When we exercise alone, we converse with ourselves. We have opinions which we take seriously. When we decide we should be happy we agree with ourselves and then we are happy. Unfortunately, we might decide we are getting nowhere with our fitness program and should quit, and we might agree again.

When our conversations are negative, we become our own worst enemy. We could persuade ourselves to quit doing something that we KNOW is good for us. Like exercising.

Maybe you are not like that, but certainly you know someone who is, at least around fitness. It is especially around fitness activities that so many people discourage themselves. Just look around. People know what they should do. But do they do it?

And sometimes we also are just like that. I know, I have discouraged myself more often than I like to admit. If we judge our fitness progress and we are pleased, we put more energy into it, or not. We have long conversations about our fitness, and convince ourselves what the best thing is to do.

We may not hear ourselves because you the sound of that voice in our head is always there. How often do we question that voice? Most of us tend to agree with whatever it says.

The most significant reason people stop or do badly comes from judging themselves negatively.

So what can you do to make sure you keep yourself motivated, happy, progressing?

Number 1: Give yourself realistic goals you can achieve.

Make sure you do not set yourself up for failure by expecting too much too quickly. You might discuss this with another person. You might not know what is realistic. After all, we expect quite a bit from ourselves.

This is not about what you want. We all want more than we can have right now. That is good. But when we want to make progress with fitness, we should pay attention to what makes sense. Making a little progress every day is far better than making ourselves miserable because we did not do more.

Be sure to feel good about your progress. Celebrate even the smallest victories.

It is also wise to dwell on results that will come later from doing this fitness activity now.

Making a collage to put on your refrigerator (or somewhere else visible) can really help. Just cut out pictures that remind you of where you are heading and glue them on a piece of paper. This is to inspire and remind you. If it does not, throw it out.

You can also let yourself play. Just fantasize a bit about how you are on track to mastering your life. Let yourself play act being your favorite type of hero.

There are so many great ways to encourage yourself. And so many great people who can instruct you and share with you methods that work.

You can go to my website for several methods that make's this easy. Just click on the web address below.

So, if you exercise by yourself, make sure you treat yourself well to stay motivated. Track your victories. Encourage yourself. Celebrate all your victories. Celebrating brings more victories. You are a winner. The better you feel about winning, the more you win.

Even if you do create the most amazing positive conversations with yourself about fitness, a fast and easy alternative is to listen to music, or literature, or motivational talks. You might wish to do this no matter how psyched you are about fitness. It is a great use of your fitness time.