What is Your Real Motivation?

WHAT IS YOUR REAL MOTIVATION

They say motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing.

That’s why we recommend it daily.

But what motivates you? To show my age, let’s call it “different strokes for different folks.”

What motivates me may turn you off completely. It may seem silly or juvenile or conceded and not motivate you at all. What motivates you may bore me to tears or seem totally unrealistic.

Sometimes, motivation can be extremely complicated. Other times, for other people, motivation can be as simple as one tiny thought. It may even be only one word.

It’s almost always very, very personal. So personal, in fact, that most people won’t even tell their trainer or coach what their real motivation is. As a matter of fact, a person’s real motivation is almost never the reason they give!

Sometimes, people have difficulty deciding what their real motivation is themselves. Let’s take a simple example:

“I want to lose weight”

Me: “Why?”

“To have more energy”

Me: “Why?”

“To be able do more of the things I enjoy”

Me: “Like what?”

“Playing with my kids more”

Me: “Playing what?”

“Football in the back yard”

Me: “When?”

“Before football season comes back around”

Me: “So, we have 3 months? How much weight do you want to lose?”

“Twenty pounds”

(Now, we’re getting somewhere!)

Me: “Twenty pounds in twelve weeks will take some hard work. Have you tried before?”

“Yes”

Me: “How many times?”

“Several”

Me: “What did you try?”

“Diets”

Me: “Why didn’t they work?”

And on and on….

             

Actually, the conversation is usually much longer than the one I just described. But you get the point.

 His motivation is not losing weight. His real motivation is being to play football in the back yard with his kids. He has a realistic (and emotional) goal and he has a time limit and it’s easy to track progress. Without all three, he’s wasting his time.

Staying Motivated

The first thing you have to do is find your “WHY”. (The real one) and it has to be very specific. Concentrate on the real goal. Work toward getting fit to be able to play with your kids and forget the scale. The weight will take care of itself.

The goal has to be measurable. You have to be able to measure your progress along the way.

The goal must be attainable. Losing 50 pounds of fat in three months or gaining 30 pounds of muscle is three months are not attainable for the average person. You’ll fail. Start by analyzing and recording where you are now. Then put a realistic time frame on it with measurable steps along the way.  Get emotional. Get excited.

You will falter. You will hit plateaus. You will get discouraged. But, if you have isolated what your real motivation is, you’ll find a way to get over it when you stumble.


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