Strong Mind, Strong Body: Why Mindset Is the Real Secret to Fitness Success

Hey loves,

You bought your newest gym outfit, you hired the perfect trainer or bought the trending it fitness program of the year yet you still have not stuck to your fitness program. Sound familiar? It’s not your willpower. It’s your mindset.

So what separates women who are consistent with their training from those whose motivation fades, wanes and gets re-ignited occasionally? The answer is discipline.

So many of my clients became life long gym goers because they unlocked the superpower of mindset.

Mindset is everything in fitness, I have written extensively on the subject here, here and here.

Fitness is a mental endeavor, it is best understood as a consistency-based system that directly benefits from discipline. It is one of few; others are business, financial success and other goal-related endeavors.

Fitness does not belong to the same category of goals like writing a book, getting a car or getting a promotion. A fit body requires consistent action almost indefinitely and should be enjoyed as a process rather than destination.

What Is a “Fitness Mindset”?

Mindset in the context of fitness refers to the beliefs, attitudes, and mental habits that shape our behavior.

The winning mindset for fitness is a growth mindset. Carol Dweck, author of the book Mindset coined the terms growth and fixed mindset.

Having a growth mindset essentially means one views their endeavor as a process that they can improve or a skill they can develop. It is the opposite than having a fixed mindset which reduces success to innate talent.

An example of a fixed mindset is: “I’m not athletic” whereas a growth mindset would be “I can improve with training.” Mindset determines how you show up, interact with your discipline and ultimately how far you go with it.

Why Mindset Matters More Than Motivation

Motivation is fleeting, it’s a feeling that builds on positive action. Motivation fades whereas mindset is enduring. Mindset is a moment by moment adjustment of thinking, judgment and therefore behavior.

Many people wait to feel motivated before embarking on their fitness journeys or starting their businesses or endeavors.

The problem is motivation are the feelings that come after a positive action, as a result of momentum rather than a catalyst for it.

Discipline is an essential part of mindset, motivation is the feeling that essentially gets us craving more discipline and a better mindset.

The first part of the equation is discipline followed by mindset and maintained through positive inertia (aka motivation).

In one study, students with a growth mindset had higher grades, were more likely to persevere through challenges, and were more open to feedback.

Mindset can alter the way we deal with challenges like plateaus, injuries and bad body image days to name a few.

The beauty of mindset is that it doesn’t change the external circumstances that we are dealt, rather, it alters the way we deal with them and empowers us to overcome them.

Common Mindset Blocks That Sabotage Progress

Perfectionism:

“If I can’t do it perfectly, I won’t do it at all.”

Perfectionism holds us back from being consistent. There is no such thing as being perfect, it’s a human made/social construct to aspire towards yet it never manifests.

Having a perfectionist mindset holds us back from being our authentic human self that isn’t afraid to make mistakes, embarrass ourselves but at least get closer to our goals via practice and discipline.

All-or-nothing thinking:

“I missed a workout = I failed.”

This type of thinking is simply misguided and wrong. It is known as a cognitive distortion that maybe feels like it’s logical or realistic but in actuality is a faulty thought pattern that needs unlearning.

The truth is that one missed workout just means one missed workout. It means we can simply get back on track tomorrow and restart the momentum at any point we wish.

The importance of unlearning this particular thought pattern is that it teaches us self compassion, how to see things from a more realistic lens and pushes us away from maladaptive thought distortions.

Comparison:

“She looks better than me, so what’s the point?”

Comparison is our worst enemy. It not only robs us of our inner joy and happiness but insults our very own journeys and trajectories.

We should only compare ourselves to our previous selves and measure our success based on our ability to improve.

Negative self-talk:

“I’ll never look like that.”

Building a Resilient Fitness Mindset

Step 1: Awareness:

The first step towards building a resilient fitness mindset is to journal and notice any limiting thoughts.

Step 2: Reframing:

The second step is to turn “I can’t” into “I’m learning to.”

Step 3: Identity shifting:

This step is absolutely crucial towards achieving your goals. It is one of the best ways of achieving success and that is to associate your identity towards the type of goal you are after.

For instance, in order to become fit, you associate to being a fit person and therefore take the daily necessary steps to achieve your objective.

For instance, you will think: “I’m the kind of person who trains even when it’s hard.”

This is known as the self concept and is a shortcut towards manifestation and success.

Step 4: Habit anchoring:

I’ve written about this step here. Pair optimizing your mindset with daily rituals such as meditation, mirror affirmations, journaling etc.

For instance, while you journal, you write out a gratitude list and allow yourself to have a gratitude mindset (the key towards abundance).

The Long Game: Why Mindset Is the Key to Lifelong Fitness

Bodies can always change as life does. A strong mindset, however, carries you through every season.

Sustainability will always trump using quick fixes. Quick fixes such as buying a fitness program and neglecting having a long term mindset or caving in to a weight loss medication craze without building the proper habits around it will lead to failure to achieve your goals.

Instead, vow that you will be disciplined and that you will moment-by-moment armor yourself to change your thinking to get you to your goals no matter what. You can even write it down: “if the thought to skip gym arises, I will challenge it and go anyways.”

I promise you that once you understand the limitations of relying purely on external circumstances, you will thrive off altering your thinking, being a master of your reality rather than servant.

Essentially, mindset is what allows rest days without guilt, comebacks after breaks, and evolving goals.

The external circumstances are not important, our thinking around them, however, are always armed towards action and adherence to plans and goals.

Conclusion & Takeaway

Your body can’t go where your mind won’t lead it. You don’t need to be perfect, you just need to be consistent, kind to yourself, and mentally tough.

I encourage you to reflect on your current mindset and commit to one shift today.

You deserve to feel powerful in your body, your mindset, and your life. Join hundreds of women getting stronger every week. Subscribe now and start your journey.

I hope that you enjoyed this blog post titled Strong Mind, Strong Body: Why Mindset Is the Real Secret to Fitness Success, please let me know what you thought about it in the comments section below!

Sources:

Dweck, C. S. (2006). Mindset: The New Psychology of Success