10 tips: How to Get It and to Keep It

By Virginia Anderson Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD Featured by WebMD

Debbe Geiger admits it: Her motivation to exercise was zero and had been for years. She could summarize her feelings about exercise in two words. “It stinks,” says Geiger, of Cary, N.C.

Her thinking changed when she finally found her exercise motivation: commitment to a team.

Geiger joined a volleyball team -- after much urging from friends who wanted her to play with them -- and now she doesn’t want to let her teammates down. She’s at the gym with a convert’s fervor on game nights.

“There have been lots of reasons I could have missed, and I haven’t,” Geiger says proudly.

Geiger’s experience illustrates what exercise experts have learned through research and practice over the years: To succeed in sticking to an exercise routine, people need a reason to carry on when that little voice inside says, "Sit on the couch. Have a doughnut."

There are plenty of reasons we should be exercising. Not only does exercise help us reach and maintain a healthy body weight, it also can help lower blood pressure, "bad" cholesterol and trigycerides; strengthen bones; lower the risk for cancer; help us battle depression; and decrease stress. Many experts say it even improves our sex lives.

So we all know exercise is good for us. Why do so many of us hate it?

“We may have had a bad experience in school, or maybe we’re afraid we’ll hurt ourselves,” says Carla Sottovia, assistant director of fitness at the highly esteemed Cooper Fitness Institute in Dallas. “Maybe they’re even afraid to sweat.”

Intimidation is a factor also, experts say. When you're out of shape, it takes courage to don workout duds and head for the gym.

If any of this sounds familiar, don't give up hope. Experts who spoke to WebMD, as well as fitness buffs who say they once hated to work out, offered some tips to help even exercise-haters learn to love it.

Exercise Motivation Tip No. 1: Be Realistic
One of the biggest reasons for failure is that first-time exercisers often set unrealistic goals.

“They want to go for maximal goals, but they tend to get overwhelmed,” says Gerald Endress, fitness director of the Duke Diet and Fitness Center in Durham, N.C.

Don’t start off trying to work out an hour every day. Instead, begin with 20-30 minutes of your chosen exercise two to three times a week.


Exercise Motivation Tip No. 2: Keep Track of Your Progress
Don't forget to chart your progress, whether it's with a high-tech online tracker or an old-fashioned fitness journal. Seeing incremental improvements, whether it's in improved time, increased reps, or greater frequency of workouts, can boost your exercise motivation.

“I need to see the value,” says Jay Aronson, a professor of management information systems at the University of Georgia who cycles every day for at least an hour. For his part, Aronson has seen the value of exercise -- he lost 75 pounds over two years.

Exercise Motivation Tip No. 3: Don't Expect Perfection
Another pitfall is all-or-nothing thinking, a perfectionist way of looking at life that leads to giving up when you miss a day or two or your workout doesn’t go well. If you accept going in that there will be some sidesteps on your fitness journey, you’ll be better mentally prepared to deal with setbacks, Endress says.

Expect that you'll get sick from time to time, and be psychologically prepared to miss a few days of exercise when that happens. Don’t let it be an excuse for giving up. "From then on, people say ‘I can’t exercise,'" say Endress. "But there’s always a way to exercise."

To keep injuries from sidelining you, do your best to prevent them by warming up, cooling down, stretching properly -- and not doing too much too soon.

Exercise Motivation Tip No. 4: Don't Compare Yourself to Others
We’ve all seen them, those toned, fatless specimens who strut through the gym in their Barbie-sized shorts and sports bras.

Don’t compare yourself to them, Endress says. Forget about them. Forgive them. But do not let them deter you from your goal.

Exercise Motivation Tip No. 5: Get Athletic Support
This isn’t about garments but about spouses, girlfriends, boyfriends, buddies -- anyone who will encourage you. And if their encouragement goes beyond the “atta-boy” or “atta-girl” approach, gently remind them that you don’t need nagging.

"The person should be in support, but not say, 'Oh, why not?' or 'Why can’t you? It’s so easy,'" says Sottovia.

If you need additional help, hire a trainer, she advises.

Exercise Motivation Tip No. 6: Find the Fun In It
It’s essential to find an activity you like, say both Sottovia and Endress, and no, they don’t mean sitting on the couch. With an explosion in the number and types of fitness classes at most gyms, it has become easier to find something to appeal to you, from aerobics to Zumba.

If you're not the gym type, walk around your neighborhood or try activities around the house, such as walking up and down stairs or dancing with the stars in your living room. If you're motivated by being social, follow Geiger's lead and join a team.

Exercise Motivation Tip No. 7: Break It Up
You can make it easier on yourself by splitting your exercise session into two or three sessions, says Endress. Research supports the idea that this can be as beneficial as one long workout, he says.

So if you don’t feel like exercising for an hour on any given day, do three sessions of 20 minutes each, for example.

Exercise Motivation Tip No. 8: Make It Convenient
Do whatever you can to remove obstacles to exercise, and make it as convenient as possible, says Sottovia.

So if you are time-pressed, for example, don't spend time driving to a gym; try exercising at home to fitness DVDs instead. If you're too tired to work out at the end of the day, set your alarm a little earlier and exercise in the morning.

Exercise Motivation Tip No. 9: Forget the Past
Don't let previous bad experiences with exercise hinder you, Sottovia says.

So maybe you weren’t the most athletic kid in high school, and were the last chosen for class games. That was years ago. Your goal now is not to win a letter jacket or make the cheerleading squad -- you want to exercise to stay healthy and enjoy your life.

Exercise Motivation Tip No. 10: Reward Yourself
Endress recommends rewarding yourself for making the effort to exercise -- not with a piece of chocolate cake, but with something that you enjoy, like a movie or flowers.

Try to think of treats that will reinforce a mind-body connection so you can savor the rewards of your hard work. Plan a short trip, or just an hour in a botanical garden. Go to a ballgame. And remind yourself with each precious moment that you are enjoying this time because of all the great things you have been doing for yourself.