The Seven Best Ways to Make Exercise a Daily Habit

If you're like countless Americans who begin exercise programs only to quit a few weeks later, help is on the way. Know that the routines chosen generally aren't too tough. It's not the work that is the trouble. It's the ability to be realistic and remain committed.

We start with all the dedication and energy we can muster, but, over time, that all fades, leaving us with more skipped workouts than completed ones. Life gets in the way, things distract us, and exercise slips lower and lower on our list of priorities.

So, the million dollar question is this: how do we avoid the letdown and become a consistent fitness junkie?

Well, think about these ideas before starting up.

1. Take away the option: Under no circumstances, barring true disaster, can anything get in the way of the workout. Skipping that Friday run because you feel like you have had a good week and deserve to relax only serves to throw you off track. Make the effort every single day. Over time you'll start to crave it, to need it. When this happens, you'll know what a fit life is.

2. Set a time: Never allow yourself to say, "I'll fit the workout in somewhere today." Recipe for failure right there. It has to be scheduled like your time to get to work, your dinner time, or anything else that really matters. If you give yourself an out, you'll be inclined to take it. So don't.

3. Being tired isn't an excuse: If you're training well, you'll have those days where you just don't feel like going. These are the days that you have to go. No question about it. The secret you must realize is that you'll feel better once you start. Your body craves the action, and it will shake off that tired feeling quickly.

4. Chart everything: The physical gains won't come fast enough, that's for sure. It takes time to alter your look and feel good about what you see. In the interim, you need to taste success, so record your lifts or miles. You'll discover all the little gains you make, which keeps you motivated and coming back.

5. Create positive rewards: We all love getting rewarded, especially after working hard. But, don't make your reward a week's binge on cheesecake. Instead, think of something you have wanted, and then set a goal to work for it. A weekend away. A new jacket. Whatever. Just make it healthy.

6. Do what you love: If you hate zumba, then don't do it. Just because the class has seventy people, all with skinny legs and tight butts, doesn't mean that you have to do it. If you would rather do spin class or lift, walk in the park or swim…do what you enjoy. Happy people are content, so be happy.

7. Publicize your efforts: Keeping your exercise quiet lets you shrug off the responsibility without being accountable. Instead, tell people of your goals. This way you'll feel a sense of need when it comes to sticking with your exercise appointment each day. You don't want to disappoint those you tell when they ask, "Hey, how was the workout?"

In the end, you need to have some level of dedication to stick with something, but these tips will help keep it moving. Best of luck.