More than one person's mouth warmed on January 1, and they decided to start doing sports in 2020. There are those who are still excited about this New Year wish, but the statistics indicate that today, the third Sunday of January, is the day in which the motivation for physical activity is lost.
Strava, a prestigious sports social network, reveals that January 19 is the most likely day to set aside the resolution to lead a more active life. It is the key day to find out if you are serious or not in the goal of changing habits in 2020. The study has had data from more than 822 million activities uploaded to the application throughout 2019, which indicate the third Sunday of January as the day when a greater number of people lose motivation, decrease their activity and end their good intentions.
Can we put a stop to this demotivation?
Of course it is possible. At first it is difficult, because you have to realize that practicing physical exercise is a habit, not an obligation or a short-term activity. Set yourself a goal. 95% of athletes who train with a goal in mind remain active 9 months later. Athletes who set themselves the goal of training three times a week tend to be more consistent, which translates into twice as many activities recorded per year.
You can also earn points if you you join a gym or a club. Athletes who join a club perform 10% more activity per month. It has been shown that do sports in a group it is also more beneficial for motivation. When athletes do sports in a group, they cover, on average, twice the distance they do alone. In Spain, 44% of all bicycle outings are made with at least one other person. In the case of running, 24% of them are done in groups.
And of course you have to invest in yourself. In their first six months, athletes usually record an average of 2 more activities per month. Give yourself time to progress and forget the excuses that can divert you from healthy goals.