Motivation? Really?

TheBitSlinger

SMHO, but I think folks need to take "motivations" out of their fitness/weight loss equations. Or at least think about scaling down the importance they assign to motivations.

Unless your motivation is to lose, say, 5 pounds so you can look good in that bikini collecting dust in your drawer, it seems to me that not a few motivations end up being so far off, in terms of when you will accomplish them, that you're more likely to lose sight of your motivations and thus get derailed.

So, what would replace motivations? Well, nothing dreamy or glamorous, I'm afraid. It really comes down to admitting the grim reality of a few things:

1) This won't be easy; without struggle, there is no progress.
2) Persistence will overcome everything, but persistence requires vigilance, not perfection, because you will slip up.
3) You can do this, but it will only get done minute-by-minute, hour-by-hour, day-by-day.

From personal experience, motivations do not tend to drive my priorities; only sheer bloodymindedness seems to have any success.

So, is this pure sophistry, or am I on to something (or just ON something)?

Feel free to beat away on me.

SpleenThief

Unless your motivation is to lose, say, 5 pounds so you can look good in that bikini collecting dust in your drawer, it seems to me that not a few motivations end up being so far off, in terms of when you will accomplish them, that you're more likely to lose sight of your motivations and thus get derailed.

It sounds like you're mincing motivation with goals. the goal would be to lose 5 pounds, the motivation is to look great in a bikini.

Long term goals can be very important but yes, they're so far off we can lose sight of them. That's why it's important to set intermediate goals along the way, like milestones. I'll use my current situation as an example.

In late May of 2014 I'm going to run my 5th marathon. I'm making a bid for one more PR. It's six months before I even start training for it.I've got intermediate goals along the way.

1. build consistency by running 4x per week until August - in progress
2. Start logging my runs - in progress
3. By the end of August, Saturday runs will be 12 miles
4. 225 lbs by the end of July (it's going to be close)
5. 215 lbs by the end of August

the list goes on. I can check my progress towards my ultimate goal by making progress on my more immediate goals. during training for my last marathon one of my friends tried to get me to skip out on my workout. I said no, I've got a race in 6 weeks. He said one workout six weeks out wouldn't make a difference but I told him that wasn't the point. Get to your long term goals by meeting intermediate goals. They keep you focused and pointed in the right direction.

TheBitSlinger

Right now, I'm more interested in the origin of your profile name than anything else.

ashandloggiesmom

Right now, I'm more interested in the origin of your profile name than anything else.

Totally.

born2drum

SMHO, but I think folks need to take "motivations" out of their fitness/weight loss equations. Or at least think about scaling down the importance they assign to motivations.

Unless your motivation is to lose, say, 5 pounds so you can look good in that bikini collecting dust in your drawer, it seems to me that not a few motivations end up being so far off, in terms of when you will accomplish them, that you're more likely to lose sight of your motivations and thus get derailed.

So, what would replace motivations? Well, nothing dreamy or glamorous, I'm afraid. It really comes down to admitting the grim reality of a few things:

1) This won't be easy; without struggle, there is no progress.
2) Persistence will overcome everything, but persistence requires vigilance, not perfection, because you will slip up.
3) You can do this, but it will only get done minute-by-minute, hour-by-hour, day-by-day.

From personal experience, motivations do not tend to drive my priorities; only sheer bloodymindedness seems to have any success.

So, is this pure sophistry, or am I on to something (or just ON something)?

Feel free to beat away on me.

Troll?

TheBitSlinger

Troll?

Of all the responses I thought I might get, this wasn't one of them.

eblakes93

SMHO, but I think folks need to take "motivations" out of their fitness/weight loss equations. Or at least think about scaling down the importance they assign to motivations.

Unless your motivation is to lose, say, 5 pounds so you can look good in that bikini collecting dust in your drawer, it seems to me that not a few motivations end up being so far off, in terms of when you will accomplish them, that you're more likely to lose sight of your motivations and thus get derailed.

So, what would replace motivations? Well, nothing dreamy or glamorous, I'm afraid. It really comes down to admitting the grim reality of a few things:

1) This won't be easy; without struggle, there is no progress.
2) Persistence will overcome everything, but persistence requires vigilance, not perfection, because you will slip up.
3) You can do this, but it will only get done minute-by-minute, hour-by-hour, day-by-day.

From personal experience, motivations do not tend to drive my priorities; only sheer bloodymindedness seems to have any success.

So, is this pure sophistry, or am I on to something (or just ON something)?

Feel free to beat away on me.

"Definition of motivation (n)
Bing Dictionary
mo·ti·va·tion [ mtə váysh'n ]
giving of reason to act: the act of giving somebody a reason or incentive to do something
enthusiasm: a feeling of enthusiasm, interest, or commitment that makes somebody want to do something, or something that causes such a feeling
reason: a reason for doing something or behaving in a particular way?"

SpleenThief

Ok, here it is. I've gotten PMs on the origins of my screen name so here it is for all to see. Prepare to be amazed!

As your consciousness boils and simmers, thoughts and memories tend to float up to the top on a seemingly random basis. The wind that blows through your life pushes no small amount of debris before it. Do you remember when you were driving to work last week and you remembered that thing you said in 7th grade that was totally racist, but you didn't mean it to be totally racist? You were just driving to work, and something from your childhood just bubbled to the surface of your mind for no reason. You didn't summon it, nothing in front of you was linked to it and yet, there it was.

This was one such thought. I needed a screen name and the one I requested was taken. Spleen Thief floated to the surface of my thoughts with unbidden clarity so I used it.

It means nothing above and beyond the fact that I thought of it.

Joreanasaurous

Ok, here it is. I've gotten PMs on the origins of my screen name so here it is for all to see. Prepare to be amazed!

As your consciousness boils and simmers, thoughts and memories tend to float up to the top on a seemingly random basis. The wind that blows through your life pushes no small amount of debris before it. Do you remember when you were driving to work last week and you remembered that thing you said in 7th grade that was totally racist, but you didn't mean it to be totally racist? You were just driving to work, and something from your childhood just bubbled to the surface of your mind for no reason. You didn't summon it, nothing in front of you was linked to it and yet, there it was.

This was one such thought. I needed a screen name and the one I requested was taken. Spleen Thief floated to the surface of my thoughts with unbidden clarity so I used it.

It means nothing above and beyond the fact that I thought of it.

I was hoping you would start out this origin story with something like... This one time in Mexico I was really drunk and...

daftthoughts

I also think you have motivation and goal mixed up in your post, which removes a lot of validity of your claims.

Yes, it's easy to lose sight of a long-term goal. So instead of saying "I have 100 lbs to go", take it by 10 pounds at a time until you're feeling awesome and satisfied, then make it your goal to remain a steady weight by weighing yourself monthly and allowing yourself a preset margin. It's not easy, it's not a magic fix, but it is a more approachable goal than 100 pounds in terms of the steps you need to take.

I firmly believe that it's absolutely IMPOSSIBLE to lose weight without motivation. It's essential to have something that motivates you, whether that's looking good in a bikini or extending your life to see your grandkids grow up etc. Without it you might as well sit back, get or stay obese and eat yourself into a miserable death, because why bother even trying to eat an apple when you can scarf down half a dozen burgers?

Motivation is everything in your weight loss journey, and you can't lose sight of that no matter where you're at. It's always the reason you exercise and eat better. Without motivation there's no point in doing what you do.

Why do you exercise, eat better and lose weight? Why does it matter to you whether you feel better or not? That's your motivation and the number one reason you're doing it.

It really bothers me that you're using the word motivation so wrong and are giving people bad advice.

SpleenThief

I was hoping you would start out this origin story with something like... This one time in Mexico I was really drunk and...

That's another story or, more accurately, a series of stories. My legal counsel has advised me to remain silent on that issue.