5 tips stay on track this winter

Is the cold weather making you a sofa sloth? Read these 5 tips stay on track this winter from PT Dan Lawrence to stay motivated.

Change your environment

If you no longer look forward to hitting the gym, the likelihood of you leaving your house on a cold winter’s morning or frosty evening is pretty low, so you need a change of workout environment – whether that’s trying a new gym, heading to classes, running outdoors or working out in your living room.

Plan your training days wisely

Don’t leave anything to chance. You have a diary for everything else, so let’s make the gym a priority. Pencil it in your diary and then plan other things around it.

Try classes

Attending a class will help boost your motivation. You’ll be instructed through the session by a professional and have other people there who may be in a similar position to yourself. I’d recommend switching the class every four weeks for a number of reasons: first to prevent your body getting used to it, but also to prevent boredom.

Jazz things up

I use this tip regularly with my clients!  Purchase three new, up-tempo music albums and say to yourself you’re only allowed to listen to them when you’re at the gym. As according to a study by Brunel University, music can reduce your rate of perceived effort by 12 per cent and improve your endurance by 15 per cent. Then purchase some new training gear too, as this can have a similar positive effect on making want to go to the gym. If you look good, you’ll feel good.

Choose your nights out wisely 

Try and limit nights out in October and November, knowing there will be something going on most weekends in December. Even in December, just because it’s deemed ‘party season’, you still have a choice. My ‘realistic’ advice would be to choose a maximum of four nights out where you are drinking alcohol in December. That should be a very practical target if you value your goals and want to start the new year on the front foot – instead of playing catch up for an overindulgent December. As a guide: a pint of beer packs between 150 and 250 calories depending on the brand, whereas a bottle of red wine has around 650 calories and white has around 605 calories.  A typical single vodka, lime and soda will contain around 70 to 80 calories.

Follow Dan on Instagram @perform365