10 Game-changing Hacks to Kickstart your Fitness Journey and Stay Motivated

Growing up, we don’t give our physical fitness too much thought – and why would we? Young and agile, we think we’re invincible! Then, we grow up. The means to make money takes precedence over the means to maintain our health – and the mindset still continues. But that’s human nature. We always aspire to gain something we don’t have rather than work toward keeping what we already do.

The first step toward taking control of your health and well-being is to kickstart your fitness journey. It’s called a journey for a reason – it’s not going to be smooth sailing. At some point, you’re going to want to stop exercising, take breaks, quit, or reason out why you can’t exercise today. That’s normal. All journeys have ups and downs. But the most important thing is to keep at it, even when you don’t want to. Whether you’re a beginner or restarting a workout routine after a break, these 10 game-changing hacks will help you stay on track and turn your fitness goals into a lifestyle!

1. Find Your Reason

For most of us, getting into fitness is to fulfil a purpose – like losing weight, gaining weight, improving stamina, getting or maintaining a toned physique or improving physical or mental health, mobility, etc.

Before you begin, it’s crucial to know your ‘why’.

Once you’ve figured it out, write it down or print it and tape it somewhere you’ll always see it. That way, you can remind yourself of your motivation every time you need to.

2. Prioritize Yourself

Fitting in exercise time into an already hectic day is a struggle I know all too well. As a mom of two little ones, it’s always been incredibly difficult to get in a 30-minute workout. Even before the kids came along, my day was full with work, commitments and deadlines. The intent was there, but fitness kept dropping lower and lower on my mental list of priorities.

Until I put myself on that list – not just exercise, but me.

For centuries, women have been told, subtly and not-so-subtly, that they need to be self-sacrificing. Women who prioritize the needs of others at the expense of their own are praised and put on a pedestal. And for years, that’s what I lived by. But what I understand now is that if my own physical and mental well-being isn’t tended to, it becomes much harder to meet the needs of my family, creating an unstable home environment. So, put yourself on your list of priorities – and don’t feel guilty about it. Rearrange your list until you are in the top 3 and stick to that.

3. Schedule SMART Goals – Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound

Instead of saying “I want to lose weight by the end of the year,” write short-term, achievable goals that work with your weekly schedule. If you’re just getting started, start small. For example:

• “I will do a 10-minute dance workout three times a week before picking up the kids from school.”
• “I will do 15 minutes of yoga on Saturdays right after I take my morning supplements.”

I usually schedule my week in advance, with one or two goals for each day. Start with short workouts – even 5 or 10 minutes is enough. Associating a workout with another regular activity gives you a reference point and makes it easier to commit. Planning out your goals just takes 5 minutes on a Sunday evening to prep for the week.

That brings me to the next important hack…

4. Preparation

My night routine usually involves keeping my gym gear near the door, putting out my workout clothes for the next day, prepping my water bottle and keys – basically, anything that saves me time in the morning. This helps me circumvent any excuses my brain might come up with to skip a workout.

If my workout is in the evening, I still prep in advance. This also mentally reinforces the idea of working out. Mental preparation is just as important as the physical one. Visualize yourself going to the gym, taking a walk, or doing your yoga routine the night before.

5. Find a Fitness Activity You Actually Like

Hate going to the gym or walking around a track pointlessly? No worries, don’t force yourself to do it! Do yoga instead or zumba, play a sport or get out your old bicycle. There are lots of things you can do to keep yourself fit and energised. It’s going to be a lot easier to stick to a workout you look forward to.

6. Create a Killer Playlist

Music can boost performance, improve endurance, and keep you energized.

Spend some time to make a high-energy playlist with upbeat songs that push you through those tough moments in your workout. Use songs you enjoy and that you would even otherwise listen to. That way, when the song plays in your car or on the radio or when your’re lounging around, you associate it with your workout – which is further mental reinforcement. 

7. Track Your Progress

Tracking my workouts has been a real game-changer. I love checklists, so I create one on my phone for my exercises and tick them off as I go. A fitness tracker or smartwatch works great too!

You can track:

• Workouts
• Steps
• Mood or mental well-being
• Physical improvements like stamina or strength

Tracking progress keeps you motivated to push further. You can even track your food habits and water intake.

8. Get a Workout Buddy or Join a Community

Every year during the Navratri festive season, a bunch of ladies from the building I live in get together to practice garba and have a performance on the last day of the 9-day festival. It’s a fun activity that I look forward to every year. We exchange chit-chat, have a few laughs, burn a ton of calories and go home refreshed and relaxed. So go out there, take a class, walk with a friend or play a team sport. It keeps you accountable and adds a sense of competition to keep you motivated.

9. Guilt-Free Rewards

Keeping the excitement going in your fitness journey is pivotal. And a great way to do this is to set short-term mini-goals and reward yourself for it.

• Hit 10,000 steps daily for a week? Treat yourself to a massage. 

• Completed a month of workouts? Get an awesome new workout outfit from NCharnt!

Rewards keep you motivated and engaged in your workouts.

10. Embrace the Mindset

Why do we brush our teeth?

We don’t brush just because people say we should –  we do it to maintain dental hygiene, to not get cavities and a whole other slew of dental issues that affect our health. It’s a preventive measure against all the bad things that could happen to our teeth as we age – why should exercise be any different? It is after all a preventive measure against all the bad things that could happen to our body. Heart health, respiratory health, circulation – you name the system and exercise will prevent it from deteriorating. So get into the habit of thinking of exercise as something that HAS to happen – like brushing your teeth or taking a shower.