(Akiit.com) If you’re currently stuck in a fitness rut, where you feel frustrated and perhaps even depressed at the gap between where you are and where you want to be in terms of your level of fitness and physique it can feel like the song by U2 that states:
“you gotta get yourself together, you got stuck in a moment, that you can’t get out of… don’t think that later will be better… you got stuck in a moment that you can’t get out of”.
Indeed, often it’s taking that first step and breaking the seal, so to speak, that is the hardest – but once you have taken that first step and get a little momentum behind you, you gain confidence and the more confidence you gain, the more momentum – it’s therefore an upward spiral.
Unfortunately, when it comes to our fitness, we can end up feeling quite low and we look to the past in order to compare where we were once upon a time to where we are today. Our bodies do go through an aging process which means that where we ‘were’ was probably better than where we are today, but focusing on the past like this is futile and frustrating because all we have is the present moment.
Maybe, once upon a time you were so fiercely fit you played tag rugby and competed in sport such as swimming or athletics, or maybe you’ve never had to keep your fitness in check because your metabolism has always been naturally fast, yet, with age, it has started to slow down… meaning you can no longer eat everything you like.
In any event, the challenge is that when we don’t feel fit our confidence and self-esteem takes a hit, which becomes a slippery slope, as the less confident we feel the less empowered we are to take the action necessary to get things back on track.
The trick, is to get started… and to get started today! Put aside your excuses and just get started. In time, you will build momentum and start feeling much better about yourself.
If you’re feeling a little gym shy, you can always exercise from home, for instance, Les Mills now offer their fitness classes on-demand in a Netflix like app. This can be a great way to build up your fitness before braving a real life exercise class. In particular, there’s a good class called Body Balance that is good for people easing themselves back into exercise as it focuses on building core strength, flexibility, and working the stabiliser muscles necessary to prevent injury.
See, one of the most common mistakes people make when getting back into fitness is going too hard too early. This is usually out of impatience and perhaps an ego-driven need to keep up with others around them.
Fitness is simply about conditioning; your body at the moment might be out of condition, therefore, all you need to do is start reconditioning it. The most important thing to take away from this article is the power of now; in the sense that there will never be a better time that now to take action.
Staff Writer; Jerry Poole