bath, apply a soothing balm or invest in Spryng, the ultimate wireless, pneumatic compression wrap that relieves aches, speeds recovery, improves performance, and feels incredible! Wondering how to recover quicker from sore muscles? Read our blog on easy and effective ways to reduce muscle soreness after a workout.