This is a very common question people ask about exercising or even eating right. Below I am sharing my personal take on the question. Everyone is different but I am confident that there are a few points here that others would probably agree on.
I personally think that a lot of time we make it much more complicated than what it is. By complicated I mean that we tend to think of exercise mainly as weight lifting, getting on a treadmill and joining some classes. All this is great but it's not always necessary.
You start with what you do every day. If you have a dog it's as simple as taking him for a 20-30 minutes walk, if you have children it's as simple as riding a bike with them, playing basketball or any other sport or just walking with them. If you are married or dating it's as simple as walking along side your partner for 30-50 minutes, turning quality time into an exercise time. If you have some friends it's just as simple as meeting them at the park for a walk and some girl time. If you have a radio it's as simple as playing your favorite music and dancing around for 30 minutes, even taking 15 minutes to stretch every day is a way to start. Those are all suggestions that are very easy to implement.
The more you do the simple things the better you feel and the more you want to do and it just grows from there.
Taking time to also read some Health & Fitness magazines or visit some healthy pages is important because you are sowing seeds in your mind and thinking and even if you don't do certain things right away, you are gradually putting it in your mind. You are reprogramming your thinking. The great thing is that when we keep thinking about something long enough, before we know it we start doing it.
You also have to reach the point where you tell yourself that it's not about motivation as we put is. It's more about commitment. You tell yourself that you are on your side, you are committed to yourself and to your happiness . You might have to start by writing down your activities as a to do list and make yourself do certain things just like you would an appointment or a meeting with someone. You do it, check it off your list, do it again the next day. You write it down every day and check it off every day and before you know it, if you've done it long enough, it becomes a habit and second nature and you will love yourself and the results way too much to even want to revert back to your old ways.
The most exciting thing is that you reach the point where it's not even the weight loss you are after anymore, I am talking for myself I suppose.
You get to the point where you love being that disciplined person, you love the feeling of pushing your body when it doesn't feel like it, you love the fact that your character and your mind are getting much stronger than your flesh. It's one of those things that no one can't take away from you not even (the old) you. Then it no longer has anything to do with being Motivated, it just become who you are...humm...I guess to sum it up you make up your mind to do it just like you make up your mind to do all the things that are so important to you, and you Go, you Grow & you Flow from there...
I read an article many months ago in a Sport magazine that was on the subject of motivation. One famous athlete, I don't recall his name, was asked how he stays motivated and he answered that they are not also motivated to work out and train. They don't always feel like getting on the field and play a game, they don't always feel like traveling etc. He said that you JUST DO IT, just as simple as that. You do it because that's what you do, you do it because you've made a commitment to do it, you do it because you are held responsible for it. His answers stuck with me obviously but there is so much truth do it!
I think one issue a lot of people have about eating right and exercising is that they don't fully get that they are responsible for their health and for their bodies. We can't just fantasize about getting healthier or ripped. We have to discipline ourselves, we have to put in the work, we have to plan the work and work the plan. We have to realize that no one but ourselves can't say no to laziness, no one but ourselves can say no to the compromises, no one can do it for us. We just have to reprogram our thinking, change our attitude and go for it. And of course it will not happen overnight, it's delusional to think so. But it will happen. It will happen if we do our best one day at a time!
Well, that's my take on it. That's how I stay motivated! What about you? How do you stay motivated? Is there anything I said here that's very similar to your personal experience? Anything that particularly 'speaks to you'?
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