How to reboot your fitness routine and make it stick | Canada Voices

Paul Landini is a personal trainer and health educator in Kitchener, Ont.

After more than 20 years as a health-and-fitness coach, Janet Omstead had reached an impasse. She realized that no matter how many training certifications she earned or how much technical knowledge she gained, the people who needed the most help were still being left behind.

Omstead saw something missing from the way fitness is promoted to the public at large – and how that “something” was putting lives at risk.

“We’re dealing with an inactivity crisis,” she said, referencing a recent report from the World Health Organization. “There are nearly 1.8 billion people in the world who don’t do enough physical activity to keep healthy, and I have a problem with that.”

I’ve been grappling with existential demons of my own. As someone who has been working out in one way or another for more than 30 years, lately I’ve been wondering if any of this effort actually matters. Some days, it can take all my mental energy just to put on gym clothes.

This is the great challenge that inspires Omstead, me, and other fitness professionals: How do we convince individuals not only to start exercising but also make it a permanent part of their lifestyle?

The fitness industry does a decent job of getting people to take that first step, especially this time of year when “New Year, New You” promotions are on offer at every gym. Here are some of the tactics great trainers use to keep them coming back for more.

Make it fun

Omstead’s solution to this pernicious problem is simple and charmingly subversive. Contrary to the conventional notion that pursuing fitness is a necessary burden we must suffer through, she preaches a message that getting in shape can actually be a fun, lifelong experience that brings people together.

“I believe if we can reframe exercise as something that is fun and playful, people are much more likely to show up and want more of it,” she said.

This message forms the basis of Omstead’s work as the Canadian director of RED January, an international charitable organization that encourages people of all ages and abilities to start the new year by committing to daily movement goals. Rock climbing, archery, swimming and hiking are just some of the activities “REDers” have committed to, none of which fit the traditional mould of working out.

Of course, lifting weights counts, too, but the idea here is to think outside of the box. Fitness can be found anywhere, not just inside of a gym.

Make it personal

Goals matter. Having a clearly defined goal or two can give us a sense of direction. However, there’s a vital step in the goal-setting process that tends to get overlooked: In order for our goals to resonate, they need to align with our personal values.

I’ll admit that talking about goals and values has always felt like self-help mumbo jumbo – the sort of stuff charismatic con artists preach while leading seminars on manifesting dreams into reality.

But I’ve since learned that without concrete values guiding our course, we’re like a rudderless ship adrift at sea. It’s no wonder why so many find fitness to be a tedious task, as they’re using false values from slick marketing campaigns as their North Star.

Difficult as it may be to mine these dusty corners of our psyche, the rewards for the effort are very much real. If, for example, through quiet contemplation it is determined that you genuinely value health and physical autonomy, you won’t need much encouragement to hit the gym after work. The inner-drive to do so will be all but automatic.

Make it meaningful

Aesthetic goals and performance metrics can only fuel that fire inside for so long. Unless you can connect your aspirations to something greater than yourself, your motivation will fizzle out fast.

It’s not always easy finding meaning in the mundane (and let’s face it, exercise as it’s packaged by the fitness-industrial complex fits the very definition of that word). One method is to align your goals with a charity you believe in, such as running a marathon for a particular cause

But meaning can also be found closer to home. One of my most successful clients rarely misses a training session, even when he’s on vacation. His secret? He truly believes that working out makes him a better father and husband.

It doesn’t get more meaningful than that.