This year we have shared a lot of insight into the psychology of physical activity. Over December we are taking a break from producing brand new content, but we will be reminding you of some of the key takeaways from previous newsletters…
1. Thinking of bailing on your exercise plans?
If you have plans to exercise but those thoughts of “I can’t be bothered” start to creep in it’s worth remembering this. When it comes to “motivating” yourself to exercise, an important factor is something psychologists call “self-efficacy”. Self-efficacy means your confidence in your ability to take the necessary steps towards achieving something. The higher your self-efficacy, the more likely you are to want to exercise but also actually go ahead and do the exercise. When you have a task coming up that involves considerable effort (like exercise), we tend to look at it as one big task rather than a series of little steps. This can make it seem more daunting - you are essentially imagining doing everything that the session will require of you at once. This therefore makes it seem more effortful and challenging, which reduces your self-efficacy. However, if you shrink the size of the task and break it down into bite-size pieces, it doesn’t seem quite so daunting. You may doubt your ability to motivate yourself to get your workout done, but that doesn’t matter at this point. All that matters is step one. Read more.
2. Exercising when you don’t feel your best
We are built to experience a whole spectrum of emotions and feelings - from energetic to fatigued, from happy to sad, and from calm to stressed. Of course we would prefer to feel happy and confident, and it certainly feels easier to exercise under those conditions. However, feeling good is not a daily given. In fact, we can go through phases of life where those positive feelings seem very much in the distance. Instead, we might find ourselves feeling fed up, apathetic, distracted or anxious. Given this realisation, it is therefore important to meet yourself where you’re at. That means acknowledging where you are mentally and physically on this particular day, and making realistic decisions around exercise based on that information. Ask yourself:
What would you like to get out of your workout, given how you feel?
How do you want to feel doing it, given how you feel?
3. Experiencing difficult emotions about exercise
Sometimes difficult emotions can come up and rive you away from your exercise goals. For example, “my lack of progress is frustrating there’s no point in trying”. Difficult emotions are part of the human experience but know that you don’t need to blindly follow them and let them drive your behaviour. Listen to your emotions, don’t avoid them or buy into them. For example, if you feel frustrated with your progress and want to give up, then be curious and ask yourself “what is this telling me about what I value?” Does it mean you value your health and you are frustrated because you are finding the changes you are trying to make hard? And if so, what actions could you take to live that value. Read more.
Chloe & Hannah
The Psychology of Movement
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