We all start off the New Year with bold resolutions and visions of how healthy our lives will be in the upcoming year. The month of January is full of trips to the gym, healthy meals, and optimism. By February, those trips to the gym aren’t quite as frequent and meal preparation falls to wayside, replaced with unhealthy lunches and dinners on the go. Trust me when I say, this year doesn’t have to follow the same pattern! Here are five tips to get out of the health and fitness rut you may have fallen into over the past month.

Get Outside

Spring is right around the corner and warmer temperatures mean more exercise options! Venture outside the four walls of the gym and opt for a walk or run outside instead. Explore your area to see if there are trails or other fun routes you could take to switch things up. I find it’s always more enjoyable to workout when there’s a beautiful background to enjoy.

Try a New Class

I find the environment in group fitness classes to be extra motivating. It’s also beneficial to have an instructor overseeing what you’re doing to correct for form, which can result in a better overall workout and a decreased risk of injury. While the price of boutique fitness classes can be steep depending on where you live, sprinkling even a class a week can breathe new life into your weekly fitness routine. Whether it’s CrossFit or barre, get out there and try something new!

Test Out New Recipes

Eating the same thing day after day gets old pretty quickly. I find meal monotony leads me to crave unhealthy (yet delicious) favorites like pizza and burgers. To ward off those cravings, try out new, healthy options regularly to keep things fresh. There’s many great food blogs out there, but skinnytaste and Confessions of a Fit Foodie are two of my meal inspiration favorites. Note, it’s okay to splurge every once in awhile – what’s life without an occasional pizza?

Team Up with a Friend

It’s no secret that there’s strength in numbers. Remember that you don’t have to go about your fitness journey alone. Whenever possible team up with a friend for a run or to try out a new class. You’ll motivate each other and likely have more fun than if you’d attempted it solo! Also, studies have shown that couples that workout together are happier in their relationships, so a friend can also mean your partner!

Make a New Playlist

It sounds simple, but new tunes can make such an impact in how motivated you feel during your workout. The next time you hit the pavement, download a new playlist to workout to. Spotify’s library of workout playlists makes it really easy to find the right soundtrack to whatever type of activity you’re doing. They have options for if you’re trying to get into beast mode or trying to twerk it out.

I hope these tips will help you recommit to the health goals you set out to achieve at the beginning of the year. The best way to get fit is to find ways to make it fun, so let me know if you have any other ideas that have worked well for you below in the comments. Let’s make March the new January!