Help me find motivation!!! PLEASE

missana221
missana221 Posts: 46 Member
edited September 28 in Motivation and Support
I am good at eating well and I have no problem with that (so far) but how do I get motivated to exercise? I am such a couch potato and I hate it and I am ready to change but I just can't get motivation to exercise. I always find some excuse. :( Thanks

Replies

  • fridayjustleft04
    fridayjustleft04 Posts: 851 Member
    I used to be the same way. You just have to find a workout you enjoy (which I know can be hard. I used to laugh because who is crazy enough to enjoy working out?) But it's possible. Do you like swimming? Dancing? Sometimes it's helpful to remember what you liked to do as a kid. Hula hoop? Jump rope? Riding your bike? These are all good choices to get moving. If you're looking for a fun (yet effective) workout to do in your living room, I highly recommend Turbo Jam. It's a lot of fun and burns a ton of calories. No matter what you do, just remember it gets easier over time (it has to..you move easier with less weight, right? :smile: ) And also remind yourself everyday that you have to CHOOSE to be healthier, and the way to do that is by getting off the couch. I know right now it's like the worst thing in the world, but it won't always be that way.
  • mamaredhead
    mamaredhead Posts: 112
    "If there is a will, there is a way.
    If there is no will, there is an excuse ..." ;-)))

    If you want to, you will exercise. And once you've started and see the results and feel your body change to the better and feel the muscles in all those spots where you would have never expected muscles at all -- you will never want to stop.

    Maybe start with going for a walk. Maybe start with just watching workout-dvd's. Maybe just have a look at http://www.bodyrock.tv as a starter to see where you can end up ...

    I myself get very motivated by the way other women make their bodies look. That helps for me.
    Find your way -- you WILL, if you WANT TO! :-)

    You want to, don't you?!

    Good luck!!!!
  • TLW77
    TLW77 Posts: 97 Member
    Not to sound like a smarty pants, but I think you have to find that motivation for yourself! Anything can be motivating to different people, but here a couple I have heard and the first one motivates me daily. Do you have children you want to set a good example for and want to see grow up? Do you want to look great for that high school reunion? Are you getting married and want to fit into a smaller dress? You need to look and find that motivation within yourself. Good luck too you and I hope you find your motivation soon.
  • frando
    frando Posts: 583 Member
    whilst moving i found a beautiful slink black dress i found in a charity shop yonks ago and bought on a whim. i am going to wear that damn thing and i'm going to look amazing in it. that is my motivation...

    ... that and fast paced music on my ipod whilst on my bike, the irony of hearing Snoop Dogg saying he wants to make me sweat :D
  • ANeWcRe8N
    ANeWcRe8N Posts: 1,180 Member
    I use to be the same way.. I was a couch potato too. You just gotta find something you enjoy doing.. if you like dancing maybe you can look into zumba (I love it and its fun). You can just go for a walk around your neighborhood.. I started out using workout dvds and exercisetv on my cable demand.. lots of interesting workouts there :) Good luck I hope you find something you like doing and learn to love exercising :flowerforyou:
  • AHHHHH!!!! Motivation! My motivation was my health =) My Mom died at the age of 46 & her Mom died at the age of 47 .... I'm almost 57! So originally I started working out to live a longer & healthier life ... now it's truly my "glass of wine at the end of my day" Start slow ... too discouraging if you set too high a goal ... like "I'm gonna walk a bajillion miles today" ... find something you really enjoy ~ use your exercise time as your "me" time ... great music while working out ... I started taking Zumba classes (& trust me ... I have little rhythm =) & I LOVE IT!!!!! Good luck to you =)
  • PJS323
    PJS323 Posts: 115
    Music! That is what keeps me going. Try something new, and just push yourself to try it.
  • meryllb
    meryllb Posts: 28
    i am the same way! i have a very busy schedule, i work 40 hours a week and go to school fulltime in the evenings - so i am the queen of excuses! i hate going to the gym because you have to schedule it into your day and go through a whole ordeal, pack a gym bag, change at work, drive to the gym, work out, blah blah... so i started purchasing stuff to do at home. i invested in an elliptical treadmill (i found a really good golds gym one for around $200 on amazon), and because i am also a couch potato, i put it in front of the tv! i hop on it every commercial, sometimes i will stay on for a whole show (if its a re-run, and i dont have to pay too close attention), when i am waiting my turn to use the bathroom in the morning, while i am waiting for something to cook/bake, etc. the elliptical will tell you how many minutes you do each time, and when mfp adds it all up it ends up being almost a couple hours! you can also get resistance bands and use those while watching, or hand weights. i also purchased some fun work out dvds (carmen electra strip aerobics, envy girls, hula) which i pop in for maybe 15 to 30 mins at a time.

    hope this helps!

    ps. if you make plans to do something active with a friend, you'll feel guilty if you have to cancel!
  • ascrof
    ascrof Posts: 34
    find something that doesn't feel like exercise. For me it's riding my bike, i just put on my ipod and before i know it i'm 20 miles away with 1500 calories burned. "working out" at a gym is like torture to me.
  • Obviously everyone's motivation is personal, but here are some things that have helped me. As always, your mileage may vary, but I hope they help get you thinking about what might get YOU motivated. When in doubt, experiment :) These aren't necessarily in order of importance.

    Number one thing for me, is variety. I can do any exercise a day or two in a row, but then I get bored. My trick is to always do a different exercise(s) at least every third day. Even things I don't especially enjoy are more interesting if I'm doing them when mixed with other, more fun stuff. And it doesn't matter if an exercise isn't "efficient" or huge for burning calories, if doing something "inefficient" one day gives you the variety needed to feel good the next, then it's still helping.

    Number two is structure and habit. This may require a bit of cash, but the best thing I ever did was join an exercise class (crossfit, what an *kitten*-kicker) and martial arts class for 6 months. Just getting in the habit of going in and working out every day really helped, and the stronger/faster I got, the more I enjoyed it. Plus, it was easier to get motivated when unattendance meant I was burning money. Even after I stopped attending for timing reasons, the lessons and structure stuck with me, and made it easier to self-motivate. And learning a bunch of new exercises fed back into the "variety" thing.

    Number three is, if possible, find something you DO enjoy, and do it whenever possible. Running and walking bore me in minutes, but I love racquetball, even when playing to the brink of exhaustion. Even thought it's not something I can do every day, I try to work it into my weekly or bi-weekly routine. And when the non-fun exercises make you better at the fun ones, you don't mind them so much.

    Even thirty minutes a day, at a medium-to-high intensity will help. Maybe try "before I eat [meal], I'm going to knock out a mile or two, and a few crunches and maybe some jumping jacks." (I do this). This won't take long, shouldn't be too stressful, and can help you ease into a more structured routine. Make whatever you want to do (the couch you mentioned) the reward - i.e. "i have to put in 30 minutes before my show starts, or I don't get to watch it!" or just work out when the show is on with the volume up. The distraction may make the exercise easier too.

    You'll figure it out, but it can definitely be hard to start! Good luck, I hope this helps!
  • missana221
    missana221 Posts: 46 Member
    Thanks guys :)
  • shaverkl191
    shaverkl191 Posts: 131
    A few ways that I motivate myself to work out... make plans to exercise with a friend. If you know someone is going to be waiting for you, you may be less likely to cancel. Also you may want to try signing up for a class. I registered for a bootcamp class and I never miss it because I paid for it so I want to get my money's worth!!

    On the days that I'm having a really hard time motivating myself, I just think about how great I will feel afterwards. I never great getting up and working out, but I ALWAYS regret it when I don't! Good luck and I hope you find the motivation to get active! This is a great first step!
  • PaulaDDN
    PaulaDDN Posts: 162 Member
    Get an mp3, ipod ot whatever to listen music, put your fav songs there and just go out and start walking and enjoying the music. It works for me
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