im motavated ! but where is the will power?

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a_amanda92
a_amanda92 Posts: 4 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I Have 2 5k obstacle races and a wedding to get in shape for . Im motvated mentally to lose 70lbs by 2016 and know I can do it. But why do i make up excuses . I love the gym and the feeling i get after working out . Its just getting there...and making a plan. I just wanted to know if anyone feels the same way I do? Or an advice? Or maybe im just werid.....hahaha

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  • LAWoman72
    LAWoman72 Posts: 2,846 Member
    edited March 2015
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    I never wait for motivation to fall down on my head. :) I just close my eyes and jump in and do it. At some point I let go of the idea that I had to feel some special feeling of motivation in order to "just do it," and I kept the "just do it" part.

    I don't think you're weird. We're told all the time that we need "motivation" but describing just how to do that is slippery. It sounds so simplistic, but "just do it - whether I'm pumped and feeling motivated or not" works for me. I don't think of myself being on-plan as special any more; it's just a part of my life. Maybe thinking of it that way will help you.
  • maxit
    maxit Posts: 880 Member
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    Motivation actually comes after the fact, in my experience - I made a habit of putting my gym gear in the car when I had to go out, with the idea that swinging by the Y on my way home was more likely to happen than starting from home (I used the principle of momentum lol). Sure enough, after a few times of doing that the desire (motivation) to go increased and so for the past 6-8 weeks I have had actual desire (motivation) in addition to intention. Maybe that strategy will help you.
  • twrobbel
    twrobbel Posts: 132 Member
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    Same here. I had to bite the bullet and hire a trainer for a few sessions- I needed the accountability to show up to the gym. After 1 session- I found my motivation- even at 6 or 7 in the morning- Ive never been a morning work out person before.
  • Altagracia220
    Altagracia220 Posts: 876 Member
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    Yes i used to feel this way. It's very hard in the beginning to get out of that comfort zone but once I started seeing results I wanted to do more and get more results. I went from having to force myself to go to the gym to itching to go to the gym in 2 and a half months. Obviously we are different so you will have a different experience. It just becomes a habit after a while, so don't think about it, just go to the gym.
  • CrabNebula
    CrabNebula Posts: 1,119 Member
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    Yeah, I just do it. I would never get up in the morning on time if I lay in bed and thought about it. I'd just fall back asleep. Nope, don't think, just do.

    Same with going to the gym. There are some days where the thought of rowing or doing leg curls is just...ugh...but I just get my gym clothes on and deal.
  • SergeantSausage
    SergeantSausage Posts: 1,673 Member
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    "Motivated"

    inigomontoya.jpg

    HINT: Folks who are motivated don't "keep mak[ing] up excuses", right?


  • 1nelle
    1nelle Posts: 39 Member
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    a_amanda92 wrote: »
    I Have 2 5k obstacle races and a wedding to get in shape for . Im motvated mentally to lose 70lbs by 2016 and know I can do it. But why do i make up excuses . I love the gym and the feeling i get after working out . Its just getting there...and making a plan. I just wanted to know if anyone feels the same way I do? Or an advice? Or maybe im just werid.....hahaha

    You have to want it for yourself. You have to just get dressed and go. You will love yourself for doing it.
  • amitkatz0
    amitkatz0 Posts: 61 Member
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    "Will power" isn't real. You either want to work out or you don't. If you don't, then you're not really motivated. Try to force yourself to stick to a schedule (go to the gym on certain days at specific times) and see if that helps.
  • TimothyFish
    TimothyFish Posts: 4,925 Member
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    I think you may not be as motivated as you think you are.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,867 Member
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    motivation and will power are overrated...there are a lot of things I do every single day for which I'm not motivated...but I do them because they need doing. The laundry isn't going to launder itself...my dishes aren't going to wash themselves...the floor isn't going to vacuum itself, etc.

    Getting in my workout is no different...while I generally enjoy my fitness, there are most definitely days when I'm not feeling it...but I do it because it needs to be done...and at this point, it's largely habit.

    Today is a great example...today is a 15 mile tempo ride at lunch and then the weight room tonight. I slept like *kitten* last night and I'm tired...I usually love to ride, but I'm tired and don't really feel like it...but at 11:25 I will put on my cycling shorts and dawn my jersey and be on the road by 11:30...I will ride because it's Tuesday and that is what is on the schedule...same for the weight room tonight.

    Do I miss here and there? Sure...life happens...but by and large, my fitness is just like anything else I have scheduled any given day. It's on the schedule...I do it regardless of whether I'm motivated to do so or not.
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
    edited March 2015
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    Motivation is taking that step in the direction you want and keep going. It's less feeling and more action. If you have booked some 5K's you have some prepping to do so you don't injure yourself or crap out. Better hustle, there.

    Chris Hadfield on Motivation (2 min clip)

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGrzo4IvXyg

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