THE MYTH OF MOTIVATION (AND WHAT YOU NEED INSTEAD)

Capt_Apollo wrote: »

This is from fitness blogger Vic Margay.

http://www.vicmagary.com/blog/fitness-motivation/

“Motivated, motivated, hell yeah I’m motivated. Ooo Ah, I wanna kill somebody. Killlllll!!!”
Well I just want to see my ticker

Great post..

This is my new favorite post ever!

Capt_Apollo wrote: »

This is from fitness blogger Vic Margay.

http://www.vicmagary.com/blog/fitness-motivation/

“Motivated, motivated, hell yeah I’m motivated. Ooo Ah, I wanna kill somebody. Killlllll!!!”

As part of the Army’s brainwashing process (better known as Basic Training), mantras like the one above shouted in unison by a platoon of young men with shaved heads often made Basic Training feel like some sort of twisted psycho cheerleading camp instead of preparation to become Infantry soldiers.

But we were motivated.



Or were we? If you include fear of punishment and peer pressure as motivation, then the environment at Ft. Benning was certainly motivating.

But were we self-motivated? No, most of us standing in heel-to-toe lines and referring to our new Army buddies by last name only at Ft. Benning, Georgia in the autumn of 1998 were not self- motivated. And it is acquiring and maintaining this self-motivation that I am often asked about in the realm of diet and fitness. But here’s the thing…


Lack of motivation to follow a healthy diet and commit to consistent exercise is a myth.

You are going to die. And neglecting your health and fitness is more likely to hasten your departure. Furthermore, the days you do have will be spent with less energy and more pain if you choose to eat crap and be sedentary. The motivation, the “why”, to exercise and eat nutritious foods in appropriate quantity is present and strong. The bigger mystery is why we choose to ignore the need for proper diet and exercise in the face of obvious requirement.

We do not need motivation. We need decision.




We need unwavering non-negotiable decision. And yes, I know that the pic above was not taken during Hurricane Sandy (although I thought it was when I posted it to my Facebook page). But it was taken during a torrential down pour at some point in recent history. It absolutely captures the fortitude and decision of those soldiers to stand by their post no matter what hardship may be encountered.

If those soldiers can decide to endure the elements, then we can decide to put down the damned pizza and beer.

Or forgo the free bagels at the office. Or wake up a half hour early to exercise. Or keep a food journal everyday. Or what ever else we know we need to do but keep failing to commit to because it is “hard”.

Enduring chemotherapy is hard.

Hitting a fast ball in the major leagues in hard.

Negotiating nuclear disarmament from a hostile nation is hard.

Saying goodbye to a loved one in the hospital or the veterinarian’s office for the last time is hard.

But putting down the cookies and picking up the spinach? That’s only as hard as the story we tell ourselves.

What is often called lack of motivation is actually lack of discipline and lack of habit. I’ve posted about discipline and habit before – those entries lack the sexy headlines such as “1 weird trick to lose belly fat” and often do not get more than the cursory glance. And that’s unfortunate because it is discipline and habit that hold the keys to not only losing weight or getting strong, but to anything that we want in life.

You already know what to do to lose weight and get in shape. The smaller details will vary but the big picture is always to eat real food in appropriate quantity and move in a manner that is continually challenging. The problem is not lack of knowledge or lack of motivation. The problem is lack of decision.

Decide. Now.

Share your thoughts on motivation, decision, and the mental/emotional hurdles we face when it comes to diet, fitness, and weight loss in the comments below.

Stay strong

Th this post.....wow.

A lot of people struggling this week. Another bump for the January crowd. Hang in there, guys!

Read this after reading a "Need motivation" post.

Shouldn't this be pinned to the top of the Motivation and Support Board so that it is always readily available for reading?

Really glad to see this thread active.

I've always liked this post. Giving it a bump for others.

Love this!!!

You already know what to do to lose weight and get in shape. The smaller details will vary but the big picture is always to eat real food in appropriate quantity and move in a manner that is continually challenging. The problem is not lack of knowledge or lack of motivation. The problem is lack of decision.

Too accurate.

kae612 wrote: »

I agree. I definitely struggle with regulating my emotions - "emotional responsibility" someone in the comments terms it. In therapy, my psychiatrist encourages me to see my avoidance behaviours as "decisions." Eating a cake didn't "happen to me" and neither did not getting out of bed. These are decisions. I did that. She says that something in me doesn't want to do it - so I don't. My fears and anxieties come from just plain not wanting to do things, not having the discipline to get them done, and letting that doubt make my decision for me.

I found what you shared helpful & very inspiring, I also deal with what you've shared. This is a lot to take in had never thought of it in manner before. It just makes way more sense than the way I've been or not been handling it in the past, which is "not handling it".

@kae612 Thank you for posting your experience, you've helped far more than you may have realized!

Back a bit later to post on the blog entry.

Hearts_2015 wrote: »

kae612 wrote: »

I agree. I definitely struggle with regulating my emotions - "emotional responsibility" someone in the comments terms it. In therapy, my psychiatrist encourages me to see my avoidance behaviours as "decisions." Eating a cake didn't "happen to me" and neither did not getting out of bed. These are decisions. I did that. She says that something in me doesn't want to do it - so I don't. My fears and anxieties come from just plain not wanting to do things, not having the discipline to get them done, and letting that doubt make my decision for me.

I found what you shared helpful & very inspiring, I also deal with what you've shared. This is a lot to take in had never thought of it in manner before. It just makes way more sense than the way I've been or not been handling it in the past, which is "not handling it".

@kae612 Thank you for posting your experience, you've helped far more than you may have realized!

Back a bit later to post on the blog entry.

I'm glad My psychiatrist has been saying this to me for years, and it always troubled me. Did I really make the decision to get too anxious to do my homework? Did I choose to frantically shovel food into my mouth? Yeah. Yeah I did. This is her professional opinion, as a doctor. I did it. I did it, because I don't value myself. I've literally thought "I'm trash I'm trash I'm trash" as I ate junk so so so many times. Thus, the doubt in myself/self loathing drove me to choose self-destructive actions.

I reread this forum when I saw the notification that you tagged me, and I saw some arguments about the mental health vs "just do it" advocates. I don't really think they have to be separate. Often things have to get done anyway. We don't let people off the hook for violence towards others because of mental health issues. Violence towards the self needs to be treated similarly.

Part of "Making The Decision" to me anyway is to treat yourself with compassion. Not indulgence, but kindness. If you think of parenting, a good parent doesn't let their kid do/have whatever they want - a good parent is kind but firm. I think of myself as having an overgrown inner child - she has tantrums and is deeply emotional, constantly. I'm very sensitive and have probably the thinnest skin ever (someone spoke with me in a slightly harsh manner over the phone and I cried hysterically for 10 minutes afterwards yesterday, tbh). This inner child needs some good parenting. I wonder if becoming an "adult" really means you have to parent yourself. I don't naturally have good discipline. It's something I'm working on. I'm getting better at finding out what preparations to make so that I have something to hold onto when my inner child has a meltdown.

As far as food goes - carrying pre-made meals help me avoid fast food, having a limited cash-only budget for the month keeps me aware of my spending (and less likely to think nothing of buying an $8 tub of ice cream), I keep a reminder in my back pocket that being hungry isn't going to kill me and I can spend the time to get home or get something small and sensible until then. I could still make the choice to go out and get some, or I can make the choice to stay on the damn bus until I get home like a rational (responsible) adult human being.

For some, I think Making the Decision is going to be a simple switch, a eureka or "aha" moment. For some of us, like one commentor mentioned about their mom "trying" to quit smoking vs deciding, it's going to take a while for us to decide that we're worthy of that decision. To take emotional responsibility I think requires believing you are responsible, in both senses of the word - the culprit of the action AND the competent, capable, diligent, and disciplined person who can take it, clean it up, fix the problem, and keep going.

Feels like this could use a bump.

This put things into amazing perspective for me. Instead of waiting for motivation, I need to cultivate more self discipline. Thanks for posting!!