Why wait for New Year’s Day to start your health cure? Do it now

New Zealand’s biggest fun race, Round the Bays 2023 is scheduled for Sunday March 5, and to get you ready Things launches the RTB Fitness Club. It’s an 8-week workout program designed to get you fit and excited about exercising with a like-minded community, whether you’re tackling the event in person in Auckland or virtually. Each week, we’ll bring you stories to inspire and educate you on your fitness journey. Register your early interest in the RTB Fitness Club here.

While January might seem like the perfect time to start integrating movement into your life, experts say that if you want to make a change, there’s a harm in starting right away.

Auckland-based personal trainer Nick Williams and Cameron Grigg, owner of Antics Health and Fitness, gave us five reasons to start the new year, again before December 31st.

You always wish you had started sooner, so why not now?

Grigg says that no matter when you start, “you’re always going to think to yourself, I wish I started earlier. I wish I had started when I was younger,” so there’s no need to put it off for a few weeks.

Williams also points out that many people have to reach the point of “having to” make a change to actually want to make it. And once you’ve reached that point and made a decision?

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“What are you really waiting for?”

“The gains aren’t going to jump in your lap,” he says, adding that fitness doesn’t care about the time of year.

“Why base it on an arbitrary day?”

There’s always another Monday (or another New Year’s)

Waiting for the New Year, says Grigg, is like promising to start “Monday.”

“It’s really easy to say, ‘I’m going to start tomorrow,’ but you’ll be the same person saying the same thing tomorrow,” says Grigg.

“It’s just a pedestal that you put January 1 on.”

Get stress release during Christmas build up

It’s no secret that the Christmas hoarding is stressful, says Griggs, and the movement is known to help with mental health.

“You can channel [that stress through exercise] and you can own it,” he says. “It’s a constructive way to deal with stress while being healthier, fitter and stronger.”

Eliminate the toughest week to feel good by 2023

“The first week of training is always the hardest – if you get through it, you’ll put yourself in a better position for the New Year,” says Griggs.

Williams agrees that exercise can help, but also cautions that a new fitness regimen is something that requires some “mental capacity” to get started. So, if life is really stressful, it’s worth considering whether it’s time to add something new.

“At this time of year, we have a lot of mental load on our plate. If you’re that kind of person who gets incredibly stressed out, this might not be for you. [right now],” he says.

“You have to know that you are in the right mental charge to take on something new.”

Setting a date sets you up for failure

Williams says that if you set huge expectations for a particular date on the calendar, you’re often setting yourself up to fail.

Half the battle for starting a fitness journey is realizing that now is the time to start, he says. And if you’ve made that decision, why wait?

“There is no point in setting a particular time to start something, because who is to say that something will not appear in the new year [that derails you].”

Williams’ tips for getting started

• If you have the budget, hire a professional to help you
• Always remember your “why” – whether it’s to look better or something deeper, write it down and keep coming back to it.
• Be bold with goals. For many, says Williams, completing the fun Auckland Round the Bays race in March is a bold move. But one that is definitely achievable. So be bold. And when you reach that goal, have another bold goal at hand.

What is the RTB Fitness Club?

Stuff is launching the RTB Fitness Club with trainer Bevan James Eyles to help Kiwis get excited about fitness, build long-term habits to stay motivated, and connect with a like-minded community. Whether you have purchased your entry to join us on the day in Auckland, or are locked in to participate virtually, we invite you to log on and be a part of this club too. Once you have purchased your entry to the race, you will also have the option of joining the RTB Fitness Club.

For $25 you will get:

• An 8-week training program of walking, running or running only

• Weekly Mentoring Videos with Bevan

• Weekly Live Q&A with Bevan

• A strength and stretch component to help you prevent injury

• Access to the exclusive RTB Fitness Club Facebook group

The first 250 people to join the club will receive a FREE Under Armor t-shirt. Register your interest now here and be the first to know when the club opens in December.