No Motivation? No Problem!

Some people feel like the beginning of a weight loss and health plan is the easiest.  The excitement is fresh and the challenge of a new routine is invigorating. You are full of hope and feelings of anticipation.

Others find the beginning to be the hardest.  Breaking old habits and letting go of comfortable routines feels daunting and difficult.   Rather than being energized by the newness, you struggle until the newness wears off and the ‘different’ finally becomes ‘normal.’

But whether you have just embarked on your journey to better health or have been at this a while, one thing is certain:  you will have times when your enthusiasm wanes and you struggle with motivation.

Let’s be honest:  eating well and exercising are hard.  It takes extreme effort, because we are fighting the battle on many fronts.

• We are fighting our own brains, because our brains are literally (physically!) hardwired to remember and crave the pleasures that unhealthy food brings.

• We are fighting social pressure, because going out to eat with friends or celebrating during holidays demands certain foods and drinks.  The pressure during social gatherings can be intense.

• We are fighting our bodies’ tendency to conserve energy, which sometimes makes working out an exercise in extreme willpower!

• We are fighting life too, aren’t we?  Life is hard sometimes, and when life bears down on us, it’s hard to keep going at full effort.  And we all know that staying on track with our health and fitness takes full effort, fully 100% of the time.

With life coming at us the way it does, it is very easy to lose motivation.  However, you do not have to sit back and watch your motivation and enthusiasm ebb away. There are some important things you can do as soon as you realize that you are tiring of the effort, feeling deprived or having thoughts of giving up.

Strategy Tips

1.  Get Help

Do not feel guilty for admitting that you are struggling.  Everyone struggles.  Think about it:  if it were easy to get fit and stay healthy, more people would do it and we would not have the current epidemic of obesity that we are faced with in this country.  One of the most effective ways to keep yourself from straying too far off the path is to get some accountability.  Group classes or hiring a personal trainer will provide some external motivation that will help you get through the rough spots with much more ease.

When you know others are counting on you and checking up on you, you will have more willpower and determination to keep going.

2.  Remember your Why

Another common reason for decreased motivation is losing sight of your “why.”  You started this journey for a reason.  What is it?  Maybe you just learned that you are pre-diabetic.  Or perhaps you have the beginnings of another chronic disease and your doctor has told you that the only way to hold it back is to make some serious lifestyle changes.  Maybe you are tired of feeling, well, tired!  Maybe you want to have more energy, fit into smaller clothes and just feel great.  Do you have children or grandchildren that you would enjoy more if you could be more active with them? Sometimes one of the best ways to show love to them is to take care of yourself!

Take some time to think about why you are doing this, and let that internal motivation help you regain your excitement and momentum.

3. Mix it up

Boredom is a real threat when it comes to staying motivated.  If you do the same workouts and eat the same food day after day, you will grow tired of the sameness of it all.  Guard against boredom by mixing it up a little.  Find some new workouts or some new exercise classes.  Research some new recipes too; adding in some new, exciting flavors will help you continue resisting those great-tasting but unhealthy foods.

Just remember that you are not alone.  We all have to fight for motivation from time to time.  If you try these strategy tips, you will probably notice a significant boost in your motivation and enthusiasm!