For a better workout, trick your brain

We all know that exercise is good for us, but the benefits don’t always motivate us to set an alarm and lace up our running shoes. According to the National Center for Health Statistics, 75 percent of Americans do not meet recommended guidelines for aerobic and strengthening exercise.

Many experts say that the key to better and more regular workouts is not the body, but the mind. As anyone wavering between a Netflix binge and an evening run understands, the body may be willing, but the mind needs a kickstart every now and then.

However, there are a few tools that can trick our reluctant brains into finding the motivation to get back to the gym or hit that bike ride.

Spell it out.

The brain loves a game, especially if it’s hard to predict or offers periodic rewards, said Daya Grant, a neuroscientist and mental performance coach in Los Angeles. Take advantage of that

For example, Milo Bryant, a performance coach in San Diego, uses an exercise bag for his group classes. “They pull an exercise out of one bag and some reps out of the other and whatever comes up, that’s what they do,” he said.

Apps like Zombies, Run! – a cross between a fitness tracker and an episode of “The Last of Us” – takes this to a new level. Like most running apps, it lets you track your route and pace. The twist is how it is pipes “missions” through your headphones as you run, instructing you to sprint to evade a zombie or pick up supplies to build a virtual shelter.

The Rouvy app connects to a smart trainer, which turns your regular bike into a stationary bike, for a virtual ride through various city streets around the world. It can even adjust your bike’s resistance as you encounter dips and hills. Pam Moore, a cycling instructor in Boulder, Colo., said she once cycled through Beverly Hills with a friend in Portland, Oregon, without leaving home.

“Even though she got ahead of me, we still got to ride together,” said Ms. Moore.

Customize it.

Our brain also likes things that look like us. In a recent researchathletes who thought they were given a tailored training plan performed better than those who thought they were following a generic training plan.

Personal trainers are a natural way to tap into this perception. Or you can use an app like Stronger by the Day, where trainers record your fitness stats (for example, the heaviest load you can lift) and create a custom strength training program for you.

“I’m obsessed with it,” Ms. Moore said. “Simply showing up and doing what it said has made me so much stronger.”

According to Panteleimon Ekkekakis, an exercise psychologist at Michigan State University, we tend to remember experiences by how we feel at the end of them. That is why he proposes “reverse the order of practice – do the hardest part early after a good warm-up and gradually reduce the intensity – so that you leave the session with the best possible memory. This reverse slope approach not only increases pleasure just after a workout, but also improves how we perceive movement up to a week later.

Work like a (Pavlovian) dog.

To use can be hard-wired into the brain. So tie your fitness into an “anchor habit,” something you already do every day, said Ben Reale, a personal trainer in Atlanta. For example, if you drop your kids off at school at 8:00 a.m., make sure you’re in the weight room by 8:15 a.m.

“Like the Pavlovian response, if we stack these habits consistently over several weeks, we take the decision point, the willpower, out of the equation,” Reale said.

More reluctant athletes may need something extra. Try to combine your workout with an activity you love, like catching up on the latest season of The Bachelor. This “Temptation bundling” is strengthened if you only do the desired activity when you’re working out, said Katy Milkman, a behavioral scientist at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School.

“So you’re just indulging in your regular TV or listening to your vampire novels at the gym,” Dr. Milkman said.

Make an emotional commitment.

The most effective psychological trick to instilling an exercise habit may also be the simplest: sign up for something — whether it’s a 5K three months from now, a tennis tournament a year from now, or a father-daughter dance next spring .

“When we train for something, it gives each workout a purpose,” said Mr. Bryant. Set smaller goals along the way, making sure they are challenging but achievable.

Most importantly, find out what works best for you – keep in mind that this is subject to change. Exercise is more sustainable if we have an emotional bond with it.

“That’s why some people run marathons for charity or dedicate each mile to a specific person,” said Dr. Grant.

Connie Chang is a freelance science and parenting writer based in Silicon Valley.