“There is no
right time, there is only right now. If you’re looking for an excuse you will
always find one,” says John Madsen,
former NFL player turned high-performance coach and founder of Supra Human.
“But here’s the thing: champions train no matter what. They always find a way:
with a rock, a milk jug, a tree, a baby on their back, or while in quarantine.”
Besides the
fact there’s no time like the present to prioritize your health and wellbeing,
here are a few other reasons that make December the perfect moment to develop
the winning
mindset that'll make crushing all your fitness
goals a breeze.
Shifting Your
Perspective From a Timeline to a Lifestyle
“When you make
fitness a resolution, in your mind you’re assigning it a start and end date,
say, January 2022 to December 2022,” says Madsen.”
But in order
to successfully implement a new fitness routine to your daily and weekly habits
without giving up by the time February rolls around, you need to entirely shift
your perspective and move away from the idea of a timeline.
“You have to
realize that it’s not a resolution — it’s a revolution," he
explains. "You can’t think of it as temporary, it needs to be a
wide-reaching change that becomes ingrained in your behavior and second nature.
Only then will you stick to it and find success.”
By starting
your new fitness routine in December, you have more chances of turning
it into a lifestyle and reaching your goals. Treating it like a New
Year’s resolution is basically setting yourself up for failure. Research
conducted by Strava, a training app for runners and cyclists, shows that most
people are likely to give up on their New Year’s resolutions by
January 19.
Preventing
Holiday Weight Gain and Keeping Stress at Bay
The holiday
season's hectic nature means you’re probably eating and drinking more than
usual while moving less. But that’s exactly why it’s a better idea to kick off
your new training program in December.
“Waiting until
January to start a new fitness routine gives you an excuse to do more damage
now,” says Madsen. “If you know this is the ‘last month’ to eat whatever you
want and not be physically active, you can take both of these behaviors to the
extreme.”
It’s easy to
tell yourself that you have to indulge as much as you can now when you see the
holiday season as your last few weeks of dietary freedom, but this
black-and-white thinking leads to overindulgence as a compensation.
“By starting a
new fitness routine before the holidays, you’re more conscious going in,"
notes Madsen. "You’re more careful about what you put into your body
and how often you workout to avoid totally undoing the work you’ve already
started.”
Plus, science has shown that
physical activity decreases your stress levels, something we can all get
behind during
the holidays.
Building a
Foundation Right Away Is Better Than Starting From Scratch
Starting your
new workouts in December also gives you an advantage as far as getting used to
your new training program. It also allows you to build the foundation that will
lead you to ramp up the stakes and see gains later. Why wait until January to
do so?
“If you wait a
whole month to start your new fitness routine, you’re a month behind where you
could have been if you started now!” says Madsen.
Waiting Until
January Can Erode Your Self-Confidence
Waiting until
2022 can also have a surprising negative impact on your self-confidence.
“Your
self-confidence levels are going to continue to stay where they are or may even
deteriorate over the holidays, especially since you’re eating more and moving
less,” shares Madsen.
Heading into a
brand new year feeling sluggish and carrying a few extra pounds won’t exactly
help your confidence levels. Avoid that icky feeling by starting your new
fitness routine in December instead.
An Earlier
Start Means a Serious Boost to Your Self-Esteem and Motivation
While it can
take time and consistency to see physical results after starting a new workout
program, doing this shows you that following through on
intentions is possible, and you feel awesome pushing your
limits and making progress. This has a positive ripple effect on all areas of
your life.
“At the end of
the day Supra humans don’t train to get Greek god-jacked or athletic, fit, and
in shape,” says Madsen. “They train to stay razor-sharp and keep their edge.
They do it for self-discipline, to keep their subconscious in line and send it
a message: ‘No matter what happens, I will make progress.’”
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