Starting a fitness journey is probably the hardest part of the journey. The nervousness of stepping into a gym filled with people putting in work, looking healthy and chasing their personal goals. It may feel like entering such an environment can be daunting, with everyone staring at you with quiet judgment.

In all honesty, that look people give is a show of support.

Simply turning up to the gym is the first hurdle you leap, and it’s the biggest one. Following on from that, then comes consistency, the crucial phase to real development.

After a week, you’ll find yourself on the scale trying to spot a difference in weight, but that will come over time.

Once you find the routine that keeps you in flow state, you’ll become unstoppable. It’s infectious once people start noticing the results from the consistency.

There will be moments of doubt, asking yourself whether or not the results will ever come. Believe me, I was there. I was showing up week in week out, not knowing if I would ever reach my goals.

This will be a key moment for most of us on our fitness journey, asking ourselves, “Are we doing enough?”

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In those situations, you must look at the person you were before the many sessions, diet plans and consistency. You’ll then understand that you’re definitely doing enough.

The art of it comes from how the fitness journey affects your mentality and lifestyle. You become more in tune with your body, and you set a standard for yourself to live in a way that makes you feel confident in all aspects of your life.

That then leads to having that urge to reach long-term goals you’ve been aspiring for, whether that be building a family, building a career or starting a business.

All these things stem from consistently showing up for yourself, investing in your health and staying persistent. The mentality is strengthened through this process, and it’s evident to others around as they are witnessing the growth you’ve been making.

Being consistent comes with sacrifice; you inevitably must give up old habits to improve your lifestyle. For me, I had to give up binge-watching shows anytime I had, which then meant my eating habits changed too, as I had to eat whilst lazing around watching random shows and movies. Replacing binge watching with more physical activity was my biggest challenge, committing to 10k steps a day, playing a sport every week, going to the gym 5 days a week and going to work doing sports coaching allowed me to reach my fitness goals.

Ultimately, the art of consistency will depend on how patient and persistent you are. Mentally, you must realise that you will be alone most of the time, and you must be comfortable with that isolation. Yes, people will look at you differently. Yes, you will face stumbling blocks. Yes, it may take weeks, months or years to reach your desired destination. But the journey is what will be remembered and used as a testimony for you to share with others who want to make a change in their lives.