Where's the sunshine?

Urgh, don't you just hate it when things are going well and then something comes along and throws a spanner in the works? How about being a Seasonal Affective Disorder sufferer and living in Britain where the 'summer' weather is crap?

I am usually on anti-depressants from September to April and the effects lessen as April goes on. This year however, I have stopped taking them as per usual (in April) but am still really struggling. Waking up in the morning is nigh on impossible and I have to really force myself out of bed and exercising. Exercise has been proven to help alleviate the symptoms due to causing the release of endorphins and serotonin. But how do you get down to exercising when you really don't feel like it?

This is what has worked for me:

1. Set goals. This can be anything from dropping a dress size, losing half a stone or finishing a phase of your workout. I have several goals: The first was to finish the first week of P90X, then to finish the second, then to finish the whole of phase 1. Then I have set the same goals but for the second phase. My other goal is to be at my target-weight by May of next year in time for my cousin's wedding. I also have a workout tips jar. Every time that I do a workout, I put a £ into the jar and everytime that I lose a lb in weight, a £ goes into the jar. The money will be saved so that I can treat myself to a dress for aforementioned wedding.

2. Get visual motivation. Take a look on google and find fitness websites. Take a look at pictures of people at the peak of fitness that you want to achieve. Read their stories. Go on forums and post for tips and support. Print out the photos that you find most inspiring and create a motivation board. Is there a sport that you have always wanted to try? A yoga position that you want to be able to do? Stick that on the board as well.

3. Get wised up on the benefits of exercise and good diet. It is scary when you read the truth about food, such as carbs being portrayed as the basis of a balanced diet even though they are chock-full of refined, white flour, hormones, sugar and gluten. Food companies are only interested in producing food that can be preserved so that it can sit on your shelf for weeks, even years. Once you learn exactly what you are eating, you will gradually find that you will gravitate towards natural, wholesome foods anyway. That's not to say that you can't treat yourself but you may find that certain foods are not as palatable as they once were. This is exactly what has happened to me and I am all the better for it. Nutrition and exercise also go hand in hand. Want rock-hard abs? Do all the sit-ups you want but if you're not eating right, you will never get those abs. 80% of muscle is built in the kitchen. Eat right and those muscles will come.

4. Get a mantra. This can be something short and sweet: 'Be strong, be fierce', 'Who Dares Wins' (a golden oldie) or something longer 'Pain is weakness leaving the body'. Ideally it will be something that can fall into rhythm with your movements but isn't lengthy. Studies have proven that when athletes are tired, a mantra can help them to re-focus and carry on going. The science is that, when you're tired, all you can think is "Jesus, I'm tired". "My arms are so heavy and tired". or what I regularly think "Urgh, I'm dead". A mantra moves your attention away from how tired you're feeling and makes you more focused through repetitive affirmation. It's essentially the same thing that pro-athletes do when visualising game-play.

5. Get a routine. Set a time for when you will exercise and stick to it. Draw up a calender and write in your workout schedule. As you tick the days off, you will become more determined to exercise and after three weeks it will be forming as a habit.

As hard as it is to exercise - especially after an illness or coming back from holiday - it is important to get back in to it. It can be the last thing that you feel like doing but you have to take that first step, which is often the hardest one to take.