Saturday, April 20Royal Holloway's offical student publication, est. 1986

Staying Fit in February

January is like a 31-day long hangover of the previous year. Everybody is on a comedown from Christmas but has made it their resolution that this year is the year to get fit. This means that, for this month at least, the gym is an overcrowded hangout of people forcing themselves to be motivated, fighting the masses to get their turn on the equipment. Fortunately for regulars, this soon fizzles out by mid-January when the cold sets in and the summer body is put on hold because summer seems a long, long, long way away. This shouldn’t be the case. Being healthy and fit doesn’t happen over-night and takes time and motivation. And I’m here to motivate you with my 5 fitness top tips!

  1. Firstly, think about why you started your fitness journey, whether it was to lose weight or become healthier. Remember that everyone’s goals are different so you should never compare your progress to anyone else’s. You need to do what works for you and makes YOU happy! Set small achievable goals which you can SMASH and spark a continuous chain of motivation.
  2. Keep a journal and write little motivational quotes and reminders for yourself to then look back at when you’re feeling lacklustre. Use this to also track your progress so you have evidence of how far you’ve come!
  3. Sign on to classes or go to the gym with a friend! Workout out with a partner will help you push yourself, as well being more fun! It will also help you force yourself to get up and go if you have pre-made plans instead of staying in bed ‘because I’ll just go tomorrow’. Trust me, this procrastination is all too familiar.
  4. Buy new workout clothes – this is a sure way of motivating myself to get back in the gym if I hit a lazy rut because if you look good you will feel good too!
  5. Think about the future. Fitness is all about improvement and just think about how future you will thank January you when you can look back months from now and see how far you’ve come. Change won’t happen overnight so don’t be disheartened at first because if you stick at it you WILL become a better version of you.

These 5 tips are small steps you can take to becoming more motivated to live that fit and healthy lifestyle. So what are you waiting for? Get active, get sweaty and be rewarded!