I tend to hear a lot of people making comments such as, “I don’t know where to start”, “I just can’t get motivated” and “I always loose my motivation after a while”.
The list goes on…
So… Where did I start?
First a foremost, I had to be ready to make a change. Simple as that.
“Change happens when the pain of staying the same is greater than the pain of change” – Tony Robbins
For the longest time I was in denial about how crappy I looked and felt. I just figured that it was normal to feel like I did and kind of shrugged my health off. Just because I was told to care about “this” or look in to “that” didn’t make a bit of difference until I truly desired and was ready to change for myself and my body.
I finally realized that no one else could do it for me. I was done waiting on the world to hand me all the answers in pill form or whatever… I was done being afraid of the mountains ahead and letting myself get paralyzed by fear. I was done being sick and feeling so broken and depressed about EVERYTHING. I HAD to do better.
***For more information on how and why I got started, see my post titled “My Health Story”.
Get Comfortable with being UN-Comfortable
Don’t start anything new with the unrealistic fantasy that it will all be quick or easy. Things might get a bit messy… you will likely fumble and falter from time to time. That’s OKAY.
Know that failure is a very important part of the journey to success.
Absolutely no one just starts anything new having all the answers. Try not to stress yourself into quitting before you begin or when things aren’t going as you had planned because… that’s life. We learn, adapt and evolve as we go.
Also keep in mind that what you see working for one person (or even the majority of people) may not work for you… doesn’t mean it’s “the only way” or you should just give up all together. There is no “cookie-cutter” approach to your health and fitness. You have your own unique recipe for success and you have to be willing to figure it out day by day.
Do some research and get connected with the proper health professionals.
Then begin! I mean what’s the harm in trying, right??
Mindset Totally Matters
I’m sure you’ve heard this a million times over… but seriously though – if you think you can diet and exercise your way to a bangin’ healthy bod and KEEP it forever without focusing on your mindset, well… good luck to ya.
Time and time again, it felt as thought my initial motivation would always fizzle out. Whether it was because I felt my progress was taking too long, or maybe I got over stressed and ended up self sabotaging… I’d find myself right back where I started. Talk about disappointing and un-motivating… The “motivation” struggle cycle is so REAL.
Ultimately, I decided to focus on my mindset FIRST. That’s when the magic happened.
My best advice here? Take a beat and get acquainted with your own discomfort for a hot second. I know it can be scary, but it’s SO crucial that you truly understand what you are feeling so that you can get to the root cause(s) of why you haven’t been able to reach or maintain any lasting success.
So try listing out your symptoms and write down how EVERYTHING makes you feel – good, bad, whatever. Go nuts.
Some questions I focused on were ones like:
- How does it feel emotionally to not look or feel your best?
- What do your relationships look like?
- Do you feel hopeless? Why?
- What diets or strategies have you tried before?
- What has or has not worked for you?
Ask yourself ALL the tough questions you can think of and answer them honestly.
You could also talk to a friend, significant other, an accountability partner or even a health/life coach. Do whatever you need to do so that you can truly grasp where your mental health stands and what you want for yourself in this new process.
Getting Motivated & Staying Motivated
For me, the first step to getting motivated was figuring out my greater “WHY”?
Why did I want to lose the weight? Why did I want to build more muscle? I had to allow myself to look past the vanity of it all and dig a bit deeper.
Getting motivated was one thing, but STAYING motivated has been the hardest part of the entire process.
What continues to motivate all of us will vary from person to person and there’s usually no easy answer here.
Staying motivated after time and multiple failures has been a major CHALLENGE for me. I have to make the choice every single day to stay motivated and take care of myself, even when I wasn’t feeling it. Doesn’t mean I’m perfect and doesn’t mean I’m successful every day… but I’m owning my power and choosing my health above all.
So, after making the decision to NOT QUIT on myself, I tend to stay motivated from a variety of other things such as vision boards, social media icons, accountability partners etc.
My favorite form of continuous motivation? Consistency.
It takes time to develop a daily habit and it can be tough initially. Once my habits became part of how I live every day, I quite literally felt a NEED to continue eating cleaner and training meaner than ever before. My body and mind craved those healthy patterns after a while… No additional motivation required!
So, I started making small, healthy changes that turned into daily habits that has helped me build a healthy lasting LIFESTYLE.
Enjoy the Journey
Do NOT postpone your happiness until you meet your goals.
When I finally allowed myself to let go of the idea of being PERFECT, I noticed that I became a whole lot happier overall. I needed to give myself permission to enjoy my body, my health and my mind TODAY – because tomorrow is never guaranteed.
Let’s all remember to spend more time living happily and practicing gratitude. There’s more to life than reaching one single goal – so be sure to enjoy your ride.
Thanks for reading, friends! Have a BEAUTIFUL day.
With Love,
P.S. What’s your story?? Let’s connect on social media! (Links @ top & bottom of page)
If you’d like to collaborate a bit further, go ahead and fill out the form under the “contact me” tab.
Looking forward to hearing from you!