So you’ve been hitting the gym regularly, completing your routines as planned and eating according to your meal plan but it just feels like you’re going through the motions and not really achieving anything.

Sound familiar? We have put together 5 tips to help you stay motivated when you get stuck in a gym rut.

1. Record your workouts.

Why should you record your workouts? The first reason is so that you can keep a record of your progress so that when you’re feeling demotivated you can look back and see that actually, you have been progressing this whole time. Secondly, when you step in to the gym to workout, you should look back on the previous weeks session to see where you can add that extra 2.5kg or squeeze out an extra rep or 2.

If you do this consistently you will find you can progress each week. Next time you go to the gym for a chest session for example, look back and see what you benched last week, chuck on an extra 2.5kg this week and smash it, even if you only get one set with it, its still progress!

The best way we have found to record your workouts is with the FitNotes app for android (Link)

FitNotes is extremely easy to use and customise, you can add exercises, track progress via the history page or for a graphical view switch to the graph mode to see your workouts over weeks, months and years.

2. Set Goals and Targets

And we don’t just mean goals like ‘lose weight’ or ‘gain muscle’.
Whats wrong with those types of goals? They’re too vague, impossible to measure and they don’t come with a deadline to keep you on your toes.
A much better goal would be something like:
To gain 3lb of muscle in 6 months OR to bench press 100kg by Christmas.
Why are these goals better? Because they are specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and most importantly they have a time frame in which to achieve them, these are known as SMART goals, clever huh!

3. Simplify your supplementation

We all know someone that takes every new supplement as soon as it hits the market, now we’re not saying not to take supplements, they all have their time and place, however if you’re feeling demotivated its time to ditch your supplements if you have a large and busy regime of taking them. Strip it back, whats REALLY needed? Is that creatine actually helping? Are those test boosters boosting? Or are you taking them because the latest health and fitness magazine told you that you needed them?

Remember, you can get everything the body needs from a good diet that suits your goals. This will save you popping pills and necking shakes several times a day.

4. Join a different gym

How long have you been a member of your gym for? New gyms spring up monthly recently and each one most likely offers something that your current one doesn’t, different equipment, a change of atmosphere or just a change of scenery has been known to reignite what motivates us.

Remember, its not forever, you can go back to your old gym anytime you like. Most gyms offer some sort of day pass or free induction so you can try before you buy and if you tell them you’re thinking of changing then they may even offer to drop their joining fee just to sign you up.

5. Find a new gym partner

One of the most motivating things to do in any sport is to train with someone bigger and better than you. Imagine you want to be a 16 stone ripped monster – train with one.

If you want to work towards running a marathon – train with someone who has done it.

If you want to become a top class boxer – train with one.

Catch my drift? Those of you who train alone will be familiar with the lonely sessions where you end up not pushing yourself and just get the reps out just so you can leave the gym with barely half a pump.

You will naturally try harder if you train with someone you consider to be better than yourself.

Give it a go and let us know how you get on!