It’s totally normal to feel a bit overwhelmed when you’re trying to get back into working out, or even just starting fresh. That feeling of being super motivated and having a regular workout routine can seem like a distant memory, especially after a period of disrupted schedules.
Right now, even thinking about lacing up your shoes and heading to the gym or out for a run might make you want to put it off until "next week." How do we even begin to restart when we’ve been busy binge-watching shows, stuck in endless video calls, and just dreaming of things going back to normal?
The good news is, there are simple and practical ways to kickstart your fitness goals again. To do this, we need to figure out where we’re starting from before we even think about the finish line.
Where Are You on Your Fitness Journey?
Let’s first figure out your current situation when it comes to fitness.
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Are you completely new to exercise?
If so, this is a whole new adventure for you. You might feel a bit lost about how to start effectively, and that’s perfectly okay! Many of the same basic rules apply to everyone. The biggest difference for you might be the learning curve. You might need a little more time to get the hang of exercises, build lasting habits, and get used to how fitness fits into your daily life.Try to begin with a positive outlook. Don’t let yourself get bogged down by feeling overwhelmed or thinking negatively. You’re about to start a journey that can positively change your life in many ways. Don’t create roadblocks for yourself.
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Are you getting back into it after a break?
Maybe you got caught up in the typical challenges of recent times – working from home, unpredictable schedules, and days and nights that just blended together.Here’s the great news if you’re restarting: you’ve done this before! You know what it’s like to put in the effort, live a fit lifestyle, and see real results. Sure, it might take a little time to shake off the rust and get moving again, but your body remembers a lot, so your learning curve will be much shorter thanks to "muscle memory."
You might just need a little push to get things rolling again. If you’ve been in a slump, it’s time to pull back the curtain and get moving toward progress once more.
Steps to Restart Your Fitness
It’s always best to take things one step at a time, breaking them down into small, realistic chunks. This prevents you from feeling overwhelmed and helps you stay on the right path to being efficient, effective, and successful. Take your time with each step below. Be honest with yourself as you make your plan. You’ll be taking real action when you’re ready to restart, so be prepared to commit.
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Choose a Realistic Goal
You don’t need to be an expert in exercise science to spot an unrealistic goal. For example, trying to lose 50 pounds in one month is simply not realistic. Anyone can tell that. Instead, start small. Is losing five pounds in a month doable? Absolutely! That’s roughly a pound a week.The key is to set a short-term goal that will give you a quick, small win and build momentum. This will boost your motivation, and these small goals will add up over time. Things like self-discipline, motivation, and consistency are like muscles – they take time to grow to their best levels. You wouldn’t try to run a marathon right away; you’d start with a mile and gradually add more over time.
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Make a Real-World Plan
When you’re creating your plan, you need to think about a few things. What does your current schedule realistically allow for when it comes to working out, eating well, and sleeping enough? How many days a week, how much time each day, and what kind of gym or fitness access can you commit to?A good rule of thumb is to start with the easiest things first. Figure out the absolute minimum, most tangible thing you can do in the near future. Can you commit to three days a week, 30 minutes a day? Then go with that.
The important part is to establish a solid starting point and not worry if you think it seems like too little effort. Start small, and then add more as your time, availability, and fitness level improve.
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Write It Down/Journal
We humans rely heavily on our vision for almost everything. The more we can see, the more we understand. That’s why keeping a journal is so effective. When we see what we’ve experienced or read our own thoughts written down, it becomes more real and impactful. It helps us truly understand what we’re going through or what we want to achieve.Fitness is no different. Write down your workout plan, what you eat, how motivated you feel, and anything else that seems to affect your progress. Keeping a daily record of these things will not only keep you focused and motivated, but it will also help you notice things you might otherwise miss, like what’s working well and what isn’t.
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Review, But Don’t Overhaul
Once you’ve consistently followed the practices above, you can start to look at what needs improvement. However, this is where it’s easy to get sidetracked by trying to completely change everything. We often want to totally revamp our plans when something isn’t working perfectly right away. We jump from one program to another too often, which means we never see significant results because we don’t stick with anything long enough to see changes.If you notice something in your notes that needs adjusting, change just that one thing and give it plenty of time to make a difference. If you change too many things at once, you’ll never know what actually worked and what didn’t. One thing at a time.
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Stumble, But Don’t Quit
Have you ever started something only to face obstacles right away? For some, that makes them want to give up completely. They end up in a cycle of constantly restarting until they eventually quit due to burnout.We all hit bumps in the road. We all face challenges, roadblocks, and setbacks in life at some point. But the most important thing we can do is get back up and keep going. Pick up where you left off without dwelling on the past or getting disappointed.
The easier path, which leads nowhere, is simply to quit – to vaguely tell ourselves we’ll commit to some imaginary future date that doesn’t require us to actually do anything or be accountable.
If you stumble, keep looking forward, restart that momentum without hesitation, and set yourself up for success again.
Getting back into shape doesn’t have to be overwhelming. With carefully planned steps, an honest look at yourself, and a strong commitment, you’ll have everything you need to succeed. Remember to set realistic goals, create a solid action plan, write it all down daily, assess what’s working and what isn’t, and finally, protect yourself from discouragement when things get tough. It’s time to get back on track, no matter what’s going on in the world.