3 Secrets That Will Get You to The Gym

It’s February and the gym is already less crowded. I see this every year. People make New Year resolutions to get fit, but they don’t know how to sustain it. Will power alone can’t keep you going. What you really need to do is to change your habit. Here are the three things that helped me get to the gym regularly.

Schedule it into your regular day

When I was working full time, I went to the workout room at lunch every day. This was very easy because lunch break was built into my routine. Occasionally, I’d need to have a lunch meeting, but I usually can sneak over to the gym around 3 pm.

After I quit working full time to become a stay-at-home dad/blogger, it was much more difficult to go to the gym regularly. I stop working out completely while our kid was a baby. Once he was a bit older, I went to the gym sporadically. That particular gym had childcare so that helped a lot.

The game changer was when our kid started public school. Now I drop him off at school and I go the gym afterward. Going to the gym is part of my regular routine now and I exercise much more consistently. I still miss a day here and there due to school holidays and sick days, but I don’t think that’s a big deal.

Workout 5 days per week

This one ties in with the previous one. It is a lot easier to workout 5 days per week than 3. If you go to the gym every weekday, then you don’t have to think about it. It’s just part of the routine. If you plan to work out 3 days per week, you’d need to remember what day it is. This makes a big difference because it introduce more variable into your days.

Let’s say you plan to work out Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Now, you’d need to remember to bring gym clothes on Wednesday and drive to the gym after work. Whatever you need to do to get to the gym will be a departure from the routine. There is too much thinking involve. If you exercise every weekday, it become part of the routine and you just do it every day.

Also, it’s inevitable that you will miss a day occasionally. If you exercise 3 days per week, then you’re down to 2. That’s not enough and you’ll need to make up. Making up gym day is pretty unrealistic for most people. We are all super busy already. However, if you exercise 5 days per week, you’ll be down to 4. That’s not bad at all.

Get into your gym cloth as early as possible

This one is a life hack. I get into my gym cloth as soon as I get back from dropping my kid off at school. Once I’m in my workout cloth, I never back down. No matter how lazy I feel or how busy life is, I get to the gym. Okay, I changed back into street cloth once. I had an appointment I forgot about. That’s not bad for over 2 years, though.

This is call priming. Once you put on your gym cloth, you committed to finishing the workout psychologically. It really works. Try it and you’ll see.

Bonus: Get a committed workout partner

This one is huge. If you can get a committed workout partner, going to the gym will be a lot easier. You’ll encourage each other and keep each other going. It’s hard to find a good workout partner, though. I haven’t had one for many years now. A substitute would be getting a good personal trainer. However, you’d need to be comfortable financially because this would cost a bundle.

Add exercise to your daily routine

Alright, you need to keep up with your exercise. Put these 3 things into play and you’ll have a much better shot with regular exercise. You need to change your habit if you hope to accomplish your goal. Here is the recap

1. Schedule exercise it into your day
2. Exercise 5 days per week
3. Get into your gym clothes as soon as possible
4. Get a good workout partner if possible

Good luck!

*My guide on How to Start a Blog and Why You Should. Everyone should have a blog. It’s a great way to build your brand and improve you writing. You could even make some extra income if you’re lucky.