9 personality traits of people who prioritize health and fitness

Prioritizing health and fitness isn’t always easy, but if you’ve ever managed to make it a priority in your life, you’ve probably seen the benefits firsthand.

Like anything in life, it’s about establishing habits that you then stick to. Once they become second nature, it becomes much easier for you to keep them for an extended period and build on them to make further improvements.

Sometimes it seems like it takes a certain type of person to be healthy and in good shape, but the truth is, we all have it within us. This is because our personalities can change, so if we really want to prioritize health and fitness, we can take steps to do so.

And that’s exactly what today’s article is about! Let’s take a look at what we can learn from people who prioritize their health and fitness.

1) They make no excuses

First, people who prioritize health and fitness make no excuses. If they commit to going to the gym every day, they go every day whether they feel like it or not. They refuse to let an apology get in the way.

This is the thing I find the hardest, so if you’re anything like me, the same will be true for you.

The problem is, we start out with the best of intentions and then one day we wake up with a headache, or it’s our birthday, or there’s some other excuse that’s keeping us from working hard.

Prioritizing health and fitness is a year-round thing that we need to keep working on. I think it’s like a Snakes and Ladders game but without the ladders.

There are no shortcuts to get us on, but if we make excuses and take a couple of days off, we slide down a snake and have a lot of work to do just to get back to where we were.

2) They like to heat up and sweat

Some people like to sweat, while other people hate it. I fall into the latter camp, at least most of the time. I’m not a fan of warmth under my collar when I’m walking around or just living my life, but I don’t mind breaking a sweat when I work out.

If I was willing to get hot and sweaty when out and about, I’d probably spend more time walking and less time in Ubers. I would also be in much better shape. But as I said at the beginning of this article, there’s a lot of room for change.

So if you want to prioritize your health and fitness, a good place to start is by prioritizing heat and sweat. If you’re happy to build up a sweat from time to time, you’ll soon find yourself getting back in shape.

3) They set goals and achieve them

Perhaps the most important thing I’ve noticed among people who prioritize their health and fitness is that they regularly set goals and then hold themselves accountable for achieving them. If you don’t have a goal, you have nothing to work towards.

Different people have different approaches to goal setting. One of the most popular ways to set goals is to use SMART goals – goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and timely.

When it comes to fitness, a good example of a SMART goal would be to lose ten kilograms in six months by increasing your activity level and limiting your calorie intake to a maximum of 2,000 calories per day.

In fact, that’s what I’m working towards right now by adopting some of the personality traits we were talking about.

4) They hold themselves accountable

There is no point in having a goal if you don’t hold yourself accountable for achieving that goal. This is as true in the workplace as it is at home, but I can’t think of anywhere that is more relevant than when it comes to our health and fitness.

This is because unless you are able to hold yourself accountable for what you want to achieve, you will not be able to achieve it.

If you look at someone you consider successful, chances are they have goals and hold themselves accountable for achieving them.

This goes for health and fitness, but it also goes for everything else in life. Get good at holding yourself in charge of your health and fitness, and you might be surprised at the impact it can have elsewhere.

5) They celebrate achievements

When you set goals and hold yourself accountable for achieving them, you will begin to achieve them.

When that happens, don’t just nod and smile to yourself and move on. Celebrate that win, even if it just means treating yourself to a rewatch of your favorite movie.

If we don’t celebrate the achievement of milestones achieved, then it can feel like they never happened or that, even if they did, it was an anti-climax.

I like to break down my bigger goals into smaller milestones. So with a goal to lose ten kilograms I have celebrated hitting 2.5kg and 5kg and plan to celebrate 7.5k before a big party when I reach the end.

I’ve found that it’s a good idea to decide ahead of time how you plan to celebrate reaching your milestones so that you can look forward to it.

Let’s say you’re going to buy yourself a new coat that you’ve been eyeing for a while. Print a photo of it and keep it on your desk to make sure you keep an eye on the prize.

6) They drink lots of water

We all know it’s a good idea to drink lots of water and stay hydrated. The problem is, not many of us actually do that.

The beauty of drinking water is that it is difficult to consume too much. It’s not like fatty food that’s bad for you, and unless you really go overboard and try to consume every bottle of water in your city, you’ll only see benefits.

To make sure I drink plenty of water, I have a water bottle that I carry with me everywhere I go so I can stay hydrated when I’m on the go.

When I’m sitting at my desk in my office, I always have a glass of water that I top up every hour or so. And in warm weather, I like to freeze bottles of water so I can drink them as they thaw throughout the day.

7) They never skip breakfast

They say that breakfast is the most important meal of the day and there is a lot of truth in this. It’s the meal that jump-starts your metabolism and gives you the energy and nutrients you need to get out of bed.

One of the great things about never skipping breakfast is that if you’re like me, you won’t feel like eating something heavy in the morning when you’ve just woken up.

This makes it super easy for you to have a healthy breakfast that is good for you instead of just snacking on cakes and cookies while waiting for lunch.

I also find that by eating a healthy breakfast, I often don’t feel too hungry when lunchtime rolls around. This makes it less likely that I plan to go out and often just go get some fruit. The TL:DR is that if you have to skip a meal, skip lunch not breakfast.

8) They fill their home with healthy foods

Speaking of healthy foods, I’ve found that by filling my house with healthy foods, it’s much easier to make sure I eat them.

Think about it if your cupboards are filled with unhealthy snacks, you will eat them all.

I did something similar when I wanted to cut down on alcohol consumption. By simply no longer buying alcohol and keeping none in the house, I drastically reduced my intake. Then I took that learning and applied it to the food I ate.

One thing I will say is that you should consider prep time as well, because that is something that often surprises me.

It’s no good having healthy foods if it takes so long to make it that you don’t eat them. That’s why I swear by making sure I have fresh fruit and granola.

9) They prioritize their mental health

This point is the most important to me personally because I have experienced my fair share of mental health struggles and know what impact it can have on your life.

I speak from experience when I say that if your mental health isn’t in the right place, you won’t be able to prioritize your health and fitness. In other words, a healthy mind is the first step to having a healthy body.

The good news is that exercise can be a great way to give your mental health a boost, so the two go hand in hand.

And honestly, if you’re thinking about prioritizing your health, if you’re just prioritizing your mental health, then that’s still a lot better than nothing.

No excuses. Get started today.