The following article was contributed by Eamon Zayed, a professional footballer for Sporting Fingal FC. He contributed two goals to the club s FAI Cup final victory in 2009 and has accumulated several underage international caps. Eamon contributes a regular column to www. extratime. ie.
Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going – Jim Rohn (US motivation guru)
Getting fit and staying fit are two important components which I have had to deal with ever since I became a professional footballer eight years ago. Playing football is something I love doing, getting motivated for that is easy. However, with football come various injuries which mean possible lengthy spells on the sidelines. So, the difficulty of motivating yourself to firstly get fit and then maintain your fitness is something I am very familiar with.
Getting started is always the hardest part, but trust me, once you set yourself on the right track, you won t want to stop. The benefits of having a healthier body, looking better, being happy, feeling stronger and having more energy will provide enough motivation to maintain your fitness.
Here are 5 general easy to follow tips that help me get fit, stay fit and keep motivated:
1. Have a goal in mind: Know what you want to achieve and keep a reminder of this. Write it down; stick it up on your bedroom wall. Put a length of time on reaching various stages of your goal.
2. Change your Diet: Hydration and Nutrition is possibly the most important factor to any fitness programme. Eating the right foods and drinking the right fluids will provide you with the energy you need, whilst also reducing fat and producing muscle. I find eating more protein and less carbs help. Eat lesser amounts of food, but more frequently during the day. Drink water, you can never drink too much water!
3. Cardio: Take up activities or a sport that interests you. Vary your routines and activities so you don t become bored. Obviously football helps me stay fit. However varying activities I find helps as well. For example, going to the gym, going for walks, playing golf and tennis.
4. Rest: Resting is another big part of any fitness programme. You need to rest your muscles so as to give your body enough time to recover its strength.
5. Be Patient: Rome wasn t built in a day! I would encourage anyone trying to get fit to weigh yourself every week but be patient with results. Check your progress but remember, the results will come!
