Stay Motivated During Winter Exercise

You’ve worked all year to get in shape.  It could have been a New Year’s resolution that got you started.  When winter hits, the weather gets cold and gloomy.  Learn to ignore the gloom and doom and stay on track to better health.

During the warmer weather, it is easy to get physical activity.  We work in the garden, go for walks in the evening, bike ride with the family, and spend lots of time outdoors.  When someone wants to go, we jump up and go.  There seems to be more energy in our steps.

The main motivation is looking good in great clothes.  There’s nothing wrong with that.  We all want to look our best for as long as we can.  The by-product of looking good is that we can achieve great health benefits.  Unfortunately, when winter rolls around, all we desire is to curl up on the couch in big sweaters and slippers.  It’s not cute but it’s comfortable.

But, that big sweater gives us a false sense of security.  We can’t see how much damage we could potentially be doing by eating and maintaining a sedentary lifestyle.  It is okay to want to slack off a bit on the exercise but totally dropping things is a no-no.

Here are a few tips to help you stay motivated during the winter months.  To start, set a regular time to work out and stick to it.  You may not feel like meeting a friend at the gym for a class but you can pop in a DVD or VHS tape and sweat at home.  Instead of cranking up the car and braving the cold, you stayed comfortable and worked out anyway.

Maybe the busyness of the holidays has you skipping workout sessions.  Exercise is cumulative.  Every little bit adds up.  Fifteen minutes in the morning plus another fifteen minutes in the afternoon equals thirty minutes of physical activity that day.

Physical activity doesn’t have to be an hour of jumping up and down to a routine.  It could be reading a magazine while walking on the treadmill.  Dancing around the room, as you vacuum and clean, counts as exercise, also.

Talk to a friend or workout buddy even if you can’t get to the gym with them each day.  Use the telephone to keep each other motivated.  When the weather leads you to slouch on the couch, phone a friend and get a pep talk until you jump up on your feet and get going. 

Listen—you’ve worked mighty hard all year.  Why throw it all away during the season of frivolity and food?  It won’t be easy to stay motivated, but friends can help.  Stick to the routine as much as possible and you won’t feel the after effects of a long indulgent holiday season – you’ll be one step ahead when January rolls round too.