How I Stay Motivated to Workout + My Thoughts on Equinox So Far + My Favorite Activewear

Motivation in any sort is tricky. You have to find what motivates YOU. I’ve been on and off the workout motivation train many many times… but right now I’m really feeling like I’m in a good place (aside from being really sick these last dew days). I’ve learned what works for ME to stay motivated and a majority of the time… these reminders work. Let me break it down for you.

Motivation to workout for me comes from a few different places.
First and foremost… I’ve felt what it’s like to be in great shape and I’ve learned that I feel best this way. Whenever I’ve fallen off my workout train, I remind myself how much better I feel and how much more energy I have when I’m fit and working out regularly.
The next thing that without fail always motivates me to workout is holding myself accountable. For me, the best way to do this is to share with someone else (whether it’s my mom, a friend or my IG fam) that I’m working out later. That way, I’m committed to doing it. If someone asks how my workout was, I don’t want to have to say… oh, I didn’t do it.
Third, having workout clothes I love and feel good in make me more excited to get to the gym! Find all of my gym favorites (all Ali tested and approved) at the bottom of this post!
Lastly, having a place I LIKE to workout and a place I can schedule and sign up in advance to workout helps me tremendously. I joined Equinox a few months back and it’s been a game changer. You can sign up for classes on the app and save them directly to your calendar. It may sound silly, but having something saved in my calendar absolutely helps me get it done… a workout is no exception. It also helps that there’s a penalty if you cancel last minute! HA!

So far, I have loved being an Equinox member. It’s definitely pricey, but if you’re like me and love classes, switching up your workout and are most motivated in a class/don’t love working out on your own, it’s 100% worth it. There are a couple of different factors that go into the pricing of membership (where you work, what college you went to etc.). In Chicago, Equinox has partnerships with the Art institute, UIC, Depaul, Loyola, and Northwestern in which alum, faculty, and students receive no initiation and discounted monthly dues of $139 (normally $170) . (If you’re interested in more, reach out and I’ll put you in touch with a fab Equinox rep)! In my opinion, the fact that Equinox has a ton of different classes all included in the membership already makes it worth it. They also have a lot of member benefits that are awesome! If you think about it… classes anywhere are between $25-$35. SO! If you’re going to workout classes more than 5-7 times PER MONTH you’ve already paid for your Equinox membership. I’ve been going to 3-5 classes a week and I’ve loved them.

There are still a lot of Equinox classes that I have to try but my current favorites are:
Pure Strength- a heavy lifting class. I always leave feeling SO strong.
Muse- A cardio class based off of ballet. It’s so fun and really hard! The class goes by in a blink!
Tabata- A high intensity interval workout with both strength and cardio.
METCON3- A high intensity conditioning workout with a great mix of strength and cardio.
Classes I can’t wait to try:
Stacked, The Cut, Definitions, Ropes and Rowers, EQX Barre Burn, Anthem, Pilates Fusion and more!
As always, I’ll keep you updated on what workouts I’m doing and what I thought about them on IG stories!

Let me know if you have any questions about Equinox, motivation or anything else! In the meantime, shop all my favorite activewear below!

xx Ali