Never Miss Another Workout! - 5 Steps to Consistency

The BIGGEST problem with most of us working out is…consistency.

Meaning, we all know STARTING a fitness routine is easy.

But STICKING to it? That's where most people hit a wall.

I’ve been training for an Ironman 70.3 triathlon for the last 4 months now, and…I think I’ve cracked it.

What I do is I set myself a longer-term goal, like I have my Ironman 70.3 triathlon in 4 months, but I also set myself shorter goals to stay consistent and motivated in the short term, like setting myself a 30 day challenge.

30 day challenges are some of the simplest, yet underrated fitness plans.

In that, you could go the traditional path and be like, "I'll start going to the gym 3 times a week".

But if that is your goal, chances are, eventually, you could end up losing motivation and giving up.

The second option is, you can set yourself a 30 day challenge.

Jumprope for 20 minutes every day for 30 days. Or run 5km every day, or walk 10,000 steps, or yoga 20 minutes every day.

30 day challenges are so much more powerful because it’s the gamification of fitness.

It directly tackles – in my opinion – the biggest problem in fitness, which is, losing motivation with working out after a few days or weeks, and ultimately giving up.

It’s very simple. You set yourself a 30 day fitness challenge, and every day for 30 days, you follow 5 rules.

Rule #1: Exercise Daily

Earlier this year, while training for my Ironman 70.3 triathlon,

I realised that out of the three disciplines – running, cycling, and swimming, it was my swimming that was by far my weakest.

So I did a ‘Swim 10 Laps Every Day for 30 Day’ challenge.

On day 1, I couldn't even swim two laps in the pool without feeling exhausted.

I hadn't had a swimming lesson in 20 years.

But I did my 30 day challenge of swimming every day of 30 days, as well as hiring a swimming instructor for three sessions a week.

And on day 30, I was able to swim 100 laps non-stop.

And then a few weeks later, I completed my first 5km Oceanman.

I think that right there really shows how much you can improve in 30 days if you focus your energy every day on that one thing.

And you're not saying, "I'm going to exercise for the rest of my life."

You're saying, "I'm going to do this specific, measurable workout every day for 30 days."

It's concrete. It's achievable. And most importantly, it works.

It’s about making a commitment to yourself that you WILL prioritise your health for the next 30 days,

and then choosing one measurable exercise goal you can hit consistently

Maybe it's going to the gym for 1 hour every day, walking 10,000 steps every day.

Maybe it's 50 push-ups. Maybe it's running 5km.

The specific exercise doesn't matter - what matters is that it's measurable and realistically achievable to complete daily for 30 days.

An important disclaimer.

Do not, do not, do NOT, prioritise your 30 day challenge over your physical or mental health.

Meaning two things:

1. Don’t set a challenge that is so ambitious, so crazy, so daunting, that you risk injury.

2. If you are coming down with an injury, please take a break. Prioritise your health. Listen to your body. Get medical advice if required.

This framework is designed to encourage consistency, but NOT at the detriment of your health. I cannot overemphasise that

Rule #2: Eat Healthily

As the saying goes, you can’t out-exercise a bad diet.

So there’s no point on exercising daily if you’re just going to be eating junk all day.

The idea with these 5 rules is that they all complement each other, so you experienced the synergy effect – the 1+1=3 effect.

For example, if you exercise every day – great, you’ll get decent results,

but if you exercise every day AND eat healthily every day, your results in 30 days will be significantly better.

This rule is about fuelling your body to keep you energized.

Maybe it's eating five different vegetables every day, or cutting out junk food completely.

Pick one nutrition goal and stick to it. Remember, you're not changing your diet forever - you're committing to 30 days of focused, deliberate action.

For me, I keep it super simple.

No junk food for 30 days. That’s it.

No fancy diet, no calorie counting, I just focus on the one change in my diet that will have the biggest effect – and I don’t want to overcomplicate things.

Rule #3: Drink 2L of Water

I’ve been doing this daily for years now – and the biggest noticeable effect it has on me is it helps me keep those mid-day energy slumps away.

Every morning, within 15 minutes of waking up, I’ll drink at least 500ml of water.

Because, when we sleep, whether we notice it or not, for every hour that we’re asleep, we’re very slowly becoming more and more dehydrated.

So when we wake up in the morning, we’re in a state of dehydration.

Symptoms of dehydrating include having a headache, feeling dizzy, feeling tired and lacking energy.

It’s a super easy habit to get into. 

I have a 1.9 litre Stanley bottle sat on my desk everyday and my goal is to finish it before the end of the day.

But also, because it’s sat here all day every day – I keep seeing it – and it reminds me to keep sipping on it throughout the day.

It’s no secret – I love 30 day challenges.

I’ve done dozens, if not hundreds of them.

It’s also why I created Fit in 30, which is a comprehensive system including a course and community to help you complete your 30 day fitness challenge.

You get access to our comprehensive Framework video course which gives you guidance on how to achieve the best fitness results in 30 days –

whether you want to lose weight or just exercise more.

You’ll get an 11-page handbook, and with our tracking tools, we help you track your progress as well.

You'll also get a dedicated accountability coach, starting with a personal onboarding call to brainstorm your 30 day roadmap

Weekly group calls with me and the rest of the community ensure you're supported and motivated.

This isn't just about completing a 30 day challenge - it's about building the foundation for a lifetime of consistent achievement.

So if you’re ready to make a commitment today to prioritise your health for the next 30 days – click here to check Fit in 30 out.

Rule #4: Use a Habit Tracker

This is a rule that some people tend to skip because they don’t think it’s that important.

Believe me, in terms of staying consistent for 30 days, tracking your progress with some kind of habit tracker is so important.

When I started my boxing challenge a couple of years ago - going from never having boxed in my life to training every day for 30 days -

tracking my progress was what kept me going.

Each X in the habit tracker highlighted a successful day.

Seeing that chain of Xs grow longer made me think twice about skipping a day – because if you miss a day,

you’re going to have that recorded in your habit tracker for the rest of the month.

And as I mentioned earlier, we do have a couple of different 30 day challenge trackers – an online tracker on Notion,

or an offline tracker that you can print off and stick on your fridge – you can access those in Fit in 30.
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The tracker isn't just about accountability - it's about proving to yourself that you can be consistent.

It's about watching your small daily wins add up to massive change.

And trust me, by day 30, looking back at your habit tracker and be proud of how far you’ve come.
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Rule #5: Document the Process

For every 30 day challenge I do, this is – by far – the single most effective strategy for ensuring I follow through on the 30 days – it makes sure I DON’T give up half way through.

It’s using the premise of social accountability.

Let me explain.

Not too long ago I started a 30 day challenge which was to write a book in 30 days.

To do that, I would write 1000 words every day for 30days, and then I’d have a book.

I posted a quick 5-30 second story every single day on my Instagram and Facebook.

Why? To keep myself accountable.

If I started the challenge, but then gave up halfway through – I’d look like a fool. So you’re held accountable to keep going.

Exactly the same thing when I was training for my Ironman 70.3

I made a YouTube video on it telling my audience my challenge, that I have 10 months to train.

So by making that public commitment – there’s no way I’m going to back out of that.

I’ve done numerous 30 day challenges, and documented most of them, because that social accountability is so powerful.

Whether that’s just writing a quick post on Facebook publicly committing to a 30 day challenge, or filming a quick 10-20 second Facebook or Instagram story every day.

But, if you’d rather keep your journey private, there are several other alternatives for documenting your journey.

You might create a personal photo diary, taking consistent shots at the same time and place each day to truly capture your transformation – these visual markers can be incredibly motivating when you look back – particularly if you’re aiming to lose weight.

Even just a before picture on Day 1, and an after picture on Day 30. It’s an incredibly motivating way to see your progress.

Alternatively, maintaining a dedicated progress diary or journal lets you record daily wins, struggles, and insights,
plus any relevant measurements or milestones that matter to your specific challenge.

You could also consider an accountability partner.

Maybe you have a friend that would love to join the 30 day challenge with you, and you do it together and hold each other accountability.

It turns the 30 day challenge into a more sociable event, which makes it more fun, meaning you’re more likely to reach the finish line in 30 days with significant results.

I wasted years of my life being that person who couldn't stick to a fitness routine – until I started doing 30 day challenges.

Do check out the Fit in 30 community if you are inspired and committed to prioritising your health for the next 30 days, you can check it out here.