Do you find it hard to motivate yourself to get dressed and workout?
Have you been working out regularly but find it really boring and monotonous?
Do you feel like you are putting in the effort but not able to get the desired results?
Do you often feel lost as if there is nothing to be excited about?
If the answer is Yes to any of the above questions, Read On!
One of the most common and underrated reasons someone feels lost in life is because they don’t have anything to look forward to.
It is that feeling of something exciting on the horizon is what motivates us to keep going. The next vacation, the next episode of your favourite series, an upcoming movie, salsa lessons, your kid’s birthday, the next promotion at work, and so on. These are all examples of events that we eagerly look forward to and that’s what drives us to continue doing what we do every day. The same principle applies when you are working out regularly but feel lost or demotivated:
YOU DON’T HAVE ANYTHING TO LOOK FORWARD TO
There are two major reasons for the above problem:
1. You don’t have goals to track progress
2. You don’t have the right kind of motivation to drive yourself
PART ONE: YOU DON’T HAVE GOALS TO TRACK PROGRESS
Goals are extremely important, not just for tracking progress but also to ensure that you have a definite focus leading yourself in the right direction. Without definite goals, it’s like having all the ingredients in place but not knowing what exactly to prepare for dinner… It’s pointless!
Start setting SMART goals
S – SPECIFIC
The goal must be clear and specific. An example of a vague fitness goal is “I want to get fit” or “I want to lose fat”. A specific goal would be something like “I want to lose 2 inches off my waist” or “I want to lose 10 kgs weight” or “I want to build endurance to run for 5 km continuously”
M – MEASURABLE
Assessing progress keeps you focused and helps you to look forward to something. It is essential to have a measurable goal so that you can track progress and stay motivated. A fitness goal must therefore be measurable. An example of a measurable goal is “To gain strength in order to perform 5 pull-ups”
A – ACHIEVABLE
A fitness goal, just like any other goal in life, must be realistic and attainable. If you’ve never written an article in your life and your goal is to directly publish a book, it’s highly likely that you may give up soon. Instead have attainable goals such as starting a blog or writing the first chapter of your book so you are not bogged down by the thought of completing a mammoth task of writing an entire book. Similarly, if you’ve not been active for a long time, instead of having a mammoth goal of competing in iron man triathlon, break it down into smaller goals. Start with a realistic goal such as running continuously for 10 km or 200 m swim. This would keep you motivated and on track to eventually prepare for the triathlon.
R- RELEVANT
A goal must serve an ultimate purpose in line with what you’d like to achieve in long term. E.g. If your purpose is to run a marathon, then there is no merit in having a fat loss goal or a target weight which may be achieved automatically as a result of a more relevant goal of building endurance to run for say 10 km without a break
T- TIME-BOUND
Often, people set goals with no set timelines which leads to procrastination or the progress is so sluggish that they end up losing motivation to continue. While its important to be patient and persistent, it’s equally important to have a set time frame in mind so you don’t lose sight of your purpose.
Try it out when you start a fitness regime next time, set SMART fitness goals for yourself, and have clarity on what is it you want to look forward to
PART TWO: YOU DON’T HAVE THE RIGHT KIND OF MOTIVATION TO DRIVE YOURSELF
The most common reason people join a gym or commence a fitness regime is to lose weight and look good. Naturally, the goals are also focused on how many inches you’ve lost from your waist or how many layers of muscles have you added onto your chest and biceps.
While it’s good to see visible results, such goals are often external reward focused and there is little or no focus on enjoying the process. As a result, they tend to create excessive pressure to get the desired results which leads to a downward spiral of boredom and procrastination.
Another factor that comes into play is the fact that sustainable progress requires consistent efforts over a long period of time. When the focus is on external rewards, the motivation stays as long as we keep receiving the rewards continuously. However, the rate of success in terms of fat loss or muscle gain is not solely dependent on the amount of time you spend in the gym or outdoors working out. There are numerous other factors such as nutrition, recovery, sleep, stress levels, and self-discipline.
It’s one of the major reasons why many individuals are not happy with their progress despite having the motivation to exercise regularly. This gets worse for women as they notice spikes in their weight during menstrual cycles.
So what do we do?
Change your focus inwards
A great way to tackle this is by changing your focus inwards towards learning a new skill or type of movement. Learn whatever you enjoy! A good example of this would be to say learning a new dance form. While dancing has similar effects as exercising on your body, most people do it because they enjoy the process of dancing and not to lose fat.
Those inclined to go to a gym can focus on something they enjoy. For someone who enjoys running can have goals such as being able to run for X km continuously or reduce their mins/km. Those interested in getting stronger can choose from a wide variety of movements such as inversions, calisthenics, gymnastics, or some of the martial art forms that are challenging yet fun to learn. Even weightlifting can be enjoyable, as long as the focus is on exceeding your PB (Personal Best) and not solely on building muscles.
That way it’s the challenge of learning a new skill set (or honing existing ones) that will keep you motivated to keep going. And when that happens, other factors will automatically fall in place. In fact, such goals will eventually lead to the rewards of losing fat and gaining muscles for an attractive physique in a sustainable way
Check out the below photo in which I am flaunting my ability to perform wheel pose (or full-bridge pose) with one arm. A goal that has enough progressions to keep me motivated and leads to improved strength and mobility.
Imagine how a basketball player focuses on improving his/her jumping skills so they can dunk. They do various exercises such as deadlifts, jump squats, box jumps, etc. to achieve the ability to dunk. An effect of that is they get really strong legs. Here, the motivation is reward focused but the reward is an internal reward to learn a skill.
The bottom line
Setting well defined, measurable fitness goals that are not overwhelming to achieve will help you stay focused and have something to look forward to. There should be a set target date for the goal, so you don’t procrastinate and lose sight of your purpose.
Your time in the gym and outside will be more enjoyable if the focus is shifted inwards towards the internal rewards of learning a new skill or type of movement, rather than the external reward of losing weight or gaining muscles.
So, next time you head to the gym or start a workout routine, think of what is it that you really want to learn and make some goals for yourself. Enjoy the journey!
Thanks for reading this article. If you have any questions, feel free to message me on Instagram. Get regular blog updates and stay up to date on upcoming coaching resources. Subscribe here.
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