Weights training - newbie-- need a lot of strength of mind?

maree142

I got very enthusiastic from here and reading other texts on getting into weight training. Up to date I've been at the gym, but not really pushing myself - and certainly not working on strength. Back today from my second PT session where we focused on lower body. OMG!! I am in a bit if a daze from the work-out...
I worry that I won't have the willpower to push myself on the weights -- that I will chicken out or make excuses for myself why not to stay on it.
Any tips on the willpower front?
I have been doing Iyengar Yoga for 5 years so my form and overall strength isn't too bad, but this was a whole new ball game!
ideas for motivation etc please!!

taylorwaylor

You have to want it!! I think if you just trrryyyyy for awhile, you will be amazed with the results, and that is what will make you want to puch yourself more and more!! Strength training is amaaaazinggggg, but not everyone likes it, and maybe you won't, but give it your all

tameko2

if you have the willpower for yoga you will ahve the willpower for this. Its easier than yoga, IMO, because you tell yourself "just do this one more rep" - or even "just start the rep" - once you commit to one more, you can commit to another one. Yoga just drags on and on and on

and on
and on
and on
and you have to keep holding the pose
and its long
and its boring
and omg are we still doing this?
how much longer are we supposed to do this?
Oh thank god we're switching
<10 seconds>
Oh god this is so boring are we going to stand like this forever?

newjourney2015

Everytime you workout you will see more strength. That will be your motivation to keep going. There will come a day (and not too far off from now) that you will plan your life around lifting! I am a beginner and I can't wait everyday to get into my weight room. Its my relax time, my me time. I'm not trying to be superwoman right now. I am just trying to be the best I can be today so I can be even better tomorrow.

jayliospecky

Oh, Tameko. You're so funny.

Ok, well, I used to do a weight program like, based on the old Body for Life, if you remember it? And while it was decent, it was still quite a bit less taxing than stronglifts. So when I switched to stronglifts, sometimes I would WHINE SO MUCH because it was SO HARD and WAHHHHH. You know the type. Squats especially, because I realized, grudgingly, that I had not been going as deep as I could/should, but that also made it SO HARD. Ugh. Some lifts I didn't find so friggin' difficult, and I enjoyed them more, (like bench press, which I ). For awhile I would moan about it on my newsfeed, and my good friends would say things like DO IT, DO IT and they were kind enough not to tell me to just shut up with all the complaining already. And I would do it and I was always glad I had done it.

So after I went through the phase of complaining/whining about it all the time, I was motivated, at least partially, by not wanting to annoy the crap out of my friends all the time. I would do the workout, although sometimes I would put it off because I was dreading it mentally. (Mostly the squats, because I HATE squats still.)

Lately, though, I've moved up a step where I just stop myself from even thinking all the whine-y, complain-y thoughts, and I'm just like "don't think about it beforehand, just go do it." And even during the rest periods, I don't think about how much I'm hating the squats, I just do them. I still suck at squats, for some reason I seem to be a real weakling, but it's improving, like, SUUUPER-slowly. I guess it's sort of a mind-over-matter thing.

As for other motivation, well, I want to look good. And I think without the lifting I really can't even come close to how I'd like to look. And the stronger I get the more I like feeling strong. And I like that I can see progress relatively quickly. With running for example, it takes a pretty long time to improve pace, but I can see my lift weights go up pretty regularly. That's cool. I flipped out on my husband when he was spotting me one day because he totally screwed up a new personal record, and I HAD been really pumped about that until he screwed it up. (He lifted the bar when I didn't need his help, and it was right at the end, and although I could have done it, it was also totally the last rep I had in me.)

Also, with more muscle mass I can eat more. That's always good.

I read a really good article about motivation and it talked about how we don't talk about how we need to "motivate" ourselves to do a lot of things we have to do, like chores around the house, or bathing, etc. We don't necessarily "feel" motivated, but we do it anyways. If that makes sense. For some reason that made sense to me at the time.

Sorry this got a little long, apparently I had a lot to say on this subject. :flowerforyou:

maree142

Thanks so much for your words of wisdom.....

HIITMe

Everytime you workout you will see more strength. That will be your motivation to keep going. There will come a day (and not too far off from now) that you will plan your life around lifting! I am a beginner and I can't wait everyday to get into my weight room. Its my relax time, my me time. I'm not trying to be superwoman right now. I am just trying to be the best I can be today so I can be even better tomorrow.

this sums it up for me

alwyndacara

I flipped out on my husband when he was spotting me one day because he totally screwed up a new personal record, and I HAD been really pumped about that until he screwed it up. (He lifted the bar when I didn't need his help, and it was right at the end, and although I could have done it, it was also totally the last rep I had in me.)

I'd have been so p!ssed!!!!

I love, love, LOVE squatting. Makes me feel like such a badass. The OHP? Can *kitten* right off. Makes me feel like a wimpy little girl because my shoulders are crap.

nexangelus

Start at the beginning (light) and work up from there.

Us ladies are stronger than we think. And as Tameko said yoga tests the patience and willpower somewhat, where this just makes you want to grrrrrr and do superhero type things...it does take time and patience too, overall, to build strength, but you will get there. I just enjoy feeling strong and I am sure you will too when you see how you progress and your body reacts to it.