So, I want to speak about something I get asked about quite a bit, and that’s motivation.
Lots of people may think that because I am a personal trainer that I have motivation in bucket loads and never struggle to exercise. But I’m afraid I need to burst that bubble, that simple isn’t true.
Motivation isn’t something you just have and there is no such thing as someone having more of it than another person. It’s about finding your own journey, because we are all so so different.
So I really wanted to give you some tips to help you see if you can find your way to feeling more motivated and excited to exercise.
1. What are your reasons for not liking/doing exercise:
- Haven’t found an exercise/movement you like, this is important, you need to actually enjoy what your doing!
- Your scared of injury, repeat injury, pain
- You are not sure what you are doing
- You feel embarrassed and anxious about exercising
- Illness
- Schedule/time
- Fatigued
Dig down and find out what is stopping you from finding your motivated.
2. How can you overcome this:
Now we want to work on how you can overcome what is stopping you enjoying and wanting to exercise, this is where it all starts.
If its fear of injury or working with an injury, research a specialist who you can work with in the first instances to help you understand what is safe – back pain, pelvic issues, prolapses – there are physios and fitness professionals who specialise in these things to help you.
If its your schedule, take some time to sit and really look at your time and how it is being used and where if possible, you can find a small amount for you, even 10 minutes.
I’m not saying that this will be easy, it could take some time but it needs to be done first. Look at how you can work towards overcoming what is keeping you from moving. Take it step by step.
3. Why do you want to exercise?
This is really important and you need this “Why”, as this is what you need to have on those really hard days that you just do not want to move.
When looking at this, you need to look long term, I’m not talking about your weight loss goals for holiday, a wedding or Christmas. These are great goals to have, but once you’ve reached them, what’s next? You need that long term goal for those really tough days when you are struggling with Why you are moving.
I have a few long term goals which keep me going which are:
- My health, I have an autoimmune disease, I’m coeliac and this presents me with a lot of health issues that will only increase over time and aging and I want to give my body it’s best shot to support me.
- My mother also suffers from many health issues and I see how hard things can be for her, and I want to start now to help myself delay any that I may inherit.
- I also suffered with prolapses after my two children and I know that this needs constant life long attention to keep me strong and prevent them getting worse.
These are the goals I think on, when I’m really struggling and just need that push. And to this day, I have never regretted a workout… I’ve only ever regretted NOT doing one.
4. The Plan
Do not go all out on a crazy fitness scheduled. If you are going from nothing to 5 sessions a week you are going to feel not only shell shocked but you’ll find it’s not sustainable, and your back at square one.
Start small, move for 10-15 minutes every day for a month or two, get comfortable with what you are doing. Hit your step count (that’s suitable for you). Create a lifestyle change, then add to this a bit at a time.
Find someone to work with, who can help you put a plan together, this doesn’t need to be a personal trainer, it can be a Pilates instructor or a physiotherapist your working with.
Have this means your not going in blind, your following and achieving something right from day one.
5. Consistency
Keeping things consistent is key,
If you use an unsustainable plan, you will not able able to stay consistent and you then have to keep starting again, and this is not a great feeling.
By starting small, as mentioned above, 10-15 minutes of movement a day, of 3 to 5 movements over one or two months can create that consistency and also get you off the starting platform onto bigger things, and you will not be a “beginner” again.
It can make you feel confident and safe because you know what your doing with those moves and you have made them part of your life.
That plan you created needs to work for YOU.
6. New Goals
Setting yourself some realistic goals, short and long term.
We’ve talked a little about long term goals above, the big things!
But we do also need those short term goals to make us feel that we’ve made progress and then that happiness when we reach them.
These can be anything:
- To lunge without knee pain
- To feel more energy
- To be able to get up off the floor with no pain or difficulty.
- To be able to complete 10 press ups
You might have weight loss goals and that is great, but they are your medium goals, first we want these short ones first, and you can have as many as you wish.
7. Make It Easy
Make your exercise as easy as possible! And by this I mean accessible.
For me, it’s doing it either before my kids wake up, or whilst they are joining in with me (or when they were younger, usually climbing over me and that can still happen now!).
Struggling with childcare – do an online workout or if you need a little more one to one help or the supprot of a group find a personal trainer or postnatal class where you can take your child.
Stuck at your desk… take a lunch break, walk, or do some movements by your desk if you have the privacy of an office.
Get your bag packed and your clothes out the night before.
You need to make it work for you, no one else, just YOU.
There are no quick fixes, this will take time, and REMEMBER if you are struggling with your motivation and exercise, you are still amazing and you have got this, you just need a little more time and to workout Why.
And one very big last point – even if you nail the above… sometimes there will always be that day when it is sooo hard to find that motivation. Everyone has those!