How to Build Fitness Habits You Will Actually Keep

Almost everyone has started an exercise routine. Far fewer are still following one. The pattern is familiar: a burst of enthusiasm, two or three good weeks, a cold or a busy spell at work, and then a quiet return to how things were.

The usual explanation is a lack of willpower. A better one is poor design. A routine that depends on feeling motivated will fail, because motivation comes and goes. A routine that fits into your life has a much better chance.

Why plans fall apart

They start too big. Going from nothing to five sessions a week is a large change. It feels fine while enthusiasm is high and impossible once it fades.

They rely on an activity you do not like. If you dread it, you will find reasons to skip it.

They have no fixed place in the week. "I'll go when I have time" means not going.

They treat one missed session as failure. A single gap becomes "I've blown it", and the whole plan is abandoned.

Each of these has a straightforward fix.

Start from the right target

It helps to know what you are building towards. For adults, the recommended level is:

• at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity a week, or 75 minutes of vigorous activity;
• muscle-strengthening activity on at least two days a week.

That is the destination, and there is no deadline for reaching it. The World Health Organization is clear that any amount of activity is better than none, and the CDC notes that the 150 minutes can be broken into smaller pieces. Our guide to the benefits of regular physical activity explains why even small amounts matter.

Seven principles that make a routine last

1. Pick something you do not hate

The CDC's advice is simple: to make sure you stick with it, choose activities you enjoy and that match your abilities. The best exercise is the one you will still be doing next year.

Think about what has suited you in the past. Do you prefer being alone or with others? Indoors or outside? Structured classes or freedom to wander? A competitive game or a quiet walk? There is no superior answer.

2. Make it easy to begin

Every obstacle between you and the activity makes it less likely to happen. A gym that is a twenty-minute drive away has to compete with the sofa twice. A walk from your front door does not.

Lower the barriers: keep your shoes by the door, lay out clothes the night before, choose a route or a class close to home or work.

3. Give it a time and a cue

Decide when it happens and tie it to something already fixed in your day. "After I drop the children at school, I walk for twenty minutes." "On Tuesdays and Thursdays I go straight from work to the pool." A plan with a time and a trigger is far more likely to be carried out than a general intention.

4. Start below what you can manage

For the first few weeks the aim is not fitness. It is turning up. Ten or fifteen minutes that you can do comfortably, three times a week, is a better start than an hour that leaves you sore and reluctant.

Finishing a session feeling that you could have done more is a good sign. It means you will want to come back.

5. Build up slowly

Once the routine feels normal, add a little: five more minutes, a slightly faster pace, one more session. Change one thing at a time and give your body a week or two to adjust before the next increase.

A simple guide to effort is the talk test. During moderate activity you can talk but not sing. During vigorous activity you cannot say more than a few words without pausing for breath.

6. Add strength work

Aerobic activity is only half of the recommendation. Muscle-strengthening activity on two days a week helps to keep muscles and bones strong and makes everyday tasks easier.

It does not require a gym. Squats, lunges, push-ups against a wall or a worktop, and carrying heavy shopping all count. So do yoga, pilates and heavy gardening. The NHS suggests doing strength exercises to the point where you need a short rest before repeating them.

7. Plan for the bad days

Illness, deadlines, holidays and bad weather are not exceptions. They are part of every year. Decide in advance what your minimum is: a ten-minute walk, five minutes of stretching, one set of exercises. On a hard day, do the minimum. It keeps the habit alive, and the habit is what you are protecting.

How long until it feels automatic?

Longer than a week, and less time than you fear. In one study of habit formation, people repeating a simple daily behaviour took an average of 66 days for it to become automatic, with a range from 18 to 254 days. Exercise tended to take longer to become automatic than simpler behaviours such as drinking a glass of water.

The same study found that missing one opportunity did not noticeably affect the process. So when you miss a session, the useful response is to do the next one. Nothing more is needed.

A gentle first eight weeks

This is an example for someone starting from very little. Adjust it freely.

By the end you would be doing about 150 minutes a week. If any stage feels like too much, stay there for longer. There is no prize for speed.

Keeping it going

• Track it simply. A tick on a calendar or a note on your phone is enough to show you how far you have come.
• Involve someone else. An arrangement with a friend is harder to cancel than a promise to yourself.
• Vary it. A different route, a new class or a change of scenery prevents boredom.
• Notice what you gain. Better sleep, a steadier mood and more energy usually arrive long before any change in appearance. They are better reasons to continue.

The real goal

The aim is not to be someone who trains hard for six weeks. It is to be someone who is still moving, in some form, in five years. Build for that person: keep it enjoyable, keep it convenient, and let it be imperfect.

If you are not sure where to begin, a daily walk is as good a first habit as any.