1) Build An Evening & Morning Routine
What do you do prior to bed? What time do you fall asleep and wake up? What follows after waking? What you do daily around your sleep may prove to be one of the biggest difference makers in your consistency. A couple of recommendations would be to charge your phone in a different room and buy an alarm clock. Take 10-20 minutes when in bed to read. If you’re religious, pray with your significant other. At waking, make your bed (first task accomplished for the day), find a half hour to move in the morning, make a health-conscious breakfast, and maybe even introduce a cold shower. These routines, or whichever ones you decide on, should bring you into balance each day. It’s your constant. No matter how much you don’t want to do it, do it anyways.
2) Write It Down
This comes back to our plan and prepare process. You are more likely to complete something if you write it down. This includes your thoughts, tasks, training, financial goals, etc. Carry a notebook with you each day and actually use it! You’d be surprised how much you can get done by having a running list of things to complete.
3) Positive Attitude. Always.
In a recent Last Man Standing trail race, which is a run performed by elite ultramarathon runners where each runner must perform one mile every 20 minutes until they cannot perform the work within the cap, one man came out victorious. Chadd Wright, a former Navy Seal, ran the slowest pace of the field at nearly 18 minutes per mile. As you may be thinking, the other runners were running faster miles and fatigued faster. However, Wright attributed his success not to his pace, but his mindset. He calls it The Power Of The Spoken Word. After about 70 miles into the run, things began to get difficult as one may imagine. When asked how he felt, he made it a conscious and deliberate point to only say positive thoughts…,” I feel terrific”, “I will never quit”, and “It’s just one foot in front of the other”. By speaking his positive thoughts aloud to himself and to those around him, he staved off aches and pains that would’ve brought down the average runner. To be excellent, you need an excellent attitude. Avoid complaining and allow the power of positive spoken words to elevate your attitude.
4) Do it. Even when you don’t want to.
The days when you don’t want to do it are the days when you REALLY need to do it. If you are looking to become consistent, allow these days to be your cornerstone days. Meaning, these days are when you begin bridging the connections in your brain that develop discipline, consistency, and long-term habit.
By the same token, understand that your happiness and quality of life are most important. If that means that instead of working out first thing in the morning, maybe you grab an extra hour or two of sleep to get your full eight hours. Then, later in the day you adjust your schedule to accommodate for an evening fitness class or a half hour of movement. Those days will happen. Be ready to adapt to the changes and move.
Side Note: Don’t confuse this with injury. If you’re hurt, solve it, strengthen it, and get back into action. But, don’t be stupid and continue to make matters worse.
5) Focus On The Present. Not The Outcome.
This is what the majority of individuals get hung up on. It’s natural as humans to be goal oriented. But oftentimes, this pulls us out of what’s happening right now. This can lead to indecisiveness and inaction. Rather, buy into the idea of each day being its own challenge that you have to conquer. It’s the mental state where nothing else matters other than what’s happening in front of you right now and how you act in the current moment. By taking action on your day NOW, you get closer to your goals. Stay present and create action.
6) You Will Make Mistakes. You’re Not Perfect. Move On.
Grant yourself forgiveness if you made a mistake or didn’t complete a task. It will happen. How you respond is even more important. Because you fell off your schedule, ate poorly, didn’t work out, or things didn’t go your way, did you let it affect your next decisions? Did those negative events affect your evening and morning routines the next day? Develop the short-term memory and stay positive. Remember, staying present allows for positive action. The next time you find yourself in a rut, move on, and get back on track.
Just whatever you do, don’t wait until Monday. Today is your Monday. Restart now.
Peter Nelson II is a fitness professional at Black Flag Athletics who takes pride in creating long lasting, positive change. Through an all-inclusive approach on fitness, Peter looks at all aspects of one’s wellness and creates an individualized program that meets the client’s needs. Peter works with all ability levels from professional athletes, general population, injury rehab clientele, and students.
In his free time, he enjoys spending time with his wife, Paige, and dog, Dakota. He is a hybrid athlete who runs ultramarathons and performs strength training concurrently. He also enjoys hiking, traveling, and medium-rare steak!
His Credentials Include:
Biomechanics Specialist (NESTA), Fascial Stretch Therapist (Stretch2WIn), Specialist in Fitness Nutrition, CrossFit L1, United States Weightlifting L1, and is Functional Movement Screen certified.
Contact Info
IG: @peternelsonii