Why Can't I Find The Same Motivation As You?

It is not uncommon for me to hear "Why can't I find the same motivation as you?" When I tell others that I'm leaving work to go to karate or to the gym or to just go workout at home for an hour. Truth is I don't necessarily have the motivation to leave work and do these things either. I'm fighting to keep my eyes open some days on my drive home from work. It's all I can do just not to go home and lay down in bed and sleep the rest of the evening.

Mind/Matter

When it comes to motivation, any situation really, we have the ability to talk ourselves in or out most situations. It comes down to mind over matter. When we tell ourselves we will do it later or we will do it now, who are we really needing to convince that it will get done later verses now? We often talk about this at work, that we are living in a society where instant gratification is expected. Additionally, don't think of exercise of a chore or hasstle, but think of it as something that makes you happy and strong. You are doing this for you and your health! Not to be a drag on your life. You are making this as a priority for your health in your life, not working to reach unrealistic goals. If you are seeing this as a negative and not finding the motivation, than maybe consider changing the way you exercise. Find something you enjoy that gets you moving and find the fun in fitness.

Additionally, when you start viewing that your exercise or fitness time is your quality "me" time, you begin to look forward to your time alone or time with friends when doing group trainings or exercise.

Do Those Bribes

And I'm not talking about junk food bribes, or binge eating through a whole pizza when you lose your first 5 pounds. No, I'm talking about treating yourreat yourself to new workout clothes you love when starting a new routine, and allow yourself to only wear them when working out. Let's face it, we all love to wear our workout clothes when not working out! Or save your favorite podcast or audiobook to only listen to when you are at the gym. That way you have something to look forward to when you are working out.

There has been a study to show that this has been effective. When participates could only listen to audiobooks of their choosing during the study, at the gym, as result they ended up exercising more frequently.

Know Your Why

Most importantly, and often talked about in coaching sessions, is know your why. What is it that is driving you to make a change? We'd often sit and make a list of long-term and short-term goals. Discussing how we can achieve them and obstacles that could come up that we may have to hurdle. What is it in these goals that is making you driven to reach them? Health often plays a role in someones why. Others may discuss their relationships, or past experiences. It is something that we often have to dig deep and find within that may not always be surface level like we think it should be.

Discipline

As with anything, and staying motivated included, it includes staying discipline with your schedule. Choosing a time and schedule and sticking to it. Plan ahead and know what your day is going to hold. It is easy to become distracted by other things. But allowing yourself to hold steadfast to your schedule will help you build healthy habits and result in reaching your end goals.

You Will Find Motivation

While it may not seem like it at first, you will find your motivation. When finding your why and the reason behind your willingness to start you will soon find the motivation to begin your journey or continue on your journey. While you continue to hold yourself accountable, you can also find support from others, staying discipline in your journey, allowing yourself bribes and remembering it is mind over matter in this journey. And remember even those who show up daily don't always have the motivation to do so, and don't always find this easy.