Ever notice how some exercises seem tougher than others? Well that’s because they are and the reasons can vary from a change in the weather, our health, and our sleep cycle. However, if you’re feeling physically healthy, supple and fit it could be a mental barrier that’s stopping you from switching it up a gear in order to power through until the very end.

Don’t Stop The Music

One of the ways to overcome apathy, lethargy or fight the wall you’ve run up against by turning up the volume! Create an adrenaline pumping list of fun, fast and furious tracks, ‘eye of the tiger’ is a must, that’ll get you feeling positive, fired up and ready to tackle that last set of sprints. Have an emergency fitness playlist on standby that you can smoothly switch to when you feel like you’re flagging, as research shows that people run faster and harder to music that has an upbeat tempos or positive, happy lyrics.



Flickr Image At: Yohann Legrand

Have A Mental Mantra

It doesn’t really matter what words you choose as long as they work for you and are short enough for you to repeat over and over instead of thinking what’s my mantra again? Which, in turn, will guarantee you’ll lose focus and probably stop altogether. Try to choose something quick, easy to remember and inspirational as well as having personal meaning for you. You’re looking for the words to light a fire inside you when you say them, as overtime mantras create resonance with the body, spurring it on when the words are repeated over and over again.



Flickr Image At: Asja Boroš

Power Up Your Visualization Skills

It’s difficult to see results straight away when exercising so it’s useful to visualise what you may look like after three months of running then six months and so on. Showing yourself mentally accomplishing a task can help you push forward into completing it for real, you just need to see yourself succeeding in order to believe you can. Lots of personal trainers learn advanced visualisation techniques on personal training courses that give them various psychological tools to help their clients achieve mental clarity and focus.



Flickr Image At: Fit Approach

Practice Reward Based Negotiation

During a hard training session adjust your expectations and use a reward based theory the same way you might with a pet. Tell yourself that if you finish the workout strong you can watch a favourite TV show, buy yourself a new game or go shopping with a friend. Try to use non food rewards as it’s important you don’t build a connection between diet and success as that approach can lead to comfort eating over time.



Flickr Image At: Bonsoni.com

Remember The Feeling

Hold on to the sense of exhilaration, joy and excitement that you experienced when you completed your last workout. This way, when you’re struggling you can recall finishing a tough workout and how amazing you felt when you pushed through. Eventually, you’ll know that you can get through a tough cardio session or a challenging weight lifting class as you’ll remember completing the previous workout, the one before that and so on which maintains positive thinking that’ll help to boost your confidence and stamina.



Flickr Image At:  Stephanie Young Merzel