Motivation and habits·14 questions

How to work out when you are feeling lazy?

Answer

Everyone has faced a situation at least once in their life when their motivation drops to zero, and the thought of upcoming physical exertion causes only irritation. At such moments, it is important to understand that laziness is an absolutely normal protective reaction of the body to fatigue or stress, but you must not let it control your lifestyle and health.

The first step to overcoming laziness is to use proven psychological and organizational techniques that help trick the brain and take the first step toward activity without unnecessary resistance.

Here are several effective ways to force yourself to work out when you really don't feel like it:

Use the 10-minute rule: agree with yourself to work out for just ten minutes, and if the desire doesn't appear, allow yourself to finish the workout. Most of the time, the hardest part is just starting, and once you get into it, you end up doing the whole routine.
Prepare your sportswear and equipment in advance the night before, so you don't spend willpower resources in the morning or after work on gathering things and looking for what you need.
Remember that a light workout is always better than complete inaction: if you don't have the energy for a full session, do at least a basic warm-up or a shortened set of exercises.
Turn on high-tempo, energetic music that can quickly raise your dopamine levels and put your nervous system in a working mood.
Recall your main goals and the emotions you experience after finishing a workout when you are proud of yourself and feel a surge of energy.

By applying these simple recommendations together, you will be able to gradually train yourself to be regular and stop depending on fleeting mood swings or a temporary lack of inspiration.

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