When you transition into retirement, there are often new habits that need to be formed as your old structure goes away. Some folks might not need a structured day, some do. But almost everyone has to create new habits.
Many of us set being healthy as a retirement focus with beginning (and keeping!) new exercise habits a big part of that. As I had this as a personal challenge (no exercise program at all pre-retirement!), I was recently asked about tips or secrets to making my new exercise habits stick. I now have a few exercise -focused things on repeat (blog link), so it was interesting to think about, how did I make that happen. How did I create exercise habits where none at all existed?
Here’s the comment from Sharon , a relatively recent retiree – blog link, who inspired me in this thinking – “This year I’ve decided to focus on my health so I’ve added regular exercise activities to my calendar. The problem is my ‘inner devil’ keeps trying to talk me out of it so my next new thing is to research a way to shut her up!! Any tips, tricks or secrets…please share!”
My first tip on accountability in exercise is to know yourself. Will you feel comfortable in a gym situation? Do you like the idea of working with equipment? Do you like the water? The woods? Being in a club? What kinds of things do you really like to do? Team sports? Solo activities? You could gain comfort over time, but be honest with yourself!
Something that worked for me was my “one month of Yoga’ [blog link] at a studio that was easy to get to – I could literally walk to it! I bought a month full access pass and committed to myself to try a few different classes. And this showed me some of things that are needed for me to push habit formation: 1) Easy access. Exercise needs to be easy for me to get to! This is still true for me today. 2) Pay up front. I hate to waste money! This continues to work for me as I pay for a 20-class yoga pass. 3) Try it more than one time. I still use this for any new thing I’m looking at becoming a habit – from a club to join or an activity to explore.
Take a class from someone you know, or get to know the instructor well. This is a kind of accountability that has worked for me. It I don’t show, without letting her know I’m not coming for some reason, she will reach out to see why! A secondary to this is to make friends with others in class, so you’re both looking forward to seeing them, or they wonder where you are. Another in this vein, although I’ve never been able to make it work for me, is to take the class (do the activity) with an established friend.
Speaking of friends, I had a standing weekly date to walk with a friend, which was great accountability. I couldn’t no-show and we both got a good park hike in. Of course, her schedule changed and without her to meet, I completely dropped the activity! Standing dates could be for anything and I know of many who use this tool – for tennis, golf, pickle-ball, or regular walks.
Find something you really enjoy and would miss if you could not do it. For me, that is cardio drumming at the moment. I have a blast doing it plus it’s an amazing workout. I was devastated when they canceled my class a year ago (they lost coaches), but luckily found an alternative class. I’m approaching two years on this exercise habit! I truly enjoy the class – it leaves me smiling and energized (and sometimes exhausted and sore!).
Some other ideas I’ve heard/seen work for others:
- Pay ahead for a personal trainer (This fits my pay-for-class-pass thinking!)
- Post on social media your number of days doing the activity. Or let others know about it regularly. A friend posted her daily biking with her goal of biking everyday for a year and received lots of cheerleader support in the comments. Another friend told people his goal was to walk the beach 300 days a year (that gave him leeway to travel to non-beach places). If you saw him on the beach, he would tell you what number day he was on.
- Walk your pet every day at same time. It won’t be long until they will let you know it’s time for that activity! This is one of my hubby’s activity and yes, our pup whines when it’s time for her walk.
- Join a league. In our area, there are tennis, pickle-ball, bowling, and shuffleboard leagues.
- Link it to another activity. A number of folks I know link their daily walk to something else – couple discussion time, watching sunset or sunrise, daily meditation. I often see those sunrise shots posted from another friend who walks every morning.
Do you have any other tips to help create a habit of exercise when none existed?
Picture: Sunrise this week. (Spring time change will mean fewer sunrises to watch, given my normal wake up time!)
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Cool article premise. I wrote something on prioritizing discipline over motivation as I think the latter is what you need to cultivate: https://texasbodybuilders.com/2024/01/28/discipline-vs-motivation-in-bodybuilding-why-discipline-wins-every-time/
Much love from http://www.texasbodybuilders.com
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I’m not good at consistently exercising but I know some people have had success at developing a habit by making social media friends hold them accountable. Another way, that I used to do, is what Jerry Seinfeld suggested: begin, put an X on a wall calendar, and once you start never stop putting the X’s on it. The pretty pattern is visually encouraging.
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Ally, that’s a good one! Kinda like my friends who count the number of days, but visual. Of course, who has wall calendars anymore? We don’t have one any longer!
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Hi Pat – I’ve worked out after trying many different varieties, that classes are not my “thing” – and neither is the gym. I really don’t like paying, getting there, stopping and starting my day around a random 1 hour slot etc. I used to swim and enjoyed that, but the easy access part isn’t there anymore and that’s fallen away.
My go-to exercise is a daily walk. I go every.single.day at the same time and I have a routine that starts my day off nicely. I don’t take breaks because I know I’ll lose my momentum. I like that it’s free (a big thing for me), accessible (I live in a lovely area), the weather is mild enough for it to be quite pleasant, and it gives me alone time to think, pray, and ponder. So, that’s my only successful and sustained form of exercise after decades of trying different things. I’ve kept it up for 15 years and will continue until I it gets too hard….
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Leanne, I knew your regular was the daily walk…it was one of the “other” elements I added in as I always think of your walk as a daily meditation. :-)
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When I worked, I swam faithfully Tuesday and Thursday. I lost access to the pool and now rarely swim. I live out in the country now, so I dislike driving 25 to 30 km for fitness. I hooked into a M/W/F weights and resistance videos and do HIIT Tues and Thur. My deal with myself is that I put my workout clothes on and can’t have lunch until I’ve done my “time” and changed. Works for me. I read that tip somewhere years ago, and it’s probably the best one I have.
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Bernie, another great tip that I forgot… put on the workout clothes! I did this during the pandemic to force myself to do the on-line classes. Of course, now I will regularly wear my yoga clothes almost all day, even if no yoga was done!
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Nope, you have to earn the right to wear them!! Then, when they are used off, they go and regular clothes come on.
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Your points are spot on. I find that I need a class to be at a certain time. Online classes work for me if they are live so that I feel like I’m joining the instructor. I’m terrible about exercising to videos that have been previously posted. I can always “do it later”. I attend Pilates classes at the Y, not watch and do Pilates to the posted classes they have online. While even after six years I haven’t made friends with the instructor or my Pilates “classmates”, which would help for accountability, at least I feel a slight social connection by going in person. Agree about the walking buddy. I’m perfectly capable to walk on my own but finding I never do it now that my hubby’s knee is bothering him so we no longer take our Florida morning walk together. So sadly after almost 12 years of retirement, I still don’t have an exercise habit. This is despite being married to man that has always had a daily exercise habit. But I don’t enjoy solo exercise, weight exercises, swimming.
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I also am married to someone who had regular exercise habits; mine loves his solo time doing them. Sorry you’re missing your morning walks… I know of a number of folks who found this a great way to stay connected to their spouse in retirement!
When we were in the height of the pandemic, I was able to do on-line classes on a regular basis, but now struggle with them. I too like the social atmosphere of a class!
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Hi Pat!! Thanks for the shout out 😍 You’ve given me some great tips to try to make my new exercise habit stick! I know I desperately need accountability so I’m going to start working on that angle first. I’m going to ask a few friends to start walking with me – I may have to adjust the time of day I walk but if I can make it stick, it will be worth it. I also like the idea of buying a certain number of classes, it’s a commitment but not too long term so I might actually complete them all.
The other idea I need to embrace is that I can exercise ‘any time of day’. I’m so conditioned into thinking I have to exercise first thing in the morning (before work) but that restriction doesn’t exist anymore!!
Thanks for sharing all this information, I’ll be coming back to it often 🤗
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Sharon, Plus check out comments as I’m getting some additional ideas from folks! I realized I like morning cardio and not evening, not because of work, just because I like it then! But basic walks, I like midday. And I am a fair-weather walker, so need to have something else in my routine. As I started this, a lot is knowing yourself! Good luck with getting a habit or two in place.
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