2 Strategies That Will Motivate You to Work Out Every Day

Finding the formula to create motivation is the age-old question that every fitness professional and boutique-fitness hub has been trying to master. As a group-fitness pioneer, my finger has been on the pulse of motivation for two decades. The key is to discover how your mind best transforms the information it’s given into the “movement” of your body. In today’s social media-driven society, we have so many ways to ingest inspiration that it can become overwhelming. So I’m going to break down the two most important components to getting motivated: Your team and your playlist.

Which leads me to my question for you: What is your “motivational makeup,” and how can we tap into it on a physical level to keep your entire life in motion?

This will be our first step together—uncovering your physical hot buttons for pushing yourself. Whether they’re athletic-based, dance-based or outdoor-based, this will be the basis of your workout.

Read more: Jenna Lyons’ Secrets to Impressing Your Boss

The next step is to build your team around these interests. My philosophy on getting fit is you cannot do it alone. You have to have a team. As a veteran group-fitness instructor, I believe group-exercise classes are the best place to find your teammates. So Google a fitness class based on your interests. Don’t stop trying classes until you find the instructor, the tribe and the community that works for you. It’s the can’t-stop-won’t-stop attitude!

What if group exercise just isn’t for you or you can’t afford the classes or the time it takes from your day? Where can you build your team? Think about who understands your new attitude about being motivated to move. Is it a friend, a spouse, a sister, a boyfriend, a girlfriend? Whomever it is, make them part of your new “squad,” “crew” or “posse” (or feel free to name it something special!). This will be the group you call on to run in the park, walk on the streets or bike across the neighborhood with. You’ll find it so enjoyable to exercise with people as opposed to doing it solo.

I’ve found over the years that music is also a huge component to unlocking the floodgates of positive power that live inside of you. So pick music that moves you. Put 10 songs in a playlist, and title it, “MOTIVATE ME.” It should be about 45 minutes long.

In the first song, you create an intention and a positive visualization for where you are going. If you know where you’re going in your workout, chances are you’ll know where you’re going in your life. This is where your motivation comes from: having a goal.

Then include eight songs that you love. The ones that when you hear them driving in the car, they get you tapping on the steering wheel, your head bobbing, your shoulders moving. What is your “Rocky song”? Identify the music in your library that makes you super-excited! (Think: Earth Wind & Fire’s “September,” Pitbull’s “Time Of Our Lives” or any quick-paced Madonna song). Walk to it, jog to it, run to it, just move to it. If you can’t make it for the whole duration, just move for two or three songs, and work your way up to 10! Get in your flow. That means: Don’t think about time. This will get your heart rate up, your serotonin levels cranking and your desire to live life to a level that makes you so happy.

Finally, choose your last song to meditate and cool down. During this last song, you come back into focus, feel calm and strong. This is your “this is going to be O.K.; I have the power to do it” moment. You take the power of accomplishing your workout goal into the rest of your day. Make the call, sign the deal, send the email. Whether it’s reaching out to someone for help or taking advantage of an opportunity, today is the day you swing for the fence and hit it out of the park.

Read more: Organization Expert Marie Kondo Declutters Her Brain Like She Declutters Her Closets

With today’s modern technology, we’re able to keep these playlists on our smartphones, and at any given moment climb into the mood to move! Your playlists will become part of your formula for motivation, and you must listen to them every day to make sure you move—and also just to get you into the mindset of awesome!

Stacey Griffith is a senior master instructor at SoulCycle. Stacey’s motivational coaching style combines a passion for dance, athleticism and mind-blowing music—all set to the beat of her voice.