People ask me all the time how I find the motivation to workout everyday. They say they just don’t have the motivation to do it and they don’t know how to get it.

Here’s my big secret. I DON’T always have the motivation. I don’t always want to workout. I don’t always feel like getting sweaty and messing up my hair. I don’t always feel like getting up off the couch to go press play. But I do it anyway. It really comes down to how bad you want it.

Now I’m not saying that to make you feel bad or guilty, nor am I saying that you don’t want to change your health. But for me, it came down to the fact that I had had enough and I was ready, really ready to do something about it. So I changed my mentality. I regarded working out like I did my job. It’s not necessarily something I want to do everyday, but it’s something I HAVE to do. A non-negotiable. But there are some ways to help you get moving.

If you workout in the morning, sleep in your workout clothes the night before. Then when you wake up you’re already one step closer to working out. This makes it especially easier in the winter when it’s so hard to get out of your warm pajamas and put on cold clothes. I sleep in the entire outfit- sports bra, leggings, workout shirt, and socks. It also makes you feel really guilty if you change out of your workout clothes without having ever worked out.

Buy workout clothes that make you feel good. Don’t workout in old shorts and a t-shirt if that’s not what makes you feel sexy. When I get excited about the clothes I buy, I want to put them on. Then once they are on I might as well workout!

Make a playlist that gets you pumped up about working out. All my workouts have background music to them, but it’s not enough to keep me going if I’m relying on that alone. So I make a playlist on my phone of music that makes me want to move and I listen to it before and during my workout.

Set small realistic goals for each week. Hitting those goals will make you feel good, and help you keep going. See my blog on goal setting.

Give yourself small rewards for working out a certain amount of days each week. For example, for every week that you workout at least four days, you get to buy yourself something small. But don’t cave, if you don’t hit your quota, no new lipstick for you!