Motivation is a popular topic and staying motivated throughout the way has always been a struggle but especially over the past year, due to Covid. We have put together some tips on how you can stay motivated day to day and what simple daily steps can help you to get out of your slump.
The first tip is to look at your sleeping habits. Some people prefer to sleep for 12 hours to ensure they are getting enough sleep but sometimes this isn't enough as sleeping for 12 hours isn't guaranteeing that you are in a deep sleep. Sleeping for 8 hours in a deep sleep state will help you to wake up feeling more refreshed than sleeping for 12 hours. This is because the cells regenerate in deep sleep, and this is crucial for our health. The regeneration of these cells also determines the state of our physical and mental health, so this enables your body to wake up feeling refreshed and enables you to have a good, motivated start to the day. So how can we ensure we are entering those stages of deep sleep? The best way is to ensure that your room is dark enough, this helps to regulate melatonin levels to allow the body to sleep. There are also products that can help you to drift off, these usually include magnesium, 5 HTP or L-Theanine, each of these have slightly different roles but can also work together to relax the muscles, brain, and nerves to enable you to fall into a deep sleep.
The next step to motivation is setting three goals for the day as soon as you wake up. These must be goals that are achievable within the day but also not something that you are guaranteed to hit if you go through your normal daily routine, this will enable you to stay motivated as they are something our mind is looking forward to complete. They should also be something that you find enjoyable because if there is an activity you didn't like to participate in you are more likely to forget about that goal or have no aspiration of completing it. These goals can be as simple as aiming to walk 10,000 steps a day or aiming to drink 4 bottles of water. To keep track of your goals it is good to start a daily journal to tick off the daily goals once they are done, this will help you to monitor the goals that work for you and goals that you need to work a little more for.
Another great step to stay hydrated throughout the day. When we wake up in the morning the body is usually dehydrated, this is because we lose a lot of water as we sleep through sweating and a lack of hydration throughout the night. A good way of getting into the habit of rehydrating in the morning is to keep a bottle of water next to your bed and drink it as soon as you wake up, if you are a big morning coffee drinker our tip is to drink a glass of water as the kettle is boiling. This enables your body to be hydrated and refreshed as you start the day. Being dehydrated causes fatigue as your heart must work harder to pump water around the body, being hydrated enables the heart to do this at a normal rate an as oxygen is being passed around the body you are energised. It is also great to add electrolytes into the body as these help the body to maintain water rather than lose it through sweating and going to the toilet, as well as electrolytes vitamins can also be added to water which can provide a great boost to energise you and stay motivated through the day. ViDrate's Boost sachets contain Vitamin B5 and B6 and along with 30mg of caffeine these are the remedy to stay hydrated but also stay alert and motivated.
Although some people might not think it, exercise is an amazing way to boost motivation. This doesn't have to be an hour in the gym or a run around a park, it could literally be a 20-minute dog walk or stroll to the shop. Anything that gets the heart pumping essentially. This is because there is an increase of blood flow to the brain which gives you an immediate boost of energy, this energy motivates you throughout the rest of the day which is why after a good workout people feel happier and motivated to carry on with exercise. Not only does it increase your energy levels, but it also has a direct boost to your endorphins which are your 'feel good' neurotransmitters. As the name states this will make you feel better and as you happier through the day you are more likely to stay motivated too!
Something that can really help that not many people think about is to take small breaks throughout the day. This can be day to day at home where you take 5 minutes in between having a tidy up and putting the washing in or it could be a breather at work where you take a couple of minutes to recuperate. Taking a small break can help to reset the mind and get you into a better headspace to keep working afterwards, if you are feeling tired or overworked this will not help to motivate you towards your daily goals. Taking those little breaks throughout the day will ensure that you have that time to motivate yourself to carry on. As well as breaks throughout the day it is also great to take a little time off from the world, a long weekend or trip away to somewhere where you cannot access your phone or choose to switch off will motivate you in the long run because this has given you the time to reset and regain the energy you need.
Another fun tip is to create new hobbies. This will take your mind off what is going on at home or work and it will make you feel happier and accomplished if you stick to the hobby. Great ideas of new hobbies could be scrapbooking, keeping a daily journal or something like photography. Not only can your hobbies keep your mind off stressful things, if you really enjoy them, you will be motivated to keep up with the with the hobby but also you will want to create time day to day to fulfil your hobby. Hobbies are also known to make people happier and with the boost of the serotonin this will help to increase your motivation.
These are only a couple of tips that can help you to stay motivated throughout the day, but we always love to hear your thoughts on what keeps you motivated. Leave your comments below or send us a message on social media with your tips!
