One of the most eye opening things that I discovered when I got into the health and fitness business, is the overwhelming number of people that give up…well before achieving their goals.  Now, this doesn’t include the people that had to stop for legit reasons, like an injury or other health issues that forced them to stop.  I’m talking about people that just gave up for no real good reason.

I read somewhere that less than 10% of the people who purchase a fitness program ever complete it.  And that over 50% of the people that begin any fitness program quit within the first 3 weeks.

Now these numbers may vary slightly, but it’s safe to say that the percentage of people that quit any fitness program is staggeringly high.

So why do so many people quit?

According to surveys and studies done, there are multiple reasons, but 5 in particular really stand out:

1. Lack of time.  With work, family and other time commitments, people have less time than ever to exercise.

2. No support and lack motivation.  It’s easy to have motivation when you begin, but when things get a little tough, it’s easy to lose sight of your goals.  Having motivation and support helps keep you on the right track to achieve your goals.

3. Boredom.  Doing the same things over and over again gets boring real quick and sticking to a dull program becomes too difficult continue.

4. Doing too much too soon.  This may be one of the most common mistakes people make when they begin any fitness program.  They start off doing too much, too soon and burn themselves out.

5. Unrealistic expectations.  People except to see significant results too quickly, and when they don’t see the kind of results they were expecting, they get discouraged and quit.

If any of these reasons sound a familiar to you…don’t worry you’re definitely NOT alone.  But if you want to put an end to your frustrations and finally attain your fitness goal, here’s what you can do about it.

1. Find a program or an activity that doesn’t take too much of your time.  That’s the main reason why my workouts are always short and sweet…between 20 - 30 minutes.  Keep in mind that fitness results are more dependent on intensity than time, so you don’t need to workout any longer than you have to.  Plus it’s much easier to motivate yourself, when you know you only need to workout for 20 minutes instead of 60 minutes or more.

2. Find a workout partner or join a club.  Having someone else to work out with, keeps you accountable and makes working out more fun.  If you can’t find someone to train with physically…thanks to the internet, there are countless ways to get social support online.  Even though it’s online, being able to connect with others and get support and motivation makes a world of a difference.

3. You need to find something that you won’t get bored with.  If you already have a physical activity that you love to do, then that’s great…definitely keep doing it!  But if you’re like me and get bored easily…the key to preventing boredom is change.  That’s why when I designed the workout program, I made sure to keep things fresh by changing up the workout everyday of week.  And each weekly schedule is repeated for only 3 weeks for the entire program, this way you never get bored and you’re always being challenged.

4. When you begin any physical activity for the first time, you need to pace yourself.  No matter what shape you’re in, you don’t know how your body will respond to a new activity.  Give yourself time to adapt.  This way, you don’t have to experience getting too tired or too sore, which can hamper your motivation to continue.

5. Make sure that your goals are realistic.  I can’t tell you how many emails I get from people asking me how they can lose 20 - 30 lb in less than 2 weeks!  If your goal is to lose weight naturally, you should be looking to lose about 2 lb per week.  Anything more than that, and you’re setting yourself up for disappointment.

6. Do what you need, not what you THINK you need.  For instance, if your goal is to lose weight and get lean in the quickest way possible, you should be doing short intense interval based workouts, rather than some traditional bodybuilding style workouts.  Now, if you’re goal is to become a bodybuilder and gain as much muscle mass as possible, I would recommend the opposite.  The point is, make sure that you’re doing what’s right for your fitness goals.  That way you don’t waste any time and effort doing something that’s not going to get you any closer to achieving your goals.

So there you have it.  If you’re falling short of reaching your fitness goals because you have a hard time finishing what you started, try implementing these 6 simple tips, so you can finally realize your full fitness potential.