Living a healthy life is not complicated. One of the main keys is to do sport, as regular physical activity provides you with a multitude of advantages. The most important of these can be summed up as increasing your life expectancy. There are many others to add to the list, such as increasing muscle mass, especially if you supplement your training with supplements.
When physical activity has already begun, there is always a desire to continue doing it, which is the result of the release of serotonin that makes you feel great after completing the sports session. However, if you don't do any sport at all, getting started for the first time can be a challenge.
Lack of motivation is the main barrier that many people face. If this is also your case, don't hesitate to apply the 10 tricks that have proven to be effective to get you started in sport, starting with once a week and gradually increasing your regularity. In this way you will get the most out of the many benefits of sports such as swimming and running.
Eat well
Eating well is essential, because if you don't eat properly you will lack energy and your brain will not receive the positive stimuli it needs to make you want to do sport.
Avoid starving yourself, but that doesn't mean you should eat too many kilocalories. To keep the calorie balance in optimal figures and give your body a large dose of energy, the best thing to do is to make your own homemade protein shakes.
There are some foods that are known for motivating those who consume them. Specifically, we are referring to those that are responsible for stimulating brain substances such as dopamine, as well as the one known as noradrenaline. A clear example is quinoa, a very healthy and nutritious whole grain, ideal for sportsmen and women.
There is little point in doing a sports session on a single occasion and not wanting to repeat the experience when your muscles feel too tired. It is up to you to help your recovery, and you need to eat correctly. Of course, the rest factor also comes into play, which is part of another trick that we will describe below.
Get eight hours of rest a day
No matter how well you eat, your muscles won't fully recover if you don't get enough rest. In fact, you won't even be able to tackle your first session of sport, as you won't have the energy you need mentally and physically.
Health professionals recommend that everyone should get eight hours of sleep a day. However, don't think that increasing this figure will make you want to do sport even more. On the contrary: body aches and pains will take over if you spend so much time in bed.
Don't exceed eight hours and, of course, don't sleep less. For work, school or other reasons, you may find it difficult to reach this figure every night. In that case, a good idea is to take the occasional nap.
Being rested is essential, no matter when you decide to practice the sport in question. Of course, it is even more important if you choose to exercise before breakfast, which is the best time to exercise because it promotes fat burning.
Compare the before and after of amateur sportsmen and women
Social media is a great way to get that extra boost of motivation you need to start a fitness routine. Using tags such as fitness, sport and exercise, you'll have no trouble finding ordinary people who, precisely in order to motivate themselves, post photos of how they looked before starting their routine physical exercise.
Of course, with the passage of time, the improvement becomes evident, which is shown in the subsequent photographs that are also posted on the network. It is precisely these images that will make you want to make such significant changes.
We are not only talking about weight loss, which is easily achieved by practising sports that burn more calories. In addition, we are also talking about gaining muscle mass.
It is common that those who share their progress also do the same with the routines they usually follow in terms of sport and nutrition. This will make it easy for you to achieve similar results. But keep in mind that every body is different and you may need more time to get there. However, the simple fact of starting to do sport will be an important step.
Record your progress
If doing sport is a bit boring or you just don't feel like doing it, there is a very good trick that works for almost everyone. It basically consists of doing something similar to the above, although in this case you don't need to share your progress. You just have to see it yourself.
All you have to do is write down in a notebook or on your mobile phone the results of your first sports session. For example: you have run for half an hour and reached four kilometres in total, achieved five reps in the pull-ups, and so on.
No matter how low the figure may seem to you, the next time you go to do sport you won't feel so lazy. You will have a goal in mind: to beat your own 'record'. As you reach your goals, you will feel more and more like doing sport. The feeling of progress is one of the most important keys. In fact, all personal trainers recommend this trick.
Use a smart wristband
Some data will be difficult to calculate manually, a clear example being the speed at which you run. So how do you do it to keep track of your progress and stay motivated as you see improvement? There is a technological device that will be of great help to you: the smart bracelet for athletes.
Despite the low price of many of the models on the market today, they are very accurate when it comes to collecting all the information that you will later use to find out if you are improving or not. If you are, your motivation will increase, which means that you will always feel like doing sport even if your life is quite busy and prevents you from combining sport with your day-to-day life.
In case you have no physical background and cannot resist any sporting activity, the best possible idea is to start walking. All the steps you take while walking will be recorded by the wristband, using this monitoring data to improve yourself the next time you go for a walk. In a few weeks you'll find yourself able to run.
Get a new pair of running gear
If you're feeling unmotivated every time you try to do sport, perhaps it's because you're using equipment that leaves a lot to be desired. We're not talking about the quality, but the condition of the equipment: shoes with worn-out soles, clothes that have lost their original colour years ago, and so on.
We have all seen runners on the street wearing the typical advertising T-shirt, as well as members of a gym practising crossfit with very worn out shoes. But we're talking about people who are already used to regular sport. This is not your case, so maybe you need a boost in the form of brand new equipment.
Shoes, clothes, weights or other items fresh from the factory will make you want to use them for the first time. You don't need to buy top-quality products, as this is not necessary for amateur athletes. Just make sure you are comfortable with what you will be using for the sport in question.
Make a schedule and stick to it
Although it is not good to force yourself to do anything if you don't feel like it, it has been proven many times that, in order to practice sport regularly, you need to have a schedule. It probably doesn't motivate you to arrive at the weekend and think that it would be a good time to start a sporting activity. But if it is marked in your own calendar, psychologically you will be more predisposed to take up physical activity.
To achieve this positive result, don't overload your calendar. In the beginning, space one sports session far enough apart from another. For example, a couple of times a week is enough. Over time you can increase this to three or even four times a week.
Whatever days you choose, stick to the schedule you set for yourself. On the other hand, remember that it is not advisable to practice sport every day, as both body and mind need rest to recover from the effort made.
Listen to music while doing sport
Although for many people sport is fun, for you it may be quite the opposite. Even so, you want to get started in order to improve your health. In any case, you can motivate yourself by playing music, which is extremely convenient thanks to the sports bluetooth headphones, as you completely avoid cables.
It is important that the songs are to your liking. Make a selection in advance and be sure to include the different genres you love, as well as the bands you've been listening to for a long time and that always manage to lift your spirits.
Many of the runners you see on the street are listening to their favourite music. The aim of these amateur athletes is to avoid the monotony of always passing through the same areas. The truth is that they succeed, so you can do the same, whatever discipline you choose. In fact, there are even headphones for swimming in the pool.
If music isn't enough motivation for you or you don't usually enjoy this hobby, you can opt for podcasts. The variety is immense, so it's easy to find one that you're passionate about. Thanks to this, you won't find it hard to do sport, as you will know that during your physical activity you will be entertained by listening to content that is very interesting for you.
Do it with company
Sport has a great social component that you can use as motivation. And speaking again about running, the experience of those who run alone changes a lot compared to those who do it accompanied. If you are too lazy to enjoy a sport alone, try doing it with a friend, family member or simply an acquaintance.
It may not seem important, but the simple fact of having someone to exchange feelings with as you run kilometres or do weights at the gym will make you want to work out with that person again after two or three days.
Have fun working out with sports video games
With the appearance of devices such as the PlayStation 2's EyeToy and Xbox 360's Kinect, many alternatives began to emerge to practice sport in a much more fun way and without having to leave the house. Today the result is even better thanks to Virtual Reality.
The possibilities are practically endless. One of the most common is to run on a treadmill with VR goggles on, which will make you believe you are in all kinds of scenarios of your choice: a tropical island, Route 66 in the United States, and so on.
You can also practice many other disciplines such as boxing: with the controls in your hands, you will throw punches at your opponent, whose attacks you will have to dodge by moving your body. Whichever experience you choose, even if you don't like video games, you'll have a great time exercising physically without the lack of motivation taking its toll.
España
United States
United Kingdom
Deutschland
France
Italia
Portugal
Nederland
United Arab Emirates
Argentina
Austria
Australia
Belgium
Brasil
Canada
Switzerland
Chile
Colombia
Ireland
México
New Zealand
Uruguay