We’ve all done it. You sit down, having cleared up after a big weekend, New Year, Christmas, or maybe even just a super-sized breakfast, breathe a huge sigh of exhaustion, and think: “This is it. Never again. This time, I’m going to get fit.” And yet, somehow, it never sticks. Getting active and staying fit has huge benefits for your mental and physical health, as well as being a good way to stay social, so it’s definitely worth doing. Here are some tips for starting out on a sustainable fitness journey.
Start slowly
As with anything, to develop a consistent habit of exercising, it’s important initially not to bite off more than you can chew. While it may be tempting to really get stuck in, unsustainable exercise habits will just lead you to burnout, and won’t create a lasting positive change in your lifestyle. One helpful piece of advice is to focus on small, achievable goals, rather than vague conceptual goals (for example, “getting fit”). If your current level of exercise is nothing, then try a five-minute run, perhaps. Once you can do that, try going for ten. Whatever you do though, don’t just launch into a marathon.
Build activity into your daily routine
On a similar note, consistency is a crucial component of any attempt to get into shape. The best way to make exercise feel like less effort (because, let’s be honest, it really can be painful at times) is to weave it into your normal routine. Many forms of exercise are compatible with leisure time, or even work; try listening to your favorite gardening podcast while out for a run, for instance, or plugging the lectures for your PhD in nursing online course onto your Peloton screen. That way, you can be doubly productive – and feel doubly good about yourself. Another potential strategy is to exercise in little bursts throughout the day – for instance, five pushups every hour, or even just having a proper stretch every time you make a coffee.
Allow time for rest and recovery
Rest and recovery are crucial for athletes’ physiological and psychological recovery – but the same is true for beginners to fitness. This is because when you exercise, especially if unused to it, you put a strain on your muscles and their connections to the bone (ligaments), as well as building up high concentrations of lactic acid in the muscles that you’ve been using. Without the proper care, this can lead to injury, thus undoing all of your hard work in getting fit.
There are two main types of recovery: short-term recovery (also known as “active” recovery) and long-term recovery. Short-term is crucial for a beginner, although it is mostly common sense. Make sure that you warm up before exercising, and stretch properly afterward, even if the “stretch” is actually just a light jog or lifting lighter weights than you would if you were trying to build muscle.
Listen to your body
Remember, on a related note, that your body is the best indicator of how you’re coping with your new exercise routine. If you’re aching, breaking (and I can see the pain in your eyes), or generally struggling to adapt: feeling tired, or even just fed up, slow down and reconsider whether the exercise plan you’re currently using is appropriate, given your levels of fitness.
In the meantime, make sure that you’re giving your body the best chance you can. That involves sleeping properly, staying fully hydrated (that means at least two liters of water per day), and eating a nutritional, balanced, and varied diet with sufficient calories. The extent to which preparation is essential to a successful and sustainable fitness transformation really cannot be overstated: you are what you eat, so try and make what you eat healthy as well.
Overall, remember that getting fit really is a marathon, not a sprint. Don’t be phased by short-term hiccups, and whatever you do don’t compare yourself to fitness “experts” online, or even to your friends or colleagues. It’s all about slowly building up a base fitness level and improving yourself slowly but surely. In the words of the great Baz Luhrmann, the race is long, but in the end, it’s only with yourself – so take care of your mind and your body, and give yourself a chance.

Ben is a fitness enthusiast, corporate wellness speaker and entrepreneur based in London. He has a successful track record in the wellness industry in the United Kingdom and in Canada.