Sometimes, despite having a home gym at your disposal, finding the motivation to work out can be a struggle. You may notice yourself coming up with excuses or getting distracted by other tasks.
It's an interesting phenomenon that many of us can relate to, regardless of whether we work out at home or elsewhere. In this article, we will explore several tips and tricks to help you stay motivated and inspired to work out in your home gym. Even if you prefer working out in a traditional gym or studio, you will find valuable insights here to maintain your motivation for exercising in general.
Why You Should Work Out at Home vs. a Gym
If you haven't made the switch to in-home training yet, it's worth considering the significant benefits it offers. Not only can you save money and time, but you may also feel safer by avoiding crowded workout spaces. However, the most valuable aspect of having an at-home gym is the freedom it provides to train on your own schedule. Eliminating the need to commute to a gym or adhere to class schedules and equipment availability can make fitting workouts into your busy life much easier.
Sounding good, right?
However, transitioning to in-home training can present its own set of challenges, especially if it's a new experience for you. To help you overcome these challenges and maintain your motivation, we've put together a guide that will support you in establishing a consistent and fulfilling workout routine at home. By following these tips, you can fully enjoy the benefits of in-home training.
Tips to Keep Yourself Motivated
Working from home has blurred the lines between personal and professional for many people. It can be challenging to view your workspace as your workout space if you don’t have the drive to trade your keyboard for your free weights.
Here are a few tips on how to stay motivated to work out:
1. Identify Your Deep “Why”
Why do you work out in the first place? Why do you care about your health? Why are you willing to dedicate time to exercise?
If your reason is to lose 10 pounds, ask yourself why that matters. There likely is a deeper reason weight loss is essential to you — your deep “why.”
I recommend reminding yourself of this deep “why” every time you find yourself making excuses about why you’re going to skip a workout.
2. Decide Which Days You’ll Take Off From Training
When do you commonly have personal plans? Are there days you tend to work overtime? Knowing which days you want off will help you identify the days you’ll build your training schedule around.
3. Pick the Right Time of Day
Figure out what time of day you like to work out and when your energy is at a peak. If you wake up as soon as you start to move, training in the morning is perfect for you. It’s also a great way to limit distractions during your workout.
Maybe you love to use your lunch break to get a break from leaning over your keyboard. There’s nothing like a workout to break up the workday and get you pumped for those afternoon video calls.
Or, are you the type that likes to exercise at night to burn off that extra energy to ensure a good night’s sleep? Whatever it is, identify what time works best for you and stick with it.
4. Schedule It!
No matter what, stick to your schedule. If you find yourself being too sore or exhausted, I recommend still keeping that time as your sacred YOU time. Even if your original hard training session isn’t going to happen, make it your best mobility session or work on some active recovery so that you’re still moving your body. A consistent schedule will keep up your workout habit and accountability.
How To Stay On Track
Another way to keep yourself going is to set up your home gym in an appealing way for you. You don’t need to replicate a commercial gym or buy giant workout machines. You just need the setup that’ll help you achieve your deep “why.”
1. Create a Dedicated Workout Space
I recommend identifying and organizing an area that is your workout space. It’s ok if it’s a corner of your living room or half of your garage.
What matters is that this is the space you will go to when you’re ready to train. All of your home workouts will happen here. It may sound silly, but getting up and going to that dedicated space will elicit the same feeling as getting in your car and going to the gym.
2. Pick Out Your Equipment
Decide what equipment is right for your space and why. Whether your training modality is cardio, functional fitness, high-intensity resistance training, or Tabata, we have several past articles to help you decide what to put in your home gym.
3. Go In With a Progressive Plan
I recommend either hiring a coach or following a training program if you’d rather go at your own pace but have a plan built out.
If you're looking for an excellent app to get started with your home workouts, the TRX Training Club app is full of workouts that target every muscle group. If you enjoy the pod training system, you'll probably find that the beginner, intermediate, and advanced workouts on the app are designed to keep you engaged and progress in your skills.
4. Track Your Progress
Progress means different things to different people — it all goes back to your deep “why.”
I recommended pairing your tracking with your goal. If you want to keep a solid routine, track your progress by adding gold stars on your calendar on the days you exercised. If you're going for 6-pack abs, follow the change to your body composition. If you want to build strength, track the increase in your reps/weights, etc.
Pairing your tracking with your goals will allow you to see the change as you reinforce your habits!
5. Find an Accountability Partner
An accountability partner could be a friend you train with in person or hop on a video call with when you're ready to work out. If you can't find a friend or family member to join your sweat session, join a community group that's working toward achieving similar goals. Even setting a daily alarm on your phone can assist in building accountability to train.
Tips to Reduce Distraction During Your At-Home Workout
It can be easy to get distracted when you're training in-home. Whether you're cooking dinner simultaneously, the TV is going in the background, or a delivery just got dropped off at your front door, it's vital to allow yourself to stay in the zone for your workout.
1. Try the Real-Time YBell Training Pods
If you're following a workout program, the real-time videos you follow along with significantly reduce the amount of distraction.
2. Try EMOMs
Setting up your workout as an EMOM (every minute on the minute) requires intense focus because you’re following the clock.
For example, choose five different exercises for your workout and start a timer. At 0 seconds, perform 10 reps of the first exercise, then rest until the end of the first minute. At minute 1, start performing 10 reps of the next exercise, then rest until minute 2. The number of reps will depend on the exercise and your skill level, but the point is to start a new one every minute, on the minute.
3. Try a Countdown Timer
Set a countdown timer for your workout. If you know your training will take you 30 minutes, put a timer on, turn on some tunes, and get to work. Until that timer goes off, you will only focus on your workout and won’t do any other things around the home.
As with building any habit, you need to find the things that work for you. Try some of these tips and tricks. Adjust to what works best for you. If you find yourself “failing,” adjust again and keep going. Habits are unique to you.
I hope you enjoyed these workout motivation tips and find the right groove to build a consistent routine for working out in your home gym!
