The joy has to outweigh the pain. This is the only way someone is able to workout every day or every other day. You gotta enjoy certain parts of your workout routine so much that you'll do it again tomorrow (or the next day). Whether that's being outdoors, doing it with friends, the music, the endorphin rush after you're pau, the increased oxygen levels, getting your heart pumping, breaking a sweat, the muscle burn or blue skies you're looking up at. You gotta love what you do. Or you're not gonna be able to keep it up very long.
The joy outweighs the pain.
That's #1. Find something you love to do. I love to surf. Being in the open ocean--everything about it...I would surf every single day if I could. But I can't because sometimes there's no waves, brown water, not enough time, and more often than not shoulder/neck pain due to repetitive motion. So that brings me to....
#2: You have to vary your workouts. As I get older, I've come to realize I can't just run every day or I'll feel it in my knees. I can't just surf every day or I'll wind up with a sore shoulder. I can't...you get the point. I'm no personal trainer, I've had to just kind of learn what my body needs over the years and I've distilled it down to these things:
Cardio (HIIT, high impact)
Strength (lifting weights)
Endurance (running)
Pure fun (surfing, hiking, biking, golf, basketball, tennis, etc.)
Stretching and foam rolling/grastoning to smooth out your fascia and prevent injury
#3: It's better to do a little every day than a lot 3x/week. Your body needs to move every day.
#4: It's way easier to find ways to exercise at home or near your home. There's no drive time, you don't have to brush your teeth or wash your face before you start, and your workout clothes don't even have to be matching or cute! So we have a ton of workout equipment at home (I use about 10% of what we have lying around, and yes it does make for a lot of clutter). Also, you can always find ways to exercise on vacation. Go for a run right out the door! Find the fitness room at the hotel you're staying at! Take a walking tour of the city!
#5: Instead of going to the gym for GroupX classes (which I used to do 3x/week), or hiring a personal trainer (been there done that), I find free youtube workouts to do at home. Here are my favorites:
Sydney Cummings - Her name might sound like she's a porn star, but she's actually amazing at combining strength AND cardio! She is so positive, encouraging and high energy--I just love her! She posts a new workout every day. You can choose from her vast library of videos depending on how much time you have, what body part(s) you want to work, and what style of workout you prefer.
Heather Robertson - When I'm not in the mood for constant positive talk or repetitive rounds...I go to her channel for no-frills, no-nonsense, nonverbal workouts.
My favorite spin workout (cuz Dave gets shtuff like spin bikes and I'm the one who ends up using it):
Hope you can check out some of these videos and try them yourself sometime. Type "I crushed it" in the comments below if you do! :) #ifyouknowyouknow