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May 3, 2024 – There are plenty of reasons to exercise, but some are more motivating than others. 

Perhaps the sexiest motivator – and the one people tend to go with, especially with warm weather around the corner – is to build the “beach body.” 

The problem: Setting big expectations for weight loss can position you for disaster. More research is showing that exercise alone has a relatively small impact on weight loss, and if you don’t see the results you wanted, your motivation wanes. 

For many – maybe you – “exercise is only associated with trying to lose weight,” said David Creel, PhD, a psychologist, dietitian, and exercise physiologist at Cleveland Clinic. Because of that, “it’s been linked with a lifetime of perceived failure and has a really negative connotation.”

A change in mindset may help: If the number on the scale refuses to change, keep exercising anyway, Creel said. “I’ll ask patients, ‘If your diet goes south, do you stop showering?’” Of course not, he said: “That’s how we should think about exercise” – as part of your health maintenance routine. 

If you can drop your diastolic pressure (the small number) by just 5 to 6 mm Hg, you may reduce your stroke risk by about 40%.

Track it: You should have your blood pressure tested regularly (every 2 to 5 years before age 40, and yearly after that). If you have high blood pressure, follow your doctor’s recommendations. At-home monitors are a smart investment. (Find validated devices here.) Most have an app to track trends. The Greater Goods Bluetooth Blood Pressure Monitor ($68) is the choice of the Wirecutter product testing site and has a high user rating on Amazon. 

Be consistent: Check your pressure at the same time each day – a good time is right after you wake up, before having any caffeine, and after 5 minutes of stillness. (Though some docs recommend taking it in the morning and at night.)

Reason #2: To Finally Eliminate Those Midday Slumps 

An energy boost right after working out is typical – and motivating, said Amy Bucher, PhD, chief behavioral officer at Lirio and author of Engaged: Designing for Behavior Change. That boost is called a leading indicator: “You can detect that after a single workout,” she said. Weight loss, on the other hand, is a lagging indicator. 

Visual reminder: Change your smartphone background to an image that represents your “why.” For Bucher, a photo of her and her husband in Puerto Rico reminds her that endurance helps her embrace adventure. 

Reason #3: To Feel Like You Can Achieve Anything

Psychologists call it “self-efficacy” – your confidence in your ability to achieve a goal. It’s one of the main reasons people stick to exercise, backed up by decades of research. It’s a virtuous cycle: Regular exercise reliably helps you build self-efficacy, experts agree, and the more you exercise, the more you improve. You’ll get faster, stronger, and more skilled – and tracking that progress can be inspiring. 

As you improve, you boost your feelings of competence, a key factor in “self-determination” theory. All humans have three basic psychological needs, the theory goes – autonomy, competence, and relatedness (a sense of connection with others). 

This works at whatever level you’re at: lowering your average pace on a run, or just walking a few more blocks each time out. Even maintaining a streak of exercise days can boost confidence. 

You’re likely to notice better sleep soon after starting an exercise routine, according to an analysis from the Journal of Behavioral Medicine. 

Physical activity can influence the production of the sleep-wake hormone melatonin, helping you fall asleep faster and sleep better. It helps improve mood and reduce stress – both helpful for falling and staying asleep. And it helps regulate core body temperature, making sleep easier to come by. 

Track it: WHOOP ($239 for an annual membership), Oura Ring ($299), and the Fitbit Sense 2 ($249.95) are wearable options for sleep tracking, said Bucher. You can also invest in a “smart bed,” a mattress with adjustable firmness that uses sensors to gather data about your sleep, like the Sleep Number smart bed ($1,099 for a queen), which monitors your movements, heartbeat, and breathing patterns to measure sleep quality. 

Bedtime bonus: Better sleep can help prevent weight regain, said Creel. “Poor sleep can lead people to fall off their healthy eating patterns,” he said. A well-rested person is more likely to stick to the program.

Feeling happy and good about yourself tends to be a great autonomous motivator.

Track it: Your mood is tricky to track. Try journaling right after workouts and at another time of day to see if exercise had an impact. Ask yourself how you handled stressful situations; how strongly you felt negative emotions and how you coped with them; and if anything you did made you joyful or grateful.

Apps like Daylio and eMoods let you track your mental state with emojis that represent what you did that day and how you felt. You’ll still have ups and downs, but the goal is to feel better on average over time. Overall, exercise can help ease anxiety, make you feel like you can deal with challenges better, and create a sense of lightness in your life. 

Take a moment: Instead of rushing off to the next thing after a workout, take 10 seconds to notice how you feel, compared to before you exercise. This type of mindfulness can be motivating, Bucher said.