In this day and age, with so many digital distractions, it can be difficult to convince yourself to remain active throughout the course of your daily life. But you can make it easier to get up off the couch simply by developing a personal reward system.
What Is A Personal Reward System?
A personal reward system is a system you design where you will reward yourself for doing something positive in your life. For example, if you meet your Fitbit goal of 10,000 steps each day by 6pm, a personal reward would be allowing yourself to have some dark chocolate-covered dried cherries or maybe a glass of wine with dinner as a pat on your back for completing your goal.
Why Have A Personal Reward System?
It may seem a bit silly to have a reward system for yourself, especially seeing as you are an adult and can easily give yourself the reward without completing the task. But this is an important part of developing self-control, and the rewards will feel much better when you feel you’ve earned it. This will also help to keep you motivated, and more likely to achieve your goal so you can enjoy your reward.
Decide How Often You Will Reward Yourself
The first step to developing a reward system, is deciding how often you will reward yourself. Some people do better with daily goals, as it keeps them checking in to see if they’ve earned their reward each and every day. Other people prefer to have longer term goals, such as one a week, and prefer a larger reward. In general, the larger the reward, the more you should have to do and the longer you should work to achieve it.
Decide What Your Rewards Are
After you have decided how often you will earn a reward, then it’s time to decide how you will reward yourself. As mentioned above, if you are rewarding yourself frequently, it’s better to do smaller rewards than if you are doing less frequent rewards. Remember when you select your rewards, they have to be something which is special to you that you desire. What may be a reward for you may not be a reward for someone else.
Some examples of easy rewards for getting yourself moving could be walking to get dessert after dinner if you’ve met your fitness goal for the day (or maybe you can meet your goal on the way there). Also, if you suffer from joint pain after a daily walk consider adding a glass of tart cherry juice to your daily routine. Cherry juice is a natural anti-inflammatory that reduces joint and muscle pain.
Another reward could be a Friday night movie with popcorn if you’ve consistently made your step goals each day of the week. No matter what you decide on, just make sure your rewards are something you want to work towards.
Change Your Rewards Over Time
The goal to move more should be one you aim for each and every day. And if you are doing this, there’s a chance your rewards could feel old after a while. This is why it is important to have rewards which change and grow with you to keep you interested and motivated.
So, if you start with a nightly dessert after meeting your step goal, maybe eventually you work towards a meal at a restaurant once a week instead. Or maybe you plan to buy yourself some new workout clothes if you meet your goals for the entire month. Once again this is completely up to you and your personal preferences.
Getting off the couch and committing yourself to move more can be difficult. And if this is something you struggle with, consider starting your own personal reward system to help motivate you and keep you working towards your goals. Just make sure that you design the reward system that works for you and your lifestyle.
