A Positive Mindset Towards Exercise

Here are 3 tips to reframe exercise positively! #1. Make the goal of each workout to feel good by the time you finish the workout. I know many people are taught that exercise must be hard to be effective. They think “I have to sweat a lot and feel my muscles burn every time I exercise. And if I don’t, I didn’t work hard enough”. There is a time and place to train hard. But especially for people who are struggling to establish a consistent exercise routine because they feel it is too physically demanding, this may be an unhelpful and harmful mindset. Go into each workout with the goal of feeling better by the end of it, you will more appropriately self-regulate the intensity of the workout. #2. Focus on what you can do, not what you can’t. Everyone, and I mean everyone, has physical limitations. Do not dwell on being unable to do a pull up, pushup, lift a certain amount of weight, or walk a certain distance. Instead, celebrate what movements you can do, the weight you can lift, the movement patterns you feel comfortable and strong in performing! #3. Use Positive Self-Talk during and after your workout. Before you do perform an exercise, tell yourself “I can do this, and I will do it well.” And after you complete the exercise tell yourself “Good job! I’m proud of you”. Practicing a positive inner-voice during exercise is an effective form of motivation that helps to reinforce not only the behavior of exercise, but the reframing of exercise in a positive light.