5 Steps That Will Increase Your Willpower To Workout More Often
While being involved with Roworx Fitness, the health industry, and involved with a lifetime of playing sports I have come to the conclusion that the number one reason why people fall short of their fitness and nutrition goals is the lack of self-discipline and/or willpower.
Some people think it is easy for me to preach fitness because it is my job as a fitness owner and instructor, however, nearly 50% of the workouts I do don’t come easy. That is to say if I h
ad the option to NOT workout about half the time I would take that option. Something that my coaches have taught me over the years in college and on the US National Team was the ability to understand hard work and put in the miles day in and day out. The ability to train and ‘grind’ through the daily workouts no matter how bad the fitness sessions were. My coaches taught me the need to work strenuously through challenges and maintain a high level of effort over a long period of time despite failure and other things getting in the way of progress. Knowing how to deal with the highs and lows of the daily workout ‘grind’ is how you will succeed in accomplishing your fitness and nutrition goals. Helping people understand that the daily ‘grind’ to achieve greatness in maintaining a healthy lifestyle habits is the core of the work you need in order to overcome adversity and instill willpower. One of the best and worst quotes I have heard from my father, John Nunn, was that when things got tough for me during US National Team training sessions he would often say: ‘Anyone can train on a good day…It’s when you train hard on the bad days that will get you the results you need to win races.’ This is a very true statement and there are 5 main steps to help give you ‘WIN’ the willpower you need to reach your fitness and nutrition goals.
#1 GOOD NUTRITION, TAKE JUICE PLUS, AND LOTS OF WATER
For many years the National Institutes of Health, the American Cancer Society, the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and every other national health association has emphasized the importance of eating at least 5 servings of raw fruits, vegetables, and berries every single day. If you are trying to lead an active and fit lifestyle you need at least 10 servings a day due to the amount of stress that you are putting on your body.
The health benefits of this are numerous, including:
*Protection against various cancer cells
*Stronger immune system
*Prevention of chronic illness
*Protection against heart disease
*Slows down the effects of aging
These benefits are not only due to vitamins and minerals, but also from the enzymes, antioxidants, phytonutrients, and fiber contained within fruits, vegetables, and berries. There are many more potential benefits of these nutrients such as improved intellectual function, better eyesight, and increased energy level. In short, our bodies simply function more efficiently. How many of us actually eat 7-13 servings of raw fruits, vegetables, and berries every single day? Some of us may eat an orange, apple, or banana with lunch and then that is it. Virtually everyone falls short of the amount of fruits and veggies we need to help our bodies run smoothly and efficiently in order to maximize our potential for a healthy lifestyle. What is Juice Plus? Juice Plus is more than extra vitamins and minerals. It is actually a whole food based supplement. The fruit capsules are made from apples, oranges, pineapples, cranberries, peaches, cherries, papayas. The vegetable capsules are made from carrots, parsley, beets, kale, broccoli, cabbage, oat bran, rice bran, spinach, and tomatoes. How is Juice Plus+® made? The fresh fruits and vegetables are juiced, then dehydrated to a powder form. It’s carefully tested to ensure no pesticides or other contaminants are present in the product. It is never exposed to high temperatures that would destroy the nutritional value of the fruits and vegetables. Most of the vitamins, minerals, active plant enzymes, phytonutrients, antioxidants, and fiber are preserved in the final capsules. When re-hydrated with water, the nutrients are absorbed into our bodies as if we had eaten the fruits and vegetables whole. Is Juice Plus as good as eating fruits, veggies, and berries? There’s no complete substitute for the real thing, however Juice Plus is the most convenient and cost effective way to ensure you and your family get all the benefits over time from adding more nutrition from fresh fruits, veggies, and berries to your diet every single day. Your body is composed of about 60% water. The functions of these bodily fluids include digestion, absorption, circulation, creation of saliva, transportation of nutrients, and maintenance of body temperature. Food with high water content tends to look larger, its higher volume requires more chewing, and it is absorbed more slowly by the body, which helps you feel full. Water-rich foods include fruits, vegetables, broth-based soups, oatmeal, and beans. During workouts you need to drink about 17 ounces of fluid about two hours before exercise. During exercise, they recommend that people start drinking fluids early, and drink them at regular intervals to replace fluids lost by sweating.
#2 WRITE DOWN AND RECORD FITNESS ROUTINES
For most of the general population we all need some type of motivation in our lives and that usually comes from writing something down so that it gets done. Some of the best Olympic athletes I know write their goals down and put ‘post it’ notes all over their room in order to inspire them and remind them to keep their eyes on the ultimate goal of making the Olympic team. Fitness and nutrition goals do not happen overnight and it is the journey of good fitness and nutrition that will keep you motivated throughout your lifetime. Make sure to set realistic goals and focus on the present day to ensure you get things done in order to take that next step forward.
#3 PLAN AN ATHLETIC EVENT
Everyone hits a wall with their fitness and nutrition goals and one awesome way to keep yourself on track is to plan on doing a fitness adventure such as a running, triathlon, and/or game event to participate with others. These types of races/events will help you keep focused on small steps towards your fitness and nutrition goals. I have come to the point in my training where I find myself doing events almost every week in order to stay motivated and excited about fitness. I love a challenge and it makes you feel accomplished and fulfilled when you finish a race.
If you can’t even rally one person to join you, consider searching for a local race. Just like your running partner, you can either start early or continue running while everyone else is cooling down. Either way you get in the run you want and avoid doing it solo. If you are really organized, you can plan ahead to sign up for key races to help you over the impending “humps” in your training. If you want a cheaper alternative that signing up for yet another race, spend a few minutes online and find a new route to run. One of the biggest reasons for burning out is having a redundant training routine. Tackle this problem with some creative planning and racing schedules. Maybe the new route is in a new part of town; maybe you drive to a new town and run. Whatever you decide, do your best to keep it unique and simple and be realistic with your fitness goals. A really great site for Triathlon, adventure, Duathlon, and running races can be found on California Triathlons and/or Active.com … They list hundreds of races a year around California and beyond!
#4 GROUP TRAINING WITH ROWORX FITNESS
Group Fitness Is The Best Fitness!
Who has the time to workout, train, and be disciplined on fitness on their own? Studies show that we are motivated to work harder, show up more often, and push further past our perceived limits when training in a group. The results of one study suggest that endorphin release is significantly greater in group training than in individual training; this seems to be the case even when the individual’s power output, or physical exertion, is the same. Not only is it more fun to exercise with others, but it is safer and more efficient to exercise under the leadership of a good coach. With the help of our amazing instructors you are sure to have a great time in any of our four class programs that we have to offer. Central to the Roworx philosophy is our focus on teaching an efficient, safe rowing stroke in a group setting. Anyone can get a workout by moving back and forth on a rowing machine. At Roworx Fitness, you will learn to use the machines the way Olympic rowers do. You will maximize your efficiency, protect your back from injury, and see results sooner due to the energy of the group class training every single day. Each class, from beginner to advanced, begins with a warm-up and includes a short focus on the “drill of the month.” Anyone can do it! Our instructors will make sure that you are consistently maintaining good technique. Roworx believes in providing you with extremely experienced, energetic, knowledgeable instructors. We believe that you will see results sooner and prevent injury by maintaining efficient, safe technique. We believe that if you are having fun and engaging your mind as well as your body, you will be more consistent with your exercise plan and you will get fitter sooner. And…we believe there are no better exercises than the low-impact, calorie-burning, workouts of Indoor Rowing and Bootcamp Classes!
#5 MORE SLEEP
Study after study has found a link between insufficient sleep and some serious health problems, such as heart disease, heart attacks, diabetes, and obesity. Getting enough sleep could help you maintain your weight — and conversely, sleep loss goes along with an increased risk of weight gain. Why? Part of the problem is behavioral. If you’re overtired, you might be less likely to have the energy to go for that jog or cook a healthy dinner after work. The other part is physiological. The hormone leptin plays a key role in making you feel full. When you don’t get enough sleep, leptin levels drop. Result: people who are tired are just plain hungrier — and they seem to crave high-fat and high-calorie foods specifically.
Tags: Best Cardiovascular Exercise, fitness, Group Training Classes, Ironman Training, Jack Nunn, juice plus, Juice Plus facts, Log workouts, Long Beach Fitnes Classes, Rowing Classes, Roworx, Roworx Fitness, Sleep and exercise, triathlon training, Triworx, Willpower
