At fifteen years old, I went from no activity whatsoever before transitioning to moderate exercise. One year later, I shifted to extensive, constant training. Here are the five small steps that helped me develop active habits.

Habit #1: Eating Right

All forms of exercise require energy. Don’t listen to the excessive restrictions you see on social media. You need food, no matter what. However, it’s also important to note that this has to be the right kind of fuel.

And, no, before you ask, this does not mean cutting out sugar, or fats, or oils, or whatever other food influencers decide to demonize online. This means moderation.

Nutrition is about adding foods to your diet, not taking them away. The more diversity you have in your meals, the better. If you love oatmeal, try adding a spoonful of peanut butter or sprinkling on some chia seeds for protein. If you’re making a salad, add some garbanzo beans, different types of greens, nuts, and seeds.

Having enough calories from a variety of sources kept me energized and feeling great during my workouts. If you want to stay consistent, you need to feel ready for it. As long as you eat enough and moderately, you’ll have good fuel for your exercise.

The best way to learn how to do this is by following registered dieticians on social media platforms (ex, Abbey Sharp) rather than fitness influencers who don’t have a nutritional education background. Remember that there is a lot of misinformation out there.

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Habit #2: Making it Enjoyable and/or Productive

If you want to stay consistent, you have to make it fun! Making exercise something you look forward to, rather than dread, is a great way to make yourself stick to your fitness schedule. This could range from going to the gym with friends instead, or even just a walk together where you both can catch up.

I often find that time passes a lot faster when I’m with others. Another option is listening to music, a podcast, or an audiobook. This is a great way to disconnect from the exhaustion of the exercise and focus on something else instead.

As for making it productive, if you’re able to invest in a stationary bike (I was able to get a cheap one for $70 online!), you can read your school textbooks as you ride (which also ends up being a bit of an arm workout) or, if the handlebars provide a flat enough area, you can place your computer on top and work on there. If you’re doing an indoor workout, then put a video on in the background about the subject of your next upcoming test. This is a great way for those who don’t have time to waste to still get their workouts in!

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Habit #3: Starting Off Small

When people start exercising, they don’t immediately jump to running forty miles a week along with three two-hour gym sessions. It doesn’t matter how little you start out with; just keep increasing your workout load a little each week.

For me, my choice of exercise was often running. I’d start out with running one mile a day for one week. That’s only about ten minutes a day, but I still saw progress, and my time improved a noticeable amount by the end of it.

The next week, I did two miles daily. Then three, then four. By the five-mile week, I felt strong enough to run greater distances without having to run daily. The strength I built up with consistency was enough.

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Habit #4: Variety

Not everyone has the resources to be able to run outside every day. Gym memberships can be expensive, and sometimes it rains or snows outside. Let’s be honest: most people don’t want to power through that.

Instead, shift to indoor workouts (there’s plenty available on YouTube for free!). Or if you’re in a time crunch, instead of walking three miles like you had recently planned, run one and a half. This is still extremely helpful because running works your muscles better than most exercises and all within a much shorter period of time.

Switching it up also makes it more exciting! It gets boring doing the same workout every day, so try other forms of physical activity. There’s dancing, hiking, yoga, rock climbing - the list is endless!

Or, instead, you could try running different distances at different intervals, dancing to different types of music, hiking on different trails. Bonus: Switching up your routine to different forms of exercise can actually make you see more progress and reduce the risk of injury.

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Habit #5: Rest Days

Rest is necessary! Taking a day or two off a week doesn’t mean you're missing out on progress. Allowing yourself breaks prevents injury and lets your body heal and recover from all the hard work you’ve put in.

Trust me, I’ve been there. I know sometimes you feel like the strongest person in the world and you can do anything, but it’s not worth the risk. I’ve been injured twice and both times have taken months to heal - months where I could do only the most basic exercises and all my progress came to a standstill. Rest days also ensure that we stay consistent and make us excited and grateful to work out the next day.

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Listen to Yourself!

Overall, the most important thing is to listen to your body and listen to yourself. If you feel like you’re doing too much, then stop. Too much of anything, even exercise, is bad for you.

At the same time, however, you have to push yourself if you want to see progress. Getting stronger isn’t easy, and that’s what makes it such a beautiful (and painful) process. So, go out and start your fitness journey! I promise you’re not alone.

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