It Has to Be Done: Discipline, Consistency, and Enjoying the Gym

“It has to be done,” he says to me, smiling, as we both walk in to warm up on a Sunday early afternoon.

I responded jokingly, “Come on, I thought you’d be a bit more enthusiastic than that.” It’s become a long-standing joke between us, one of those gym rituals that never gets old.

The minimum rule is that it has to be done, yes. Of course, this is the discipline we build in order to keep going and keep doing it. There are days when motivation is high, energy is flowing, and training feels effortless. And then there are the other days, the ones where simply turning up feels like the workout.

That’s where discipline quietly steps in.

Discipline is the backbone of consistency. It’s the unglamorous but essential ingredient behind sustainable fitness habits, long-term progress, and meaningful results. Whether your goal is better health, improved wellness, increased strength, or a specific body aesthetic, discipline is what carries you through the moments when motivation fades.

Because motivation is unreliable.

Some days you feel unstoppable. Other days you feel like negotiating with yourself over whether to even start. Discipline doesn’t negotiate. Discipline says, “We’re doing this anyway.”

Discipline is key to being consistent and building a habit.

However, and this is important, I try to make a point of enjoying it as much as possible. And for the most part, I do. The journey is just as important as the results, because it’s during the journey that the real development and growth take place, both physically and mentally.

Fitness isn’t just about the outcome. It’s about who you become along the way.

It’s about building resilience. Learning patience. Developing mental toughness. Creating structure. Strengthening not just your muscles, but your mindset. Those adaptations don’t magically appear once you reach your goal. They are forged in the repeated act of showing up.

Of course, you can’t enjoy something one hundred percent of the time. That’s unrealistic. There will be sessions that feel heavy, sluggish, inconvenient, or simply “not it.” That’s when discipline must kick in. That’s when we return to the mindset of “it has to be done.”

But, and this is where many people slip, don’t make a habit of not enjoying it.

When “it has to be done” becomes the dominant emotional tone of your training, something subtle shifts. The gym starts to feel like an obligation rather than a privilege. A task rather than a release. A chore rather than a choice.

And once training becomes a chore, sustainability is at risk.

The gym-goer who said this to me is a seasoned fitness achiever. He has the muscles to prove it and can push some decent weight. I know he was saying it humorously. Still, I responded as I always do, joking,“You know you’ve got to have a bit more enjoyment in it.” I’m not here just to achieve the baseline.

We laughed, because we both know the truth.

Ninety-five percent of the time, we’re having an amazing time gymming.

We enjoy the lifts, the rhythm, the banter, the progress, even the struggle. The gym is stress relief, therapy, challenge, routine, and reward all rolled into one. The discipline is there, but it’s not the only thing there.

Enjoyment matters.

Not because every session must feel euphoric, but because enjoyment is what keeps discipline from turning into drudgery. It’s what transforms consistency from forced effort into chosen behaviour. It’s what allows fitness to become part of your lifestyle rather than something you endure.

So yes, some days it absolutely has to be done.

But ideally, most days, you want it to be done.

And when you can combine discipline with genuine enjoyment, that’s when training stops feeling like something you have to maintain and starts feeling like something that naturally sustains itself.