Stick to your workout

A recent study by the National Center for Health Statistics found that only 19% of the population regularly engages in high levels of physical activity. That's defined as three intense 20-minute workouts per week.

Another 63%, about the same percentage as that of Americans who are overweight, believe that exercising would make them healthier, leaner, and less stressed, but they don't do it. At the root of this problem is motivation, or the lack thereof.

Here are some tips to help you stick to your workout:

Tie Exercise to Your Health
Check your cholesterol. Then set a goal of lowering your LDL cholesterol by 20 points and increasing your HDL cholesterol by 5 points. You'll decrease your risk of heart disease while providing yourself with a very important, concrete goal. Ask your doctor to write a prescription for new blood work in a month. You'll just have to go to the lab, and the doctor will call you with the results.

Switch Your Training Partners
Working out with a partner who will hold you accountable for showing up at the gym works well for a while. But the more familiar you are with the partner, the easier it becomes to back out of workout plans. Close friends and family members don't always make the best training partners because they may allow you to slack off or cancel workouts. To keep this from happening, find a new, less forgiving workout partner every few months.

Compete
Find a sport or event that you enjoy and train to compete in it. It adds a greater meaning to each workout.

Strike an Agreement with Your Mate and Kids
The rule: You get 1 hour to yourself every day, provided that you use it for exercise and reciprocate the favor. So there's no pressure to do household chores, play marathon games of any board game. Since it's for your health, it's a contract they can't refuse. And that will allow you to exercise guilt-free while acting as a role model for your children.

Don't Do What You Hate
Whenever you start to dread your workout, do what appeals to you instead. If you dislike going to a gym, try working out at home. If you despise the treadmill, then jump rope, lift weights, or find a basketball court. Bottom line: If you're sick of your routine, find a new one.

Plan Your Workouts in Advance
At the start of each month, schedule all of your workouts at once, and cross them off as they're completed. For an average month, you might try for a total of 16 workouts. If any are left undone at the end of the month, tack them on to the following month. And make sure you have a back up plan for bad weather and unscheduled meetings. You're about 40 percent more likely to work out if you have strategies to help you overcome these obstacles.