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Monday isn’t anyone’s most favourite – as the first day of the week most people find it a bit 'blue'.
However, research shows that it pays to change behaviour, start a new habit and generally put a positive spin on a Monday as it sets the tone for the entire week.
Weekends are often our reset buttons after a long hard working week, a time to unwind, have a lie in, perhaps overindulge a little.
But, it appears that most people find Sunday evenings the most stressful of the week because Monday looms large in front of us.
To combat that extra adrenaline surge and apathy, a Monday workout session is recommended by Catherine Viljoen, biokineticist and myVA Product Developer at Virgin Active.
In fact she advocates getting on top of the day before it gets on top of you!
Change starts with small steps, so use Sunday to pack your gym bag, arrange your schedule to fit in a workout and set up a routine for the week.
"Some research suggests that Monday is the most effective day to kick-start behaviour changes and break bad habits," says Viljoen. "It sets the tone for the week and gives positive change a much better chance of sticking.
A good workout on Monday means you will probably make your two to three sessions during the rest of the week.
"By taking the small step of getting yourself inside the gym on a Monday can begin the domino effect of change towards a healthier lifestyle.
Studies show that generally people are more aware of their health and more interested in how to improve it at the start of a week," reports Viljoen. "Even health-related queries on google typically peak on a Monday and Tuesday."
Experts say that, if we want to be healthy, we should try to accumulate 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise each week. For many of us, that’s an average 2-3 sessions a week.
If you want to lose some kilos, 3-5 sessions are recommended. Fitting in the sessions is a lot easier when you can get one in the bag on a Monday! If you skip your Monday workout it makes it easier to skip Tuesday’s one too.
"On the first day of the week motivation to exercise is higher than at the end of the week.
A study done by a top brand activity tracker, which collected data from over 100,000 users, showed that our motivation to exercise peaks at the start of the week and then steadily declines towards the end," says Viljoen.
"So be careful not to leave your two or three training sessions too late in the week. Change your Monday mindset and you’ll be more likely to fit in the workout duration or number of sessions required to achieve your health and fitness goals. Make exercise a priority to establish a fitness routine for the week." 
Image: Supplied
If you battle to fit in exercise into your busy schedule then how about committing to just one day a week – Monday. You can build this up once you’ve created the Monday habit.
#Just saying: 52 exercise sessions each year is pretty impressive.
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