or Chapter IV of Marti Soosaar’s e-book "A New Beginning"
The most important thing in the world is what you are thinking about right now
If you’re not used to exercising, the urge to work out isn’t like sleep, hunger or sexual desire, which start nagging at you all by themselves. No one has to remind us that it’s high time to grab a bite to eat or that we should have hit the sack and turned out the lights ages ago. Exercise is different: by the time you finally start to feel tightness around your heart, you’re probably about 25 years too late getting started.
That’s why, especially at first, it’s a good idea to create an environment around you that constantly reminds you of an active lifestyle and prompts you to go and work out. Here are a few tricks, but you’ll need to try them out and find the ones that work for you.
Take your gym bag to work.
If you’re planning to work out after work, bring a bag with all your workout gear. Having it with you at work will serve as a reminder that your Pilates class starts at 17:30 and it’s time to stop sending emails.
You really don’t always feel motivated to work out. I admit that sometimes I’m absolutely exhausted. I still go, and then it turns out that once I’m training,
I’m not actually that tired. My other trick is that I’m not allowed to lie down when I get home. I put my workout clothes on straight away and go. Don’t think—just go!
Kaire Leibak
former elite athlete
Put your running shoes on the mat by the door before you leave for work.
Ideally, put them inside the door—you don’t want one of your flatmate’s random visitors to “go for a run” in them while you’re away. When you get home from work and trip over your running shoes, you’ll immediately remember that you were supposed to go running. Keep Kaire Leibak’s tip in mind too: don’t lie down or start eating; go straight out. Kaire has become a committed recreational runner lately, so she knows what she’s talking about.
Put a picture of Arnold Schwarzenegger on your fridge
Arnold came to mind because back in my high-school days, when I used to train at the gym in the former EPA sports hall, pictures of his biceps covered every wall. Looking at them helped extend quite a few sets by a couple of reps.
Of course, you can choose for yourself whose picture or what kind of message motivates you, as well as where it will catch your eye at the best and most useful moment.
Create a workout corner at home
Set out a mat and some dumbbells somewhere at home where you’ll see them often. If you’ve dedicated 4 m2 of valuable space in your home to a workout corner, it would be an absolute sin if the only time each week you touched that equipment was while dusting your home.
Create the right atmosphere at the office too
Incidentally, you could just as easily have a gym corner at work. A few weeks ago, while out running, I listened to an episode of the podcast “Ekspordime” featuring marketing guru Peep Laja. He has created a proper workout corner in his office, complete with a barbell and weight plates. Can you imagine having a setup like that in an open-plan office? Many people might not use it, but one thing is certain: every time the barbell catches your eye, it will also remind you of your New Year’s resolution to work hard in training this year.
In 2020, I logged around 530 hours of training—it’s hard to believe I’ll do more next year. My idea and motto are simple: movement has to become a habit. The hardest part of the journey is getting from the sofa to the front door; after that, it gets easier. My goals for this year are to complete Ironman 70.3 in Warsaw and Tallinn and to get my marathon time under 4 hours in the spring.
Robert Kitt
Salv Technologies OÜ, former CEO of Swedbank’s Estonian branch
This was the fourth chapter of Marti Soosaar’s e-book "A New Beginning". You can read the previous chapters on our blog, while the complete e-book is available to download HERE.
