Do you find, when you first start a new fitness class or enrol at the gym full of good intentions, that the time just flies by? ‘This is going to be so easy!’, you think. ‘How could I ever get bored of this!’. You push out the thoughts in your mind about all the previous other times you have been really enthusiastic about your fitness efforts, only for boredom to creep in.

The Onset of Boredom

Unfortunately though, whether it is a few days or a few weeks later, those tell tale signs that you are falling out of love with your Camden gym begin to emerge. Suddenly every song on your motivational playlist seems to last forever. You no longer feel, as the timer on your cardio machine nears the end of the session you programmed in, like ‘why not add another 15 minutes and keep going!’. You begin to know far too many songs that feature Pitbull, from the music videos on constant play in front of the machines.

So, what can you do to prevent these warning signs turning into the kind of boredom that can break a fitness programme?

Switch Your Routine

You can begin by changing the routine you use at the gym. One good approach that can work is the ‘countdown system’. Choose three or more cardio machines (the more you choose, the better), such as the treadmill, the elliptical, and the rowing machine. Pick an order to use them in. Hit your first machine for ten minutes, then your second for nine, your third for eight, and so on right down to a final one minute sprint (obviously when you run out of machines, go back to your first and cycle through them again). This way you get a 55 minute cardio workout without ever being locked in to more than ten minutes of one activity. This, or any other switch to the routine you use, can make the gym more interesting.

Get Into Weights

While cardio alone can take ages to show any real fitness benefits (though can help with weight loss quite quickly if you are also dieting), with weights you can actually see results in your strength very quickly, being able to handle heavier weights or more reps practically every time you try! This can make your gym sessions have more of a sense of progression, which can prevent boredom. Also, because you can focus on different muscle groups on different days, your routine shouldn’t become monotonous. Try making weights the reason you go to the gym, and the cardio time just a bonus thing you do while you’re there to burn some calories and keep your heart healthy. Thinking of the gym as being about a short session of weights rather than a long grind on cardio machines makes it seem less boring already in your mind!

Variety and visible progress will help you fight boredom at the gym, so look at your routine and see what you can do to shake it up.