What's your motivation to keep working out?

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Replies

  • NiniLeeMarie
    NiniLeeMarie Posts: 102
    These are all great ideas! My motivation is to look amazing in a bikini. I plan to buy a 2 piece & hang it in my room where I can see it until I'm satisfied with the way it looks on me!
  • BrittRae12
    BrittRae12 Posts: 27
    I have a lot of peer pressure in my life with my job to stay fit.
    I also want to set an example for my parents and hopefully it will make them want to join me and get healthy.


    but what gets me there when those won't work is my Ipod. Love my music and I update my playlist all the time. I buy itunes gift cards for 'rewards' for myself if I stay on track with my workouts so that gives me tons of motivation. It's win-win. :smile:

    ok share some of your fav workout tunes . I love my ipod as well but haven't updated the workout playlist lately.

    ^
    |

    What she said! Plz... :)
  • jrogersj
    jrogersj Posts: 115 Member
    I have found that what motivates me is the feeling that I get after I work out. I also continue to tell myself, the more times I go to the gym when I really don't feel like it, the more it will just be something that I accept instead of dread! I just ran for 3 minutes straight on the treadmill tonight. I don't even remember the last time I was able to run for three minutes straight. I know how bad of shape I was in before, and just being able to do simple tasks everyday is also what helps keep me going.
  • carajo
    carajo Posts: 532 Member
    It makes me have a MUCH better day...and my muscles i'm gaining keep me going!! good luck to you!
  • nnylee
    nnylee Posts: 811 Member
    My biggest motivator now is my actual weight loss, but when I started, I was looking at fit girls like a creepo. Haha. Gotta do what ya gotta do to keep yourself motivated. :D
  • lemonjune
    lemonjune Posts: 37 Member
    Lately, all the great weather has been motivating me, reminding me that there's going to be lots of good bathing suit weather and I want to get in on it! Also, I set little rewards for myself -- for instance, when I lose 5 pounds I get a spa pedicure done, or I get that perfume I've been dying to get. It makes me more eager to work towards goals and exercise to get there. :)
  • bcc112986
    bcc112986 Posts: 362 Member
    My motivation are my goals (to be a martial arts and wellness instructor) and my reality (I am a Wellness Coach). I have to be responsible for myself so others see the example.

    Also, on my computer desktop, I have a collage of pictures of female athletes. Their bodies and success are an inspiration for me.

    :)
  • TrailRunner61
    TrailRunner61 Posts: 2,505 Member
    What motivates me the most is a friend's little 4 yr old son who has a brain tumor. I figure if he can go through chemotherapy every Friday for 52 weeks, I can walk 1,000 miles in his honor for St. Jude's. On the plus side, I have several donors donating $.01 cent per mile or more, I've lost nearly 18lbs since Jan 1st, was introduced to MFP by a family member and started eating right, I was able to stop taking 1 blood pressure pill, I am no longer considered pre-diabetic, my clothes fit better and I already feel sexier. :)
  • shoby68
    shoby68 Posts: 30
    My current "motivation" is to beat my 10 km time in the annual Sun Run (A vancouver thing) from last year (the first year I got thin again!)
    After that I want to try a 1/2 marathon and then maybe enter a masters (I'm 43) track meet and see how I do at the sprints (See how close I'm to my high school days)
  • rithebard
    rithebard Posts: 2
    I want to be healthy and lose the tire aroung my tummy.

    My brother is helping because he did it and he is very fit.

    I am doing yoga every day, and for cardio swimming one day and then the treadmill with bike.

    Watching what i eat slowly its working a big motivator was being able to get into jeaans two sizes smaaller;)
  • monicalynne68
    monicalynne68 Posts: 87 Member
    my motivation...BIKINI SEASON!!!!!!!!!!!!! lol I haven't worn a bikini in 20 years but dammit I'm getting into one this year!!!!
  • BrittRae12
    BrittRae12 Posts: 27
    What motivates me the most is a friend's little 4 yr old son who has a brain tumor. I figure if he can go through chemotherapy every Friday for 52 weeks, I can walk 1,000 miles in his honor for St. Jude's. On the plus side, I have several donors donating $.01 cent per mile or more, I've lost nearly 18lbs since Jan 1st, was introduced to MFP by a family member and started eating right, I was able to stop taking 1 blood pressure pill, I am no longer considered pre-diabetic, my clothes fit better and I already feel sexier. :)

    That is definitely a great motivator! You are doing a great thing! Congrats on your weight loss and improved health.

    I hope your friend's son gets better.
  • scrapnextras
    scrapnextras Posts: 6 Member
    Vegas on my 50th birthday! I have never been so motivted in my life It was my New Year's resolution and I am still with it! I am halfway to losing those lousy 10lbs that have made me feel so frumpy for the last 25 years. I'm working out with Jillian M at home, going to aerobics 2x a week and feeling so much stronger and leaner that I have in years. I'm so excited to be celebrating my BD in Vegas...50 is going to be fabulous...expecially with the body I had at 20!
  • ash190489
    ash190489 Posts: 587 Member
    Hey there...
    My motivation is how great & healthy I feel as well as fitting more comfortably into my clothes & being able to buy smaller sizes!!! I don't really have many 'before photo's' - I avoided the camera! I did use my friends for motivation --- they were working out beginning to lose weight and after losing 10kg none of them mentioned my weight loss (jealousy??? I don't know) so that made me work harder as I wanted to lose so much weight & tone up heaps that they COULDN'T not mention how great I looked! :-)
    Crazy, I know! But it works!!!
  • trinitylyons01
    trinitylyons01 Posts: 126 Member
    Seeing the results of past workouts keeps me motivated. I've only lost 34 pounds but I'm down almost 3 sizes. When I put on my jeans and I need a belt to keep them from slipping down that motivates me to keep going. I HATE working out so I think about what all this working out and eating better have gotten me and I literally feel guilty if I miss a day. I've worked out at bedtime because I felt so bad about missing the workout that day.

    I like to have more calories so knowing I can eat more if I work out keeps me motivated.

    Also, I travel a lot so not needing a seatbelt extension is a HUGE motivator.

    Finally, my husband and I are taking my dream vacation this summer and I want to have the energy to do all the tours and dance the night away - not to mention I want to look great!
  • LBM1026
    LBM1026 Posts: 7
    It helps me to keep a pair of jeans that don't fit in my clothes rotation. I try them on every Sunday, yesterday I was finally able to close them for the first time in months, they're still a little tight but I am hoping in the next two weeks to be able to wear them out. Clothes are a big motivator for me!!!
  • BrittRae12
    BrittRae12 Posts: 27
    Seeing the results of past workouts keeps me motivated. I've only lost 34 pounds but I'm down almost 3 sizes. When I put on my jeans and I need a belt to keep them from slipping down that motivates me to keep going. I HATE working out so I think about what all this working out and eating better have gotten me and I literally feel guilty if I miss a day. I've worked out at bedtime because I felt so bad about missing the workout that day.

    I like to have more calories so knowing I can eat more if I work out keeps me motivated.

    Also, I travel a lot so not needing a seatbelt extension is a HUGE motivator.

    Finally, my husband and I are taking my dream vacation this summer and I want to have the energy to do all the tours and dance the night away - not to mention I want to look great!

    only lost 34 pounds!!!? That is a great accomplishment! I cannot wait til I can say that I have lost 5 pounds let alone 34... Keep up the good work :)
  • DAM_Fine
    DAM_Fine Posts: 1,227 Member
    How much healthier, stronger - YOUNGER - I feel and look, and how my husband looks at me now!
  • jmehere
    jmehere Posts: 108 Member
    I feel so good and so much stronger every time I work out. And if I don't work out consistently enough, I start feeling it; in my mood and my body (hips and back start hurting).
  • micls
    micls Posts: 234
    Wedding and honeymoon were the initial motivation.

    I wanna look hot for my fiance, and working out means I can eat more making it easier to stay on track with my diet.
    I also wanna be able to enjoy a strenuous enough honeymoon without being wrecked.

    That's why it started. Now that I'm in the process, have researched stuff etc then health benefits have become more important
  • rrhennen
    rrhennen Posts: 60 Member
    - I have an itch to get a new pair of shoes. No shoe shopping until I loose 10 pounds!
    - Remembered just the other day how much better I can ride my horses when I have a strong core. I'm very focused to be a tough contender this year and win rodeo checks! Need to take care of myself just as much as I take care of my horses.
    - Husband has recently pointed out how much happier I am when I work out.

    Now to get through the next six weeks of school so I can focus on me a whole lot more!
  • byrnet18
    byrnet18 Posts: 230 Member
    Lol one time I taped pictures that I ripped out of my Fredricks of Hollywood magazine to my treadmill to keep me motivated.
  • bademasi
    bademasi Posts: 180 Member
    I think of exercise as something my body needs daily. I brush my teeth, eat, drink, exercise. Move it or loose it! :love:

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  • daryls
    daryls Posts: 260
    How I feel afterwards. My stress greatly diminishes after a great workout! Do I ever really want to go to the gym? NO - but that workout high is worth it!
  • seetherfanatic
    seetherfanatic Posts: 1 Member
    My motivation is Just Dance 3 for Wii. It's a fun and short work out with that is a very easy way to burn calories. My exercise today was 18 minutes and I burned about 270 calories. If you're busy or don't like working out a lot, consider trying this game or something similar.
  • marywanoKC
    marywanoKC Posts: 176
    Oh, man, I've got motivation out the nose...lol

    - I want to take a long distance flight and not worry about crowding someone for 14 hours
    - My sister is getting married at the end of April, and I'll be seeing my mom for the first time in 12 years
    - I don't want to live life in a Hoveround
    - I want to be able to do yoga for real, not just beginners classes, but like crazy balancing ****.
    - I want to wear a two piece bathing suit. I've never gotten to do that!
    - I want to be a stripper for just a little while. I know it's strange, but I'd LOVE to dance like that.
    - I want to ballroom dance with my husband.
    - I want to walk into a normal store and pull a pair of jeans off of the rack and the size not begin with a 2_ or a 3_.
    - Maybe one day I'd like to have kids.
    - And now that all of my friends know I'm doing this, and they see my results already, there's no way in hell I'm letting them down. And I'm not letting me down. This has been the best decision of my life.

    And if ALL of that doesn't keep me going, I follow a few fitspiration blogs on Tumblr. 10 minutes of looking through photos of men and women healthy, lean, and beautiful is enough to zap me out of any funk.
  • mistresseeyore
    mistresseeyore Posts: 717 Member
    What keeps me motivated? My son and the possibility of giving him a sibling. The ability to play with him and not get tired, drives me hard. I also like working out.
  • leomentlines
    leomentlines Posts: 440 Member
    Pictures and clothes.

    Looking at pictures of where I started at definitely help me to get off my *kitten* and get a workout in. I try to take progress pictures every couple of weeks, and seeing tiny changes (such as a ~tiny~ bit of ab definition) is enough to get over my slump and go exercise.

    Clothes are a HUGE motivator for me. Whenever I go clothes shopping I always end up buying the bulk of my clothing a size smaller, and maybe 1-2 pieces in the size I actually am. I then try them on 2x a month until I can get into them. This has motivated me into the size 12 I am now, and I anticipate wearing a size 10 in the next few weeks.

    I also bought an expensive (for me at least) bathing suit in a size 8 that I plan on hanging in plain view until I can get into it :)
  • msgiggles88
    msgiggles88 Posts: 2
    but what gets me there when those won't work is my Ipod. Love my music and I update my playlist all the time. I buy itunes gift cards for 'rewards' for myself if I stay on track with my workouts so that gives me tons of motivation. It's win-win. :smile:
    [/quote]
    Great idea to buy itunes gift cards for rewards!
  • lombrica
    lombrica Posts: 1,419 Member
    My motivations...

    1) Drippy ponytail holder... the ones that are so soaked from the workout, you could see them drip! LOVE those days, had one today!
    2) The fact that I love what my body can do and enjoy seeing myself do more and more... I may not like everything about my physical appearance... but I love what my body can physically do!
    3) I have a Bucket List for the year... motivation was to complete #1 on my list - climbing Koko Head in Hawaii... I did it! At just under 300 pounds, I did it... Not many people can say they climbed a volcano!

    And really... the biggest motivation... is simply that I love it... I love to workout, I love the gym, I love the elliptical, I love strength training... some people would say that I like it a little too much, but I disagree. I love the feeling that I get, love seeing the changes, love the way it relieves stress... Yeah, my motivation is how much I love every single thing that comes with the workout!
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