To make flexibility training part of your fitness life you need a plan. Here are some ideas for ways to integrate motion training into your routine.

Set Flexibility Goals: Humans love to set and attain goals; from running a 5K to world domination, there is nothing like a clear and present challenge to get our engines revving. The good o’ sit and reach is a good place to start and there are many other positions that can be measured and then improved upon. To make it more fun try and get a group together for the assessment and agree to reunite in two months to measure your progress. If you are cooperative you can encourage each other and celebrate each other’s gains. If you’re more like me, and the pack of blood thirsty jackals I call friends, your competitive spirit and trash talking can motivate you to unheard of levels of limbosity. Change it up: Periodization, a guiding principal of fitness, recognizes that the body and mind require varied stimulation for continued improvement. If you have been doing the same stretches since you sat on a number in high school it is time to try something new. Take a yoga class or pick up a book on stretching for some fresh ideas. Yoga positions can be particularly effective for the time crunched as poses often stretch multiple body parts (while old athletic stretches tend to focus on a singular body part). Periodization also gives each time block a focus, such as power or endurance. Focusing on opening up a particular body part is helpful in developing a progressive and challenging flexibility plan. For example, work on the shoulder girdle for a month (while maintaining mobility in other areas with basic stretches). The focus strategy will allow you to see improvements more quickly and battle the perception that stretching is something you must do endlessly without any tangible results.Take a stretching vacation: There is no law that says you must stretch in the designated area of your gym. Most moves can be done anywhere and without any special equipment. Some of my favorite flexibility enhancing locations included the sauna, hot tub, shower and the spot right in front of my TV. Though it is great to stretch immediately after a workout because your muscles are warm, don’t limit yourself to just this window as after workout flexibly sessions can be easily skipped. Stretching, unlike many other types of exercise, can be done anywhere, anytime. I stretch my hips while waiting in line and my calves on the curb while waiting for the train. I stretch my wrists and neck while on my headset at work. I’m doing ankle circles with my crossed leg as I type this. Take a minute to think about where you can fit flexibility into your day. Phone a friend: It has been proven time and time again that people who join together in partnerships or groups are more likely to workout then those who hit it solo. Find someone you like to do motion training with and you are much more likely to do it consistently. Unless you’re in a yoga class or quiet area there is no reason why flexibility training can’t be a social activity so chat it up if you’re the chatty type. Partner stretching is also a great way to improve your flexibility. Get a trainer or book to learn how.

I think there are two primary reasons why we don’t achieve our fitness goals; we are either lazy or scared. The trick is figuring out which diabolical force is driving us and then treating it accordingly.

A lazy person needs discipline, encouragement, honest assessment, perhaps a good, stern talking to and other forms of legal, adult paddling. A scared person need something else entirely (though encouragment helps for both conditions).

Say Ned is a runner. He likes to run, has the equipment, time carved out of his schedule and feels good about his running ability. Still Ned has not been running. Why? Ned has found an activity that he likes to do, has a plan and schedule for doing it and a feeling of basic competence about his chosen activity. Still his sneakers gather dust. Perhpas Ned is lazy and needs a swift kick to the backside of his running togs. After a good pep talk and 16 high fives Ned is glazed over and non-responsive. Maybe its fear then and not laziness?

Treating fear is a little more tricky, especially in those who fancy themselves athletic. From the youngest of ages athletic sorts are trained to ignore and deny weakness and fear, to play through pain and to dream very big. Limits, aging, losing and other awful realities are pushed aside in favor of stronger, more muscular ones. Maybe Ned’s knees felt a little kinky the last time he ran. He’s afraid there might be something wrong with them, but he hasn’t told anyone. And he certainly hasn’t gone to the doctor to find out for sure. What if they told him he shouldn’t be running or that his only fitness option was now aqua aerobics. No, that would be bad. He would rather not know and so he doesn’t run and he because he hasn’t been totally honest with himself he doesn’t really know why. After a few days of this Ned feels bad and lazy, but he’s not.

He’s scared.

Martha joined a gym three months ago and has been exactly once since then. On that occasion she spent the entire time on the exercise bike watching all the other people walk around like they had been born of muscle gods and felt awful. Then she couldn’t figure out how to set the program on the bike which made her feel stupid. She can’t get herself to go back and keeps paying the monthly membership and berating herself for being wasteful. Martha too is scared, not lazy.

So before you beat yourself up about what you are not doing to get healthy, take some time to figure out if you are scared or lazy. Because berating yourself for being lazy when you are really scared is like kicking a puppy, it doesn’t help anybody.

Then once you figure out what’s scaring you get help. If you feel stupid at the gym hire a trainer. Worried about your knees, buck up and go to the doctor. Afraid someone will see your big butt in the locker room, change at home until you get more comfortable with your butt. If you are afraid you won’t be able to perform like you did when you were younger find people to workout with that are of similar ages and ability levels.

But ifyou’re just lazy get your ass off the couch. I’m coming over and you better be ready!