Fitness is not a destination that you can reach in a day or two. It’s a lifelong
journey, like a roller coaster. It requires your commitment to a healthy lifestyle
including your mental well-being. Similarly, fitness also does not mean how fit you
apparently look. However, it incorporates how physically, nutritionally, as well as
mentally fit you are inside out. Therefore, to successfully achieve this trio, you
need to have a balanced lifestyle. Meanwhile, people often find enough excuses
and less motivation to strike a balance between their fitness goals and a balanced
lifestyle. Their procrastination levels up every time they think about going out and
hitting the gym. For instance, too tired to get up from a couch and move, too tired
to get dressed for work out, too tired to cook a healthy meal against the unhealthy
fast-food consumption, & so on!
Hence, the lack of motivation and procrastination becomes an evident bottleneck
causing you to drop the idea of a healthier you. For this purpose, this blog intends
to help you explore the mental, physical, and nutritional aspects of health and
fitness that will assist you with the tools essential to achieve your aim of attaining a
healthy lifestyle. So, let’s embark on a road to a healthier, fitter, and happier you.
1. Understanding The Three Pillars Of Health And Fitness
Fitness can be fragmented into three pillars which include: physical fitness, and
mental and nutritional fitness. Compromising on any of these will halt you from
achieving a healthier you. So, to get everlasting health and fitness, it is significant
to address each of the pillars thoroughly!
*Physical Fitness
It includes flexibility, strength, endurance, and overall physical health.
Similarly, the strength helps in aggrandizing metabolism, thwarts injury, and
offers better functional strength to the body. Therefore, it is necessary to build
and maintain muscle mass for a physically healthy body. Along with this, your
internal body organs such as the lungs and heart also need exercise. Hence,
cardio workouts are the best to improve your stamina and cardiovascular health.
Indeed, this also aids in burning calories effectively. Moreover, yoga exercises
such as stretching, improve your variety of motion, minimize the risk of
injuries, and offer better posture.
*Nutritional Fitness
Your diet plays an immense part in your fitness journey. Whatever you eat
directly reflects upon your physique. Therefore, eating the right nutrition will
fuel your body for the exercises, help you in quick recovery, and assist you in
maintaining a healthy body weight. In this regard, your balanced diet should
include a variety of vegetables and fruits, whole grains, healthy fats, and
proteins. Furthermore, you should keep your body hydrated with enough water
intake. Because hydration not only supports temperature regulation but also
helps in digestion and toxin elimination. Other than this, you should also be
mindful of your portion sizes. Undoubtedly, even healthy food can make you
overweight if you consume them in excessive amounts.
*Mental Fitness
Mental fitness is usually overlooked. However, a healthy mind is as crucial as
physical fitness. Having sound mental health means having a sound body. Both
work as directly proportional. So, mental fitness provides a healthy mind as
well as balance and coordination. Therefore, practicing yoga, stress
management, and mindfulness will help you develop a stronger connection
between your mind and body.
2. Identify, Why Do You Want to Be Fit?
As you understand the three pillars of fitness, now, before navigating your voyage
towards fitness, first, you should speak the truth to yourself about ‘why’ you want
to be fit! Is it about getting fit in a new dress you are thinking of wearing on an
upcoming occasion? Is it about turning your obesity into a smart-looking attractive
body? Is it about releasing stress to have a sound mind? Or is it about having
enough strength and stamina for a healthier life ahead? So, at first, you must have a
clear idea of what you want from the fitness. Without a doubt, this ‘’Why’’ will
keep you motivated like a push factor, to achieve your set goal whenever you feel
like giving up on it.
3. Kick Start the Journey with the Role of Motivation
*Pre-Visualize Your Accomplishment
Imagine, you have a set goal that you want to be slimmer and healthier in
upcoming months than the obesity you have right now. For this concern, you
have a road map that you intend to execute in six months. Now pre-visualize it,
if you have achieved your desired goal, how would you feel like? Happier and
more triumph than ever before? Yeah! You got this right; you will feel yourself
in the seventh sky! This feeling of being above the clouds after successfully
achieving the goal is what will keep you motivated toward your destined
purpose. So, here is rule no#1 for pursuing health and fitness: always visualize
your success to stay motivated!
*Get Yourself A Classy Sports Outfit
Numerous studies reveal that many people find it easy to get motivated only by
shopping and wearing an attractive sports outfit. Indeed, if you buy a nice-
looking sporty outfit, you will feel really excited about wearing it before hitting
the gym. Believe it or not but this surely works! There is a psychological
phenomenon attached to this: the ‘Enclothed Cognition’. According to the
enclothed cognition, clothing has a systematic influence on the wearer’s
psychological processes. Therefore, rule no#2 for heading toward health and
fitness: get yourself quality workout attire before hitting the road to the gym!
*Put An Accountability Check On Yourself
Share your fitness goals with your family and friends so that they can hold you
accountable for the plans you discussed with them. Similarly, whenever they
hold you accountable, you will eventually develop a sense of motivation
towards your goals. Also, it will be beneficial, if you find a gym partner who
can work out alongside you. This way, both of you will encourage each other
and strive toward success. Hence, rule no#3 to keep your motivation high is, to
involve friends and family for accountability and a gym partner for a real
pushback!
*Give Yourself A Reward For Achieving A Milestone
Set yourself some milestones. Always give yourself credit after achieving every
set milestone. You can reward yourself by doing your favorite thing, such as
buying yourself a new sports outfit, going for a movie night, hanging out with
your favorite buddies, or a day out with your loved ones, etc. This is a
psychologically proven phenomenon. According to a prominent psychologist
B.F Skinner, if you want to strengthen a particular behavior, do it through a
reward system. It means if you really want a particular behavior to happen
again and again in the future, reward it every time whenever such behavior
appears to you. Consequently, here is rule no#4 to stay motivated toward your
health and fitness goal: give yourself a reward after successfully achieving a
milestone!
4. Ways To Overcome Challenges Towards Health & Fitness
There are a number of possible bottlenecks that can hinder your flow toward health
and fitness goals. Some of them are discussed below.
*Shortage Of Time.
Often, you may find it difficult to manage the required time for investing in
your health and fitness goals. However, if you prioritize your goals by making
them an appointment, you will surely take out time from the challenging
schedules to make this happen.
*Having unrealistic expectations
Indeed, unrealistic expectations always hurt. So never go hard on yourself and
set some realistic expectations for your goals. Similarly, after setting it, have
patience. Transformation and good things both take time to happen. Nothing
can happen overnight. Furthermore, the best way to be realistic is, to always
compare yourself with your own past, and identify the difference. Comparing
yourself with other people can be disastrous, demotivating, and discouraging! It
is because everybody has a unique body, physique, strength, stamina, and set of
goals that vary from individual to individual.
*Experiencing Injuries On The Voyage
If you experience injuries during workouts or have unbearable pain in any part
of your body, just stop right there! Do not go hard on yourself. Consult with a
professional fitness instructor or seek helps from a medical healthcare
professional. Other than this, you should also take a day or two off from the
workout if experiencing continual pain in the process.
*Lacking Of Motivation
There will be days when you will find it difficult to stay motivated on your
goals and that is completely natural. All you have to do is to remind yourself
why you started this journey. The set goal is achieved or it is yet to be
achieved? This self-accountability and sense of awareness regarding the long-
term benefits will help you track yourself.
5. Conclusion
The health and fitness goals are a continuous journey like a roller coaster. It
requires you to be holistic, dedicated, motivated, and committed to your goals.
This voyage will ask you to strike a proper balance between your mental, physical,
and nutritional fitness to have lasting results. Although the progress may be slow,
however, if you overcome the possible bottleneck with the strategies mentioned
above with consistency and a positive mindset, you will surely achieve your set
goals. All in all, embrace the journey and become a happier, fitter, and healthier
version of yourself!