When we think about our fitness, it’s important to see it for what it truly is — a lifelong journey. And like any journey, it’s gonna feature some bumps in the road, a fair amount of peaks and valleys, the odd tunnel and bridge, and every now and again — giant evergreens laying across seven lanes of traffic, and hours of gridlock. What we’re saying is that nobody just arrives at fit, we have to work at it, every day of our lives, and some days are more challenging than others. 

It’s important to remember this when thinking about our own fitness, but even more so when we’re thinking about others, specifically when our friends and loved ones have fallen off the fitness wagon.

When looking for your own workout motivation, you could pull all sorts of techniques to try and rev you up (because you’re YOU, and YOU can get away with anything YOU are comfortable with). Wanna wake yourself up at 4:30am and pour some ice down your back while listening to opera on full blast? Go for it! The problem is, when those around us seem to be lacking in fit-inspo, we can’t impose all of that same stuff on them, can we? Nah, when you’re trying to help your friends and family get that eye of the tiger, you’ll have to approach it much more carefully.

So with that said, here are some tips to help those around you rediscover their lost motivation to work out. 

First, Let’s Talk About YOU

Before we dive right into our list, it’s important to remember one simple fact — if someone you love truly does not want to get fit, you cannot change their mind. Nothing you say or do can give them the will to make a lasting change in their lives – they have to want it themselves. So before you start bombarding them with Rocky 3 montage videos, remove all your preconceived expectations right now. The best you can do for them is show them a carrot, not force-feed it to them.

Have a Talk, and Really Listen

The first step in helping people find their workout motivation is to gauge where they’re at in their own minds, and that means having a little chat. And by little, we mean LITTLE (yes we see the irony in capitalizing the word little, but stay with us). You’ll want to start by casually checking in with them on how they’re doing with their fitness routines. If you think it could be a sore subject, maybe don’t bring it up. But if it happens to enter into the conversation naturally, make sure they know that you are a source of support for whatever they need, however they need it. Be sure to ask questions, listen to their struggles, and don’t immediately try and fix them — nobody likes that. Just give them some space to express what they’re feeling, and then offer to help. 

Remove All Sources of Pressure

Anyone struggling with their fitness is bound to be feeling all sorts of internal pressure and anxiety. The combo-pack of failure and shame have a tendency to feed off of one another, leading to a nasty downward spiral. So instead of contributing to that, pump their self-blaming brakes by taking away all pressure from them. You can do that by empathizing with them, let them know of a time when you’ve struggled, how things eventually got better, as well as what you did to make things better. After all, low points only exist to show us which way is up.

Focus on the Side Effects of Exercise 

At one point or another, every last one of us has had to deal with body image issues, which isn’t fun. To take a person’s mind off of all that, change the subject entirely. Talk to them about how they can benefit from having a regular fitness regimen, apart from the superficial. I mean, it’s not like there’s a shortage of positive exercise benefits – here are just a few for you to choose from: 

• Reduced anxiety
• Better sleep
• Improved brain function
• Less stress
• Higher confidence
• More flexibility
• Less injuries
• Happy chemicals
• Increased productivity
• Higher creativity
• Improved memory
• Boosting brain power
• Easier to relax
• Less susceptibility to addiction

Also, make sure to use phrases like ‘healthy and in shape’ rather than ‘lose weight’.

Offer Your Services as a Workout Buddy

Getting in those workouts is always easier when we have an exercise partner to hold us accountable. So let them know you’re happy to be their alarm clock, their calendar, their conscience — all rolled into one. If you can make your workouts fun, you can make them last. And it’s not only a benefit to them. When you commit to help them out, you’ll find it also helps boost your own workout motivation.

Be a Role Model to Them

One of the strongest ways to help your friends or family members rediscover their exercise motivation is simply to keep working at your own fitness goals. There’s nothing quite as inspiring as seeing someone close to you improve themselves, overcome obstacles, and succeed. Because in the end, positivity has a tendency to rub off on people – hope is always contagious.

Now, once you’ve gotten your compadre back on the training train, set them up with a 7-Day Free Trial with Studio SWEAT onDemand. We offer a huge library of onDemand workouts that can be done on any device, anytime. Featuring workouts like indoor cycling (using any bike you like), HIIT, TRX, Bootcamp, Tabata, Yoga, Pilates, Barre, and a whole lot more, they’ll always find a workout (or 50) that’ll pique their interest. It’s no wonder we were named “Best Fitness App for Variety”. And the best part, we’ve got a worldwide community of members, the Komrades, who are passionate, inspired, and always ready to lend a hand. Sign them up, and let’s get moving. Next stop, fit-town!