Struggling to Stay Active? Try Focusing on Your Strengths

Quick Win

Be your own cheerleader! Cultivating confidence is the secret to unleashing your potential and finding the inspiration to exercise again.

Try This Today

• List your strengths. These are the parts of your core character that make you successful as a person. Consider broad virtues such as wisdom, kindness, curiosity, creativity, perseverance, bravery and humor. If you are stuck, consider taking an online assessment, like the one offered by the Via Institute on Character at viacharacter.org.
• Imagine yourself using your strengths. Think about how you feel, physically and mentally, and what it looks like when you are being creative or curious or brave. Picture the things you do when you use your strengths.
• Make use of those strengths. When it’s time to do something hard or something you’ve been putting off, think about how you can use your strengths to make it happen. For example, if you know that curiosity is a strength and you want to exercise more, maybe you will decide to check out a new online fitness class or a new neighborhood walking route this week. If creativity is your strong suit, maybe you will think of ways to move more while doing household chores or running errands.

Why

Setting fitness goals that make sense for you and feeling positive about your ability to achieve them can help you stay motivated, according to a 2018 report published in the journal Innovation in Aging. “The way we think affects the way we feel, which affects the way we behave,” says health coach Jessica Matthews, an associate professor of integrative wellness at Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego. That means that when you focus on your strengths instead of focusing on your faults, you are more likely to find the mindset that leads to positive behavior change.