What do you tell yourself or visualize to stay motivated to workout

Winning4EJ
Winning4EJ Posts: 47 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Lack of motivation is trying to creep up on me what keeps you going on tuff days?

Replies

  • snowflake954
    snowflake954 Posts: 8,399 Member
    I don't use motivation--it'll never last. I use habit. Exercising is just something I do everyday.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,988 Member
    snowflake954 wrote: »
    I don't use motivation--it'll never last. I use habit. Exercising is just something I do everyday.
    This. Like brushing my teeth, I just do it. Sometimes it's great workout, sometimes it's not. But it gets done EVERYDAY like brushing my teeth. No excuses, no procrastinating, no punking out. Unless I'm deathly ill or have some super important reason NOT to go, I just go.


    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 35+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    edited September 2023
    What are your workouts? Do these workouts consist of physical activity that you actually enjoy doing or are you forcing yourself to do these particular things just because you've heard they're a good workout or the burn X calories or whatever?

    In my experience, engaging in activities that you don't particularly like just for the sake of "workout" doesn't tend towards long term consistency or adherence to a regular exercise regimen. It is also highly likely that your interests, available time, etc will change over time and thus your exercise regimen will change as well.

    Once upon a time I was a pretty serious road cycling enthusiast and spent hours every week training for various cycling events during the season. I loved it for about 5 years and then I noticed that it started to become a chore and I was having to force myself out on rides and I just didn't have the motivation or passion that I once had. Did some self reflection and decided I was just done with that, and that was ok and have settled into a nice routine of mostly active recreational activity just for fun and enjoyment...but it's also good exercise.
  • Lildarlinz
    Lildarlinz Posts: 276 Member
    Look in the mirror….seeing my belly overhang 🤣🤣 go workout girl 🤣🤣
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,225 Member
    Motivation is not one of my strong skills, speaking as an aging-hippie hedonist. I try not to rely on it.

    Nonetheless, I'm more active than average, especially much so for my demographic.

    For me, the key thing has been finding active things that I think are fun - ideally so fun I'd do them even if they weren't good for me. Having found such a thing (quite a few years back), I learned that I'd do other active things (that I didn't inherently enjoy as much) to sharpen my abilities at that one, to stay in shape for that one, etc. As I got fitter, other things that previously had been too hard (so unpleasant) also became fun.

    It still seems practically magical to me, honestly.
  • spiriteagle99
    spiriteagle99 Posts: 3,743 Member
    My motivation comes from the fact that I know I feel better on days that I exercise. I get depressed on days I don't unless I'm busy doing something I really enjoy. Experience has taught me that the way I feel going into a run has little to do with the way I feel after my run. I always feel calmer and more at ease. That feeling makes it worth doing.
  • Zaxa2021
    Zaxa2021 Posts: 695 Member
    I usually have some type of running goal I'm working towards. Run so many miles this month. Get this run time down to this time. Be able to run so many miles at a time, etc. I can usually find some extra motivation when I have (non weight related) goals I'm working towards. I also feel amazing when I'm done with the workout so I know it'll be worth it. I'm kinda chasing that runner's high.
  • Melwillbehealthy
    Melwillbehealthy Posts: 894 Member
    My motivation right now is that I bought clothes that are definitely too small for me on purpose . Not sure they’re actually the thing motivating me, but I will think about them once in a while.
  • musicfan68
    musicfan68 Posts: 1,143 Member
    Motivation for me doesn't work. Habits do. I just build it into the weekly schedule. I make myself go to the gym on work out days even if I don't feel like it. When I get there, I usually can get it done. But even if I get there and am not feeling it, I make myself do at least a few things, then if I still can't push myself anymore, I leave. But at least I got there and did something, even if it wasn't my full workout, and kept the habit.
  • Lietchi
    Lietchi Posts: 6,839 Member
    Deeper motivation:
    - I want to be one of those very fit older people, so probably best to be active now already.
    - I'm motivated by seeing my fitness level improve (running faster, longer, further).

    As for 'I'm excited/ready to give it some' motivation: sometimes happens, sometimes not. It's habit at this point, even though I will skip the occasional workout if not feeling good (but never twice in a row). I start to get antsy if I don't exercise, running/exercise helps me relieve stress - I'm not sure that falls under the category 'motivation' 🙂
  • Winning4EJ
    Winning4EJ Posts: 47 Member
    Thanks for all your comments. They are all helpful, really.

    Appreciate it all.
  • MaggieGirl135
    MaggieGirl135 Posts: 1,030 Member
    I have a love/hate relationship with my ellipticatal machine. It has a timer on it and sometimes (not always), I think about the minutes remaining and tell myself that I can readily do this without dying. It’s always doable; desire sometimes just doesn’t match the need.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    spiriteagle99 wrote: »
    My motivation comes from the fact that I know I feel better on days that I exercise. I get depressed on days I don't unless I'm busy doing something I really enjoy. Experience has taught me that the way I feel going into a run has little to do with the way I feel after my run. I always feel calmer and more at ease. That feeling makes it worth doing.

    Yes, exercise is definitely crucial for my mental health.

    I use discipline to create healthy habits. Once the habits are in place, I can cruise along on auto-pilot. No motivation required! I feel twitchy if it gets past the time of day when I usually exercise.

    http://www.wisdomination.com/screw-motivation-what-you-need-is-discipline/

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