Everyone knows what it feels like to fall short on fitness goals. Even the greatest athletes and fitness gurus out there have been disappointed with their work from time to time. But ultimately, it’s the way you react to these situations that will determine whether you fail or succeed.
According to Personal Trainer, Austin Alexander Burridge, fitness can be a two-way road. Sometimes, it can make you feel like you’re on top of the world, ready to accomplish any challenge that comes your way. Other times, it can make you feel weak, unworthy, and self-conscious. It can also be discouraging when you strive for a goal and think you’re doing well, but inevitably fall short.
The great thing about goals is that there are always second chances. Nobody’s going to stop you and say, “That’s enough! You can no longer achieve this goal.” So, if you’re still interested in achieving your fitness goals, you’re going to need to pick yourself up by the bootstraps and make changes to the way you approach them. In this article, Austin Alexander Burridge provides steps to help you invigorate your exercise routine and get your fitness goals back on track.
Reframe Your Goals
There are two possible reasons that you didn’t attain your fitness goals: you didn’t work hard enough, or you set a goal that was unachievable or unrealistic. While it’s our natural human instinct to default to the former, the latter is much more common.
To start with, you should try to understand your situation better. You probably have a job, family, hobbies, and interests that you like to pursue. You need to understand exactly where your fitness goals fall in terms of importance among all these other things.
Once you understand the level of importance of fitness in your life, start setting goals that are realistic for your circumstances. In other words, if you only have an hour a week to allocate to exercise, don’t set your expectations very high for what you’ll be able to achieve after a couple of weeks or months. If you do, you’ll likely be disappointed and have to start the whole process over again.
Make Fitness a Part of You
Possibly one of the most important reasons people fall short of their fitness goals is that they consider exercising a “chore” rather than something that defines who they are and what their purpose is.
You should be continually striving to find your passion for fitness rather than looking for new ways to drag yourself to the gym after a long day at work. The latter is not a sustainable method for achieving fitness goals because you’ll eventually experience burnout and fall back on your old habits.
To make fitness a part of you and your character, you need to immerse yourself in it. Try reading a book by a prominent fitness expert, going to the gym with a self-motivated friend, or joining a local sports league. Ultimately, you should have more reasons to go to the gym besides “staying fit.”
Succeed in Other Areas of Your Life
After falling short of your fitness goals, it’s all too easy to fall back on old habits, and in certain situations, develop even worse habits than you had before. This is why many dieticians advise caution around dieting because if you try to starve yourself or deprive yourself of nutritious food just to lose weight, you can easily fall back into your old way of eating.
The best way to avoid falling off the deep end after failing to achieve your goal is to succeed in other areas of your life. Many therapists swear by this method because it allows you to keep your confidence and self-worth high even though you’re experiencing a lot of negative thoughts about your fitness.
Chances are, there is some area of your life where you can make progress. Maybe you can work towards a promotion at work, learn a new skill, or pick up an instrument you haven’t played since high school. No matter what it is, making progress at something is sure to increase your confidence. Once you’re ready, you can revisit your fitness goals with a clean slate and a clear state of mind.
Conclusion
It can be tough getting back on track after falling short of a fitness goal. Our minds can play tricks on us and make us think we’re not worthy or capable of becoming fit. But if you take a step back and follow the steps above, you’ll be well on your way to getting back on your feet.
About Austin Alexander Burridge: Austin Alexander Burridge is a certified personal trainer and an avid enthusiast of living a balanced life with healthy eating habits and a well-rounded exercise regime. As a personal trainer, Austin instills these values into his clients and guarantees that they achieve their goals over the course of their training, whether it’s in the gym or in the great outdoors.