Using Rewards and Incentives to Boost Workout Motivation: A Fitness Game-Changer

Motivation is the engine driving our fitness endeavors, but sometimes, even the most dedicated individuals can experience a slump in enthusiasm. That’s where rewards and incentives come in, acting as potent catalysts to reignite your workout motivation. In this blog, we will delve into the psychology behind utilizing rewards and incentives in your fitness journey, understanding how they can revitalize your approach and elevate your achievements.

Understanding the Psychology of Rewards

1. Dopamine and Pleasure Principle

Rewards trigger the release of dopamine, a neurotransmitter associated with pleasure and reward. When you receive a reward or experience a pleasurable event, your brain releases dopamine, reinforcing the behavior that led to the reward. By associating rewards with your workouts, you create a positive feedback loop, making exercise more enjoyable and motivating. 

2. Positive Reinforcement and Habit Formation

Rewards function as positive reinforcement, strengthening the connection between an action (like exercising) and a positive outcome (receiving a reward). Over time, this reinforcement solidifies the habit, making it more likely that you'll continue exercising consistently. Incentives provide that extra push needed to turn exercise into a regular part of your routine.

Types of Rewards and Incentives

1. Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic Rewards

Intrinsic rewards come from within; they are the internal satisfaction derived from accomplishing a task. Extrinsic rewards, on the other hand, are external motivators like prizes or recognition. Both types can be powerful motivators.

2. Immediate vs. Delayed Rewards 

Immediate rewards are those you experience right after completing a workout, like the satisfaction of finishing a challenging routine. Delayed rewards are those you plan to receive in the future, such as treating yourself to a new workout outfit after reaching a specific fitness milestone. Balancing immediate and delayed rewards keeps your motivation consistent over time.

Effective Use of Rewards and Incentives

1. Personalize Your Rewards

What motivates one person might not work for another. Personalize your rewards based on what excites you. It could be anything from a cheat meal at your favorite restaurant to a relaxing massage. Tailoring your rewards to your preferences ensures they hold significant value, enhancing their motivational impact.

2. Set Clear Milestones 

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Establish specific, achievable milestones that lead to your larger fitness goal. For example, if your goal is to lose 20 pounds, set smaller milestones for every 5-pound loss. Rewarding yourself for reaching these milestones makes the overall goal seem more attainable and keeps you motivated throughout the journey.

3. Use Social Accountability

Incorporate social accountability into your rewards system. Share your goals with friends or join online fitness communities where you can celebrate your achievements together. Knowing that others are aware of your progress adds a layer of accountability, making your rewards even more satisfying.

4. Be Consistent with Rewards

Consistency is key in reinforcing positive behavior. Set up a consistent reward system where you receive incentives for completing your workouts or reaching specific goals. Regular reinforcement strengthens the connection between your efforts and the rewards, making your motivation more sustainable.

Maximizing Your Fitness Potential

Rewards and incentives are not just indulgences; they are strategic tools to boost your workout motivation and drive lasting change. By understanding the psychological mechanisms at play and tailoring your rewards to your preferences, you can turn your fitness journey into an exciting and rewarding adventure. So, whether you’re aiming to run a marathon, master a challenging yoga pose, or simply lead a healthier lifestyle, consider integrating rewards and incentives into your fitness strategy. Celebrate your achievements, no matter how small, and acknowledge your progress along the way. Embrace the power of rewards and incentives, and watch how they transform your workout motivation, propelling you toward your fitness goals with renewed vigor and enthusiasm.

Setting SMART Fitness Goals and Achieving Them: Empowering Your Fitness Journey

 Setting fitness goals isn’t just about sweating it out; it’s a strategic process that can define your success. In the dynamic landscape of fitness trends, aligning your objectives with SMART criteria ensures you're not just chasing dreams but creating a tangible, achievable plan. In this blog, we delve into the power of setting SMART fitness goals to empower your fitness journey.

Defining SMART Fitness Goals

1. Specific: Precision in Purpose

Specificity gives your fitness goals clarity. Replace vague objectives like "get fit" with precise targets like "complete 30 minutes of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) five days a week." Specificity enhances your visibility by resonating with focused fitness objectives.

2. Measurable: Tangible Progress Tracking

Measuring progress keeps you motivated. Incorporating quantifiable metrics such as weight loss or workout duration allows for objective tracking. Measurable goals create content relevant to online searches like "measurable fitness goals," ensuring your strategies align with trending topics.

3. Achievable: Ambition Meets Reality

Balancing ambition with achievability ensures sustainable progress. Setting realistic goals prevents burnout. Content about realistic fitness goals connects with those seeking practical, achievable fitness milestones.

4. Relevant: Goals Aligned with Passion

Relevance ensures your goals matter to you personally. Content about meaningful fitness goals connects with individuals searching for goals that resonate with their passions, enhancing your online impact.

5. Time-bound: The Power of Deadlines

Setting a timeframe instills urgency. Specific deadlines create purpose, encouraging consistent action. Incorporating terms like "time-bound fitness goals" ensures your content aligns with current online searches. 

Strategies for Achieving SMART Fitness Goals

1. Break Down Goals into Achievable Steps

Divide your SMART goals into smaller, achievable steps. Content about fitness milestones plans ensures your content reaches those looking for structured approaches, enhancing your online visibility.

2. Craft a Detailed Fitness Plan

A well-structured plan eliminates guesswork. Specifics in your plan, like workout types and meal details, appeal to searches for "fitness plans," increasing your visibility among those seeking detailed fitness strategies.

3. Engage Professional Expertise

Collaborate with fitness professionals. Content about fitness expert guidance connects with individuals searching for professional assistance, establishing your credibility and relevance.

4. Foster Accountability

Accountability is a powerful motivator. Content about fitness buddy support resonates with those seeking supportive fitness communities, enhancing your content’s relevance. 

5. Embrace Flexibility in Fitness

Flexibility ensures adaptability. Content about adaptive fitness goals connects with those looking for dynamic fitness approaches, enhancing your relevance in the ever-changing fitness landscape. 

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Celebrating Achievements and Setting New Goals

Every achievement, no matter how small, deserves recognition. Content about fitness goal celebrations resonates with individuals seeking positive reinforcement, increasing your visibility among those celebrating fitness milestones.

As you achieve your SMART fitness goals, remember, your journey is a source of inspiration for others. By focusing on your goals and journey, you not only shape your body but also contribute positively to the fitness conversation.

Set Standards

Set standards, not goals.

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Goals are like wishes. Things that always feel just a little outside of our reach.

Goals also give you an end point. As soon as you reach your goal, what else is there to work for?

You either have to set a new goal and keep going, or you’re just going to give up completely.

I’ve been training for over 10 years and most of the time, giving up is what happens. You hit that goal in like 30 or 90 days, and you don’t know what to do with yourself as soon as it’s done. It’s like “ok I did the thing and now I’m done” mindset kicks in and before you know it, 6 months go by and you have to start all over again.

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Set standards.

Standards set the expectation. Standards determine how you’ll show up for your workout, how hard you’ll try in it, and what you’ll get out of it as a result.

Standards are also expectations you can set for every single workout before you step into that workout and can be different with every workout.

Maybe your standard is going heavier with your weights or going faster on the interval. Maybe your standard is to just show up and move today.

At the end of the day, no one can do that work except you.

Set the standard you can meet today. Raise the standard tomorrow and continue to raise it until you’ve hit your ultimate goal.

You Can Do Hard Sh!t

Have the audacity to imagine yourself doing it.

I told my class today that as soon as you say “I can’t”, your body won’t let you.

It’ll become too hard, too much, and you’ll quit.

Think about it: we are the first ones who doubt our capabilities. If you told your best friend about what you were trying to do, they would NEVER say you couldn’t do it. They would say “Hell ya girl! Get it” and be right there cheering you on.

We don’t do that for ourselves. We immediately think “nope that’s crazy” or “there’s NO way I could do that”.

Instead of automatically doubting yourself, switch your approach.

Here’s my Top 3 Tips to Executing a Hard Exercise:

1. Break it down. Most complicated and complex exercises have foundational movements that build into something more difficult. Take it back a notch and practice those foundational movements.

2. Check your form. If you’re feeling the work in the incorrect muscles, it’s going to feel harder than necessary. Listen to your body to make sure the work is in the correct muscle groups.

3. Be patient. Learning something new takes time. It takes practice. Cut yourself some slack, you’ll get there. Just keep showing up.

Get to Work

If you half ass your fitness routine, you can’t expect spectacular results. 

You can expect half assed results.

We’re not in the game of being able to attempt to “wing” our workouts and expect results. Our days are too busy and there’s too many things demanding of our time.

This doesn’t mean that every workout needs to be your best. It also doesn’t mean you have to push yourself to the point of breaking during every workout either.

It does mean that you have to consistently show up for yourself. You have to be intentional with your workouts so you know you can get the results you’re working so hard to see.

But how can you realistically fit a workout into days that are already jam packed?

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Here’s my Top 3 Tips for Crushing Your Workouts When You’re Busy AF:

1. Plan. Take time on a Sunday night to plan out your week, including when your workouts can fit into your schedule. Then book mark that time in your calendar like you would an appointment to the doctor. You won’t cancel an important appointment, so don’t cancel on yourself.

2. Be realistic. How many days a week are you working out RN? How many days do you WANT to workout? Don’t jump to your most ideal goal, make incremental changes so you can adjust to the new normal without losing your sanity.

3. Have a back up. When you do Step 1, include what workouts you WANT to do during those times. It makes transitioning into the workout faster because it takes out the thinking. And then have a back up workout in case shit hits the fan and you don’t have as much time as you intended.

Don't Forget to Warm Up

Regardless of how long you have to workout, you NEED to take part of that time to warm up.

One of my first fitness mentors did NOT believe in the power of the warm up. He thought we should be able to jump into the hard part of the workout completely cold.

I used to adhere to this line of thinking.

But then my check knees light turned on hard and I learned that for my body, warming up was a non-negotiable aspect of the workout itself.

Not only does it make the workout more effective, it also helps you prevent injury.

My go to warm up is anything involving core. 

In a class it’s a good way to get people started so people can run in late and not miss other work.

But because of the anatomy of your core, you’ll feel the work almost instantaneously which helps focus your brain into the work you’re about to do.

Not to mention the fact that your core is an integral part of the success of basically every exercise you do. 

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Here’s my fave warm up:

4 rounds

8 reps each exercise

Crunches

Weighted clam

Hip bridges

Don't Disrespect Day One

When we give less than our best, we disrespect our day one.

Regardless of where you are in your workout journey, we all have a day one. We all had a starting point.

That day 1 is HUGE. It’s the most influential day with your workouts.

It’s the day you decided was THE DAY to take action.

To do that first workout that propelled you on this whole fitness journey thing. It’s the day you decided your goals were worth your action.

Your day 1 is the day you decided YOU were worth your own effort. You decided that you were not going to let yourself fall down on your list of priorities. That what you wanted mattered just as much as all the other things in your life that matter.

When you get into your workout NOW, and you half a$$ it, you’re telling yourself that your first day doesn’t matter. That all those reasons why you decided to show up in the first place don’t matter.

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Grab the Workout Below 

4 Rounds

10 reps each exercise

Staggered deadlift

Lateral lunge

Windmill

Reframe Your Workouts

Let’s rethink how we think about working out.

I tease my clients a lot that they always act like they’re getting tortured and yet they come back ALL. THE. TIME.

Not because they necessarily love the hard work, but because they know that finish line isn’t something anyone can take from them.

Working out can’t be a punishment or something we HAVE to do. It can’t even be that check in the box on our To Do List.

It doesn’t have to be something you love either.

Maybe it’s your moment of sanity in an insane schedule, maybe it’s your moment of peace when the kiddos are pulling on every last thread of patience you have. Maybe it’s your reminder that you’re a bada$$.

Time to find that reason.

Start with the workout below!

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Tabata

Switch exercises each round

12 rounds

Swings

Bent over row

Bridge hip taps

Crunches

Don't Be Nervous

I get nervous before every training session. 

I hear that at least once a day from a client. I call it the “Tummy of Trepidation”. Even as you’re putting on your workout pants, you feel…nervous. 

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Butterflies in your tummy. You know you NEED to do it, you know you CAN do it, but…you have sweaty palms. And you need a potty.

But I feel strong AF when I’m done. And that’s why I keep coming back.

I also hear that every day.

When I started coaching, I trained out of this one spot where I would get a complaint nearly every class I taught. To be clear, the complaints weren’t about ME, they were about my programming (the class was too hard).

I took it SO personally at first, even when my management said that complaints about the classes being too hard weren’t anything she necessarily cared about. To her, that was a reflection of people not going to the class that was the best for them - but that’s a blog for another time.

I was told to NOT stop how I programmed my classes because clients would either level up or level out.

Ultimately, the clients who became my regular clients learned: 

Ya it was hard. But HELL YES are you stronger when you leave.

Kinda makes the sweaty palms worth it…

Intrinsically we know when we’re pushing ourselves and when we’re selling ourselves short. We also know that when we sell ourselves short, we don’t feel as accomplished as we do when those workouts are absolute bears.

It’s that sense of accomplishment that ultimately makes the trepidation worth it.

Crash Through the Wall

You put the wall there. 

Crash through it. 

Excuses are only limitations we put on ourselves. 

I have heard them ALL in the years I’ve been training.

In all the years I’ve had in the fitness industry, with all the things I’ve learned, I know this for a fact: there is ALWAYS a way to make fitness work. 

That being said, there’s also always an excuse that makes you think the workout won’t work for you.

There’s always a way to adjust an exercise to make it work for YOU. So you can see results while making the workout work for your body. 

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Here’s how you adjust your workouts:

• Make sure you warm up. There’s no way to know how effectively your body will respond to the hardest part of the workout if your body is cold.

• Start with foundational aspects of the exercises. When you work complex exercises or hard intervals, your chances of doing the exercises incorrectly are pretty high. Breaking the exercises down will show you what you need to adjust.

• Don’t be afraid to adjust. There’s no such thing as modifications. There is such a thing as taking a different variation of an exercise to help suit you more.