While having a Tempo at your home affords you the convenience to workout with a personal trainer whenever you’d like, we know the reality of life is that you may not always be near your Tempo. Whether you’re on vacation, renovating your home, or visiting friends and family (but don’t forget — you can refer your friends for getting a Tempo Studio or Move if you’re already a Tempo member), it can be tough to continue training if your typical exercise routine is disrupted.
And even if you do have a Tempo home gym, it can be difficult (maybe even more so) to muster up the mental strength to work on getting physically stronger. We get it — your job can be exhausting, personal obligations can suck up time, and prioritizing yourself can be hard to do.
So whether you’re enjoying holidays away from your home gym or finding it hard to train at home, we’ll explore some key tips to keep yourself motivated and on track for your fitness goals.
Set Realistic Goals
It’s important to set a goal and benchmark the progress that you’re making.
The hard part about setting a goal can be blocking out the noise that can influence you to make a goal that may not best serve you or be unrealistic. And there are a lot of sources of influence that can detract from making your goals your own. It can be seeing the types of bodies that are displayed in popular media, It can be friends and families who desire a specific outcome for you, or it can simply be not knowing exactly what you want.
Fitness isn’t a cookie cutter journey, so think long and hard about what it is you want from the hard work you’re putting in. Is it to get stronger? Put on muscle mass? Focus on stretching and meditation? Shed excess fat and gain definition? Or is it to do something like run a marathon, improve your football game, or to be a better tennis player?
Once you’ve defined your goal, think about goals that are attainable and realistic. While it’s great to dream big, you also don’t want to set yourself up for disappointment by giving yourself goals that feel too lofty.
Dr. Joel French, Tempo’s Head of Exercise Science recommends setting achievable goals that can be scaled slowly into bigger ones — for instance, setting a goal to workout three days per week over the course of a month and then upping that number to four days per week the next month.
Remember, your goals should be there to motivate you and be something you work towards rather than something that looms over you. Remind yourself that you’re exercising not for the sake of exercising but for something more.
“Remind yourself why exercise is important to you. For me it is health and longevity.” Dr. French said. “Three tough classes will likely extend my life by a decade and reduce my cancer risk — I have a family history — by about 50%. What is your ‘why’?”
Give Yourself an Enticing Reward
You’ll even hear our very own Tempo coaches say it — working out and exercise isn’t always fun or something we always want to do, and if you’re reading this, you’ve probably felt the same way.
One way to self-motivate is to give yourself a reward for achieving something, whether it’s one of your goals or simply showing up for your home workout when you really didn’t want to. Treat yourself kindly, and treat yourself when you’ve done something you should be proud of.
Rewards will look different for everyone, but make it something that feels enticing. Maybe you’ll give yourself the freedom to indulge in your favorite dessert, make a purchase you’ve been holding off on, or maybe a trip to really celebrate your milestones. Yes, there’s a lot of hard work and sweat that goes into anyone’s fitness journey, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be fun, too.
Identify What’s Holding You Back
Just getting started can be one of the hardest things when it comes to starting and sticking to a fitness routine. And while we may not always notice it, there may be things woven into your daily life that stop you from taking that first step or keeping you on track. If you find yourself in this situation, take stock of what may be holding you back and hindering your progress.
Is it your home gym (or maybe lack thereof)? Then think of how you can make your home gym set-up feel like a place you want to go to.
“Make your workout area as engaging as possible. You should look forward to spending time there. Set-up in front of a window with a view, decorate the room to make it inviting or motivational, et cetera.” Dr. French suggested.
Work tends to get in the way? We’ve definitely all been there. Try blocking off your calendar just for you and your workout — no meetings, no calls, no emails. It can be a hard adjustment, but if you don’t find time for yourself, others won’t do it for you.
Do you find yourself getting bored with your routine? Think of a different way to train to keep things interesting. For Tempo athletes, that could mean swapping some of your HIIT classes with yoga or focusing on mobility more instead of strength training. Try to be flexible and give yourself a chance to experiment, because what works one day might not work for you the next.
Find a Fitness Support System
Sometimes, you may find that it may not be you who is holding back your own progress but people in your life. Think about who may be in your life that don’t show their full support of your fitness journey, or who may be a bad influence, or whose behavior may be affecting your emotional health.
Make sure to surround yourself with loved ones who will support you, push you, and cheer you on. Tempo athletes have access to thousands of fellow Tempo members via our Official Tempo Facebook Group, where members can share advice, encourage one another, and ask questions in a safe space.
Consider looking for online or in-person support groups or clubs that align with your fitness interests and goals to help you stay the course.
Sign a Contract with Yourself
Make your health and fitness a non-negotiable. Remember asking yourself about your goal, about your why? Make it a physical daily reminder, a ritual that always cues you to remember to train and eventually turn it into a habit.
“Write your ‘why’ down on a post-it, use a reminder in your phone, put it on a poster in your workout area, do whatever works for you,” Dr. French recommends.
While there are many tips and tools to stay on track when it comes to fitness, you alone are accountable for your own success.
Workout at Home with Tempo
Tempo makes training at home easy. Whether you’re working out with our flagship Tempo Studio or the more compact Tempo Move, you’ll have access to personal training, real-time form feedback, and competition grade equipment without having to leave your home. As Tempo learns more about your goals and gets to know you better, it will also recommend new ways to challenge you, hold you accountable, and motivate you to hit your goals, whatever they may be.
And if you ever do leave home, the Tempo app and the Tempo Core (the device that bridges your phone with your television or monitor and brings Tempo’s 3D Vision to life) makes working out on the road easier than ever.
Learn more about how the Tempo will transform your home workout experience.
