better
FITNESS
mindset makeover
The first step towards changingyour body is changingyour mind.
by LINDA MELONE
ow many Monday
mornings have you
started a new
workout routine, only
to find yourself
hitting the snooze button by Friday? If
the answer is ‘too many,’ we’re right
there with you, along with million
others. The truth is, the only thing
tougher than starting an exercise
programme is sticking with it. Fact:
most new exercisers quit within three
to six months, according to the
American College of Sports Medicine.
One reason so many people drop out
is they’re tlying to do too much before
they’re psychologically prepared, says
Shane Murphy, PhD, Associate
Professor of Psychology at Western
Connecticut State University, US, and
author of
The Sports Psychology
Handbook.
What people don’t realize is
that getting into healthful habits
involves more than going for a run
tonight or popping in an exercise DVD
before work in the morning. According
to Murphy, deciding to make a change
in your life starts a multistage
psychological chain of events. “It’s
hard to jump from an early stage of
change to a later stage before you’re
ready,” Murphy says.
And even if you are ready,
progressing is still a challenge. Expect
to bounce back and forth between the
stages, says Elizabeth Lombardo, PhD,
psychologist and author of
A Happy
You: Your Ultimate Prescription for
Happiness.
“A ‘relapse’ back to an
earlier stage doesn’t mean you failed,”
Lombardo says. “It’s simply data to
help you figure out what you
can
do to
succeed.” Before making a change,
here’s how to overcome the most
common mental roadblocks.
“A 'relapse7
back to an
earlier stage doesn't
mean vou railed.”
j
ELIZABETH LOMBARDO,
author of A
Happy You: Your Ultimate
Prescription for Happiness
r
— ii*L
