Boost Your Health & Fitness Success
Your New Year’s Resolution is to get healthy and fit (again), but is your gym membership actually working against you? If you and your gym have gotten into a co-dependant, mundane relationship, it might just be time to give it up and embrace a new relationship with physical fitness.
The Resolution: Give Up The Gym
Breaking up with the gym is hard…harder than some actual human relationships. But the benefits can far outweigh (no pun intended) the illusion of being health conscious that the gym provides. Charlotte Anderson of
My Fitness Experiment quit the gym and discovered a few amazing benefits including:
- Having more time to spend with her family.
- Realizing she had an exercise addiction…and kicking it.
- The freedom to decide how she really wanted to incorporate physical activity into her life.
- Realizing she can still get a kick-butt workout…and for way cheaper!
- Having more flexibility to try new things.
Additionally,
Active.com reports that exercising outdoors has more health benefits than exercising inside a gym including, breathing better air outside, burning more calories, connecting with nature, improving your vitamin D levels and helping avoid burnout.
So, if you’re resolving to give up the gym this year, here are some ways to help improve your success.
Mantra
Having a word or phrase to guide your actions throughout the year can help keep you focused on the results you want to achieve. For the resolution to “Give Up The Gym,” try one of these mantras:
- I am one with nature.
- I keep moving forward.
- My mind is clear and I connect with the Earth.
- I am doing this for me.
- I joyfully break through my limitations.
- I breathe through any challenges.
For some additional fitness inspiration to keep you going throughout 2016, check out these inspiring health and fitness mantras on
Greatist.
Visualize
Visualization is a powerful tool for self-improvement. Create a powerful visualization of your New Year’s Resolution by grabbing your journal and a pen, and finding a quiet place to sit down and relax. Take a few deep breaths to center yourself and clear your mind. Now, close your eyes and visualize yourself strong, healthy and well, filled with light and love.
Zoom in on your image of yourself. What do you see? What is the expression on your face? What are you wearing? Are you standing, running, stretching? Are your arms open or closed? Get a very detailed picture in your mind of your perfect, healthy self.
Next, quietly ask yourself, what is one step I can take now to get me closer to this vision? Then just be quiet and listen. You may not get an answer right away. And the answer may not be what you expect. It may be a color in your mind, a word, an image or a feeling. Whatever it is, take note as it may be a clue to your next action item.
Once you feel complete with your visualization, open your eyes, take out your journal and write down everything you saw, felt and heard.
Repeat this process daily. Consistently imagining yourself as you want to be will create a new “truth” in your self conscious.
Action Steps
It’s one thing to visualize your goals. It’s another to make a plan. But without putting your foot down and moving, you can’t achieve your goals. So, what are your action steps? Write down three things you can do this week to get your closer to your goal. Try to avoid the habit of overwhelming yourself with too many tasks. Instead, focus on 1 – 3 each week. And be easy on yourself! The quickest way to quit a resolution is to get overwhelmed and frustrated! Avoid those negatives at all cost!
When you are feeling challenged in your New Year’s Resolution, remember this quote:
“I don’t have to be the greatest of all time, I just have to make one healthy choice at a time.” -
Greatist
What is your New Year’s Resolution? Tell us in the comments.
