Staying Motivated

faceoff4

For me it has always been pretty simple. I do it because I can and I know there are others out there who cant and would trade places with me in a heartbeat. When I was in high school I used to run every day in the summer heat (100+ temps) to get in shape for sports and I hated doing it. Until one day a young kid in a wheel chair started cheering me on every day when I ran. He would be there rain or shine. From that day on I never looked at fitness as a chore but as a privilege and when I have days of lack of motivation I think of that kid (and others who cant) and it keeps me going. Not saying that has to be your reason, but find something like that which motivates you and keeps you going. We all go through peaks and valleys....I exercise at a high intensity level every day and there are many days I dont feel like it...but having the right thing to motivate you will usually push you through. Just try it and once you get started into the workout usually you will get into it and find yourself a nice groove. Same thing on the nutritional side. Find what motivates you to stick with it. For me its the daily goals...I get very competitive with myself to hit them daily but also give myself plenty of cheat days so you stick to it and dont lose sight of what you are doing. I hope this helps and good luck!

in4nomz

I like memorizing certain quotes to playback to myself when i'm struggling. I also have a Pinterest board of fit women and athletes to look at when I'm on the verge of a binge Sometimes, just forcing yourself to workout is the best thing. It's always hard getting the motivation to go sometimes, but once you do it you never regret it! Make small goals for yourself (say, run a 7 min mile) and keep working towards different things so you're not eating and working out just because.

yayamom3

I absolutely love the backpack idea! I have had to take my focus off weight loss and put it into being fit and healthy. This is important for my emotional well-being, as well as setting the right example for my daughter. That being said, I put $1 in a jar every time I do any form of exercise. I am free to spend that money at any time on anything I want. I just bought a North Face coat last week with my earnings.

Runs4Wine

I've been having issues staying motivated myself (aka laziness).

Things I'm doing and its slowly starting to help:
* Lurk through the boards here on MFP, find inspiring stories, incentives etc.
* Scroll through Pinterest and find motivating/inspiring quotes or images
* a lot of self-talk
* Get rid of the bad foods in your house, nothing to grab when you're feeling desperate
* Be consistent in your WO, I pull my clothes out the night before and WO in the morning at 5am.
* Watching my husband get his motivation helps me find mine - a bit of competitiveness I guess
* Find non-food items to motivate yourself, not only for WL, but also for tracking honestly for 1 full week, or 2 or 3

larodriguez02

I try to change things up a bit like try a new healthy receipe or try some exercise I haven't tried. set small weekly goals to challenge myself. I also look at the progress I have made already and that helps too. Motivational quotes help too.