“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”

– Aristotle

Most of you have heard me mention the need for consistency frequently in my posts. Consistency is the foundation of all that we do at the ZGym. It is the bedrock of fitness and wellbeing. Without it, progress can’t be made. It is consistency that safeguards us from taking two steps forward and one step back, getting caught up in an endless cycle of frustration.

Habits

Remaining consistent requires us to make a habit out of diet and exercise. We can’t constantly rely on finding motivation. As many of you already know, motivation can be an incredibly inconsistent and fickle guide. Sure, it’s great to be inspired, but our fitness and diet routines cannot depend on them. There will often be days, even weeks where motivation will be hard to find and fatigue a constant, unwanted friend. That is when it’s crucial that we put our heads down, grit our teeth, and blast through our workouts come hell or high water. Being able to workout during these kinds of days and weeks may seem terrible and daunting, but it will make you not only physically stronger, but mentally stronger as well. And that strength will carry over into your daily life as well. I guarantee it.

Slow and Steady Wins The Race

A common way that people rationalize not being consistent with their workouts is to essentially have a junkie workout day where they decide to go crazy and binge through two or three workouts at the Zgym and then follow it up with a five mile run. Satisfied, they then take the remaining week or month off. That may be a bit of an exaggeration, but you get the point. Regardless, such an approach is counter-productive and offers little, if any, growth. Fitness and wellbeing are about creating a healthier, more enlivening life.

Make a weekly plan for your workouts and stick to it. Don’t get carried away or over-extend yourself. Set attainable goals that are reasonable for your current level of fitness. Sometimes actual progress is a game of inches, figuratively and literally, but every little bit counts!

Where are you with your consistency at the ZGym? What do you consider your main obstacles that are in the way of being more consistent?