The #1 Reason Why I Kept Quitting

Sometimes, I have to admit, I’m a bit of a quitter.

I don’t really like to think of it that way, though. I prefer to call it “overly-ambitious.”

I set these lofty goals for myself – with wonderful intentions and big dreams. I visualize how smart, wealthy, strong, and happy I’m going to be.

I set off on this pre-meditated path to “success” with such high hopes, and then……dun, dun, dun……I realize that it’s a lot harder than I thought it was going to be, I loose interest, I get distracted, and before you know it, I’m back in my same ‘ol rut.

Does this ever happen to you?

Wouldn’t it be nice to set a goal for yourself and then actually stick with it?

For awhile, I was beginning to think that I would never be able to do that.

And then, it happened.

One day, my marathon-running sister came to town. We were chatting about different exercise methods, and I said to her, “You know, I’m not like you. I hate to exercise. I know that I should do it anyway, though, and I want to be healthy and fit and strong. What do you think is the least exercise that I can do and have it actually make a difference?”

She recommended this DVD series called “Focus T25.” It was designed as a workout program to give you “an hour’s worth of results in just 25 minutes.” So, you do the 25 minute workout, 5 days a week, and then a stretch workout on Saturday. Sundays you take off.

I have to admit, that I was instantly intrigued. Not intrigued enough to run out and buy it that minute. It actually took me six months to muster up enough motivation to even begin. I told you I hated to exercise, right?

Finally, the moment arrived. Even though working out 5 days a week sounded like a little too much for me, I thought I’d give it a try. I have to say, that I was shocked. By the end of the first workout….I thought I was going to die! I remember just collapsing on the coach after and feeling like I was having some sort of weird out-of-body experience, because I was so wiped out and drained.

What shocked me even more, though was how much I loved it! Whew – yay! I just loved that feeling of giving it my all and worked so hard until the sweat poured from my head. It felt great! Great in a slightly painful, exhausting way, but still great. It actually felt like it was doing something – improving my body – making me stronger and healthier. And it didn’t take me forever, like all the other workout plans I’d tried.

Sometimes I have a little friend (or two) that likes to join my workout. : )

I decided to stick with it.

The next few days, I was very faithful. I kept on track. I did my workout every day for 5 whole days in a row! What?! Honestly, as much as I hate to admit that, that had never happened before.

Ok, maybe I was on to something here.

I decided to make myself a deal. I told myself, “Ok, Laur, if you can keep up with this new workout routine for two whole weeks, without missing a day, you can go out and buy yourself a little prize.” (Earlier that day, I had seen a Bubblegum candle at Target that I really wanted. It may sound like something little and insignificant, but it was good to have a physical reward in mind that I could work towards).

Now, you have to remember, at this point, I had never ever ever stuck with an exercise program in my entire life. Everything I had started, I had quit. I would go through phases where I would feel all ambitious, and buy a gym membership, or order some workout DVDs. I would be really good (and by “really good,” I mean, exercising about twice a week) for a couple of months maybe, and then I would just get so sick of it that, yes, I would quit. I would take months (sometimes years) off, and not do any “official” exercise at all.

So, the idea of doing this high-intensity, sweat-soaking, body-aching exercise every day for two weeks kinda freaked me out a little. I have to admit that I hesitated for a minute before committing to myself to do the two weeks. I wasn’t sure I could handle it.

But, once I finally made the commitment, that was it.

I’m happy to report that I completed my first goal of two weeks straight without missing a workout! I couldn’t even believe it! Now, two weeks may not sound like much to you, but let me tell you, there were many times when I wanted to give up. There were many excuses running through my head.

Commonly reoccurring excuse: "The Family Room is too messy." You see I needed to a clear a spot between all the legos.

Another excuse: "The kids will interrupt me." Yes they will, but try to give them something to do. This one loves working on his little "projects" next to me while I workout.

But, something strange happened to me after the two weeks. Suddenly, the excuses got less and less, the motivation got more and more, and before I knew it, I had gone four and a half months without missing a single workout! What?! It seemed like it became a bit of a game for me – to see how long I could keep it up (It was Christmas that finally did me in. I told myself that I was only going to take Christmas Day off, but I ended up taking Christmas Eve, Christmas, and the day after Christmas off. How was I supposed to work out when my family room looked like a Lego store had exploded in it?)

I was very intrigued as to why I suddenly had this motivation to work out all the time – something I had never had before. As I thought about it, I realized the biggest reason as to why this was working for me. Here is it - are you ready? I’m about to tell you when of the biggest “aha” moments that I’ve ever had, and since discovering this technique, I’ve been able to apply it to my life in all sorts of different situations.

The #1 Technique for sticking with your goals is…………

MAKE IT A HABIT

That’s it.

Sounds simple, right? Where you hoping for something a little more magical sounding?

The thing is, though, that more often than not, the simplest answer is the best answer.

The reason I was able to keep up with my exercise routine is that it became a habit for me. It was something that I did EVERY SINGLE DAY (except for Sunday, but that’s another post in and of itself).

Did you catch those three important words? EVERY SINGLE DAY.

If you want to stick with your goals, you need to be doing something every single day. Working out two-three times a week was so easy to slack off on, because it was so sporadic. I could come up with excuses so easily and tell myself that I would make up my exercise on another day. But, when you are exercising every day, there’s no room for excuses. You either do it or you don’t. You succeed or you fail. And once you succeed enough times in a row, your body becomes used to it, and you start doing it without even thinking about it. It just becomes part of your life, your routine.

And now, it’s been over a year since I began T25, and I’m still loving it! Yes, there are days when I feel tired and just don’t feel like working out, but by now, I’ve not only been working out my body’s muscles, but also my “habit-creating” muscles, and they win (almost) every time.

So, whatever your goal is – start now, and make a promise to yourself to work on it every single day. It doesn’t have to take a long time each day, but it does need to be every day.

In fact, I discovered a new workout routine a couple of weeks ago that’s only 10 minutes a day. I thought I’d try it out, switch things up a little. At first I thought, “Oh no! I’m backtracking! I don’t want to work out less!” But, then I realized that it would be good for my body to try some new exercises – give it some variety.

It’s called: “Total Transformation Training,” and it’s amazing!!! My muscles feel like they get a great workout, my heart feels like it gets a great workout, and it’s been so good to try something new. I still love my T25, so I’ve mixed the two together. I do T25 Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Total Transformation Training on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. It’s been a perfect blend.

So, everyone has at least 10 minutes a day, right? Find a fitness routine that you love – whether one of these videos, going to the gym, jogging outside, whatever it is, but do SOMETHING and do it EVERY SINGLE DAY, k? You’ll love it!

Final Note: You can also apply this “Make it a Habit” technique to other areas of your life.

I recently started using it for working on my business, Upenover. Originally, I was waiting for this big block of magical time that I could sit down, uninterrupted, and work on my creative projects. Well, as a mom of young kids, and homeschooling, you can imagine, that I never got that big block of time.

So, I decided to make working on my business a habit, by doing something – anything – on it every single day, even if it was only for 15 minutes. And, you know what? It worked!! Even though it was just a little bit of time, it kept it fresh on my mind, kept me motivated, and over time, I could see the progress that was happening. Yay!

So, try it out – whatever goal you are working on – make it a habit. Do it every single day. It will change your life. Good luck! : )