How to Handle Setbacks as You Exercise for Mental Health

When you set off to do something different or out of your usual routine, you can be sure that you’ll encounter challenges along the way. Some of those challenges may be related to learning new habits or exercise.

Picking up healthy new habits like exercising for your mental health can help improve your overall sense of well-being. However, that journey won’t be without its fair share of setbacks. What do you do when you find yourself in a tough spot?

Kinds of setbacks you can encounter on your exercise journey

As you start on your journey toward greater fitness to improve your mental, emotional, and physical health, it won’t necessarily be smooth sailing all the way. To begin with, one of the first challenges you might encounter is deciding what to take up as your form of exercise. Some forms of exercise, such as those that require equipment, may be expensive to get into. In other cases, your health may not allow you to take up certain forms of exercise.

Other kinds of obstacles may include getting injured during whatever form of exercise you’ve chosen. That can be a setback because it can take time to heal and become strong enough to pick up where you left off. Sometimes, physical injuries can cause an emotional or mental block, leading to a negative association with that form of exercise or experience that will take time to overcome.

Another setback you can experience on your fitness journey is that it can start to feel hard, or even boring. Waking up early, carving out time in your schedule, putting in the effort to do your workout and make sure you’ve planned your meals for balanced nutrition can feel hard or boring. It can lose some of its initial allure as you get down to brass tacks and work hard to stay consistent in your exercise regimen.

Lastly, you can also find yourself plateauing and stop seeing the gains you may have gotten at the beginning. If you haven’t worked out seriously or for a while, when you begin to put in considered effort into exercising for your mental, emotional, and physical health, you will likely see gains in the first few weeks. Your mood will be elevated, you might lose some weight, and you’ll feel stronger, and more energetic.

However, as time goes on, it’s possible for you to feel like you’re in the same place for weeks on end. When that happens, it can be discouraging, and you can feel like you’re not getting anything out of the time and effort you’re putting in. It might all begin to feel like it’s pointless.

These are just some of the setbacks you can encounter as you pursue your wellness through exercise. The good news is that these setbacks and challenges can be overcome, and you can continue to reap the many benefits of exercise.

Handling setbacks on your fitness journey

When setbacks and difficult situations arise, you always have a choice about how to respond. With a little creativity and elbow grease, you can get right back to exercising and enjoying it as a meaningful part of your life. Some of the ways you can help yourself to handle setbacks and adversity on your fitness journey include the following:

Prepare for difficulty

If you know that hard times are ahead, at the very least you’ll avoid any shock when the day comes that things feel difficult. Being mentally prepared is half the battle, and that preparedness can help you push through when things get tough. Mental toughness is also about having the right attitude toward difficulty, as well as toward your capacity to do hard things.

Revisit the basics

At times, it helps to get back to basics, like revisiting your motivations for exercising. Look again and see how exercise can help elevate your mood, reduce stress and anxiety, and improve your cognitive function and self-esteem. Knowing why you’re getting up in the wee hours of the morning or going for a run after work helps to keep you focused and doing the work.

Avoid comparisons with others

One reason a person can get discouraged is because they compare their journey with someone else’s. Other people have their own journeys, limitations, strengths, and weaknesses. Don’t compare yourself with someone else; the battle is you against yourself, and that is where your focus should be. Do more this week than you were able to do last week.

Switch things up

If you find yourself feeling stuck or uninspired, maybe you can switch things up. If walking starts to feel boring, you can find a different place to walk, or switch up to cycling or kayaking, or whatever your doctor says is okay for you to do. You can also challenge yourself by doing more and testing your limits. Change and results come when you’re out of your comfort zone and doing something different.

Find a partner for your journey

Going it alone can lead to stagnation. Sometimes you need someone alongside you who can challenge you and help to keep you accountable. You can also reach out and speak with a life coach who can help you set and meet your own exercise goals.

Do you need to speak with someone who can help you reach your exercise goals? Contact us today at Loma Linda Christian Counseling so we can connect you to a Christian counselor or life coach in California.