I've been thinking a lot today about motivation.
I actually got myself a bit confused, because I've read a lot of blogs that say things like 'I need motivation', and to me, we're already motivated, right? I mean, we already want to lose the weight. The desire is there. So I was like, 'What's the big deal? You're ALREADY motivated...you just have to DO it!"
But the desire itself is not motivation.
So I looked up the definition of motivation. And the actual definition is that it is the 'driving force' that compels us to do certain things (i.e., stay OP, exercise, work on our headwork, etc.) to achieve a certain goal.
So we need to start with a goal....and then stay COMPELLED to achieve it.
Our goal here is to lose the weight. Right?
Who DOESN'T want to lose the weight? Show of hands?
Nope, no hands are up....No takers.
WE ALL want to lose weight.
And we ALL want to lose it PERMANENTLY.
Right? (I mean, who wants to lose the weight 'temporarily'?
Raise your hands...LOL....I don't see any takers.)
So....it therefore follows....only two questions remain:
1). HOW to accomplish this goal, and
2). HOW to stay 'motivated', i.e, COMPELLED, to do the things that will get us to our goal.
HOW is easy. It's the TSFL program using Medifast meals. It's staying OP, day after day. It's drinking our water. It's exercising (hopefully) or at least getting a bit more active. And it's working on our heads...our habits..analyzing our daily habits that may have gotten us into trouble before. And CHANGING them.
Don't question the 'how' if you've been OP for more than a week because you already KNOW 'how'. Minor details about program may remain but you know it works. So you don't have to find the 'HOW' anymore. (which is a blessing in itself!)
But HOW do you stay COMPELLED, i.e, MOTIVATED, to stay OP and do the planning and logging and exercise and drink your water and all the rest of it?
Especially when we're surrounded by food...everywhere.
When 'giving up' and 'giving in' would be so e-a-s-y.
When your fat brain is telling you "One won't hurt" or to take a day "off" and "restart" tomorrow. When you don't "feel like" cooking your L&G or you don't "feel like" getting ready to go exercise.
It's certainly easier to sit on the couch and veg out, isn't it?
But we've all 'been there, done that'. For TOO LONG.
We want HEALTH now. We want to be PROUD of ourselves. We want to wear pretty, even sexy clothing. We want to be able to live longer, fuller, more enjoyable lives than we were living when we were overweight.
So how do you stay motivated?
Here's some tips I have used that I hope help you:
- First of all, understand that the excitement level and enthusiasm that 'peaked' when you first started doesn't last. And that's OK! There's nothing wrong with that! It's just the nature of the beast. Your motivation will ebb and flow based on the scale, how your jeans fit today, what social events you have coming up, etc.
And that enthusiasm/motivation can be 'pumped up' a bit by reading uplifting or exciting blogs. There's nothing like hearing the excitement and energy in someone's voice when they blog about how they just reached 50 lbs off or got to Onederland or made goal. It 'rubs off'; you smile, you remember how YOU felt when you reached that milestone (or look forward to it if you haven't gotten there yet). And that can help KEEP you OP that day as your brain remembers that excitement level and wants to experience it for itself.
And another help? I hope you took pictures of how you looked when you started this program. If not, ask a family member to comb through the old pictures and find some at your heaviest. Now look at them. Really study them. Try to put yourself back into the moment when the picture was taken and what your emotions were at that time.
Then have someone take a picture of you NOW (or do a 'selfie' using your cell) and look at those as well.
Now COMPARE the two. If you've made substantial progress, this should give you a shot of motivation...because you should already be seeing some changes. If not, ASK a family member...I bet they will tell you that you HAVE lost weight.
Another idea? Take our your list (I hope you made one!) of your "Reasons to Lose Weight". This very detailed, very private list is something that you should look at often...because you will begin to 'check things off' your list as you lose the weight. And you will be inspired to KEEP AT IT, keep going and get the rest of the reasons 'done'! You will see that it IS possible.
And what about your closet? And clothes shopping? The spring clothes need to come out now. No more heavy coats to hide under....now we have to think about shorts, and Easter dresses, and wearing newer more colorful fashions for the season. Go through your closet. Pull out things that look too big (chances are they are!) Try them on. If they are swimming on you, DONATE them .. get rid of them, and make a mental note to replace them with a smaller size! Nothing is more fun than buying clothes in a smaller size in my opinion....
Last but not least, what about how your energy level is? Are you sleeping better? Are you able to get more done? Are your friends and relatives remarking on your progress?
ALL of these can be motivating....as you see and confirm to yourself that the program WORKS.
So all you have to do is keep doing it!
When temptation strikes, REMEMBER your list of reasons...REMEMBER those clothes in your closet...REMEMBER those pictures of yourself.
One of my strongest motivations is when I'm in Spinning class, in order to keep going (because it's TOUGH!) is I have a water bottle with my 'before' and 'after' pictures on it. I look down at that water bottle and I KNOW I don't EVER want to go back there...and that motivates me to keep going, to NOT GIVE UP.
Today I spent a very happy hour in the garden....cleaning up after the long Winter....and I couldn't get it ALL done, it has to be little by little...but I was happy with my progress.
And I realized afterwards, I did this IN ADDITION TO working out at the gym doing back-to-back classes this morning! 2 hours' worth!
That would've been physically IMPOSSIBLE when I weighed 235 lbs. I just didn't have the stamina or energy level.
But today? I got to enjoy the sunshine and fresh air and the feeling of having my hands in the dirt again (love it)... AND I got to enjoy the camaradarie of working out doing Body Pump in a full class as well as Body Flow afterwards.
It was a 'new release' too, which is always challenging. The lunges alone....WOW....but I got through it!
And tonight I'll sleep like a baby.
Tomorrow I'll get up and stay on my food plan AGAIN. It's one day at a time even though it's maintenance! It's necessary. I can NEVER 'let myself go'. It's not possible because if I do, I'll be right back up to 235 so fast it'll make my head spin. So it's important to me to stay the course.
So it's important to STAY MOTIVATED....even though the scale doesn't move anymore! My motivation is no longer to 'get' somewhere, but to 'stay' there!
But that doesn't mean I don't have challenges, and I think having challenges keeps you going. So for me there are other challenges now that are only possible now that I've lost the weight!
There is helping others. There is improving my body through exercise, toning, losing body fat. There is improving my brain and my spirit with meditation and understanding. There is becoming a better PERSON, inside. To go with my new 'outside'.
LIFE is a series of challenges 'if you do it right'. That's my opinion, anyway. If you don't challenge yourself, if you sit on your butt night after night and watch TV and stuff your face and complain that you want to lose weight but don't STRETCH yourself to actually DO something about it, something that requires WORK, and TIME, and PLANNING....then you're just stagnating. You're not becoming anything better...you're not growing as a person.
Remember that this is a LIFETIME challenge. It doesn't end when you get to goal. So it's important that you establish the good habits, and KEEP yourself motivated.
Don't look to others to give you motivation or keep you motivated. ONLY YOU can do the work, so YOU need to self-motivate.
Keep on keepin' on!
I actually got myself a bit confused, because I've read a lot of blogs that say things like 'I need motivation', and to me, we're already motivated, right? I mean, we already want to lose the weight. The desire is there. So I was like, 'What's the big deal? You're ALREADY motivated...you just have to DO it!"
But the desire itself is not motivation.
So I looked up the definition of motivation. And the actual definition is that it is the 'driving force' that compels us to do certain things (i.e., stay OP, exercise, work on our headwork, etc.) to achieve a certain goal.
So we need to start with a goal....and then stay COMPELLED to achieve it.
Our goal here is to lose the weight. Right?
Who DOESN'T want to lose the weight? Show of hands?
Nope, no hands are up....No takers.
WE ALL want to lose weight.
And we ALL want to lose it PERMANENTLY.
Right? (I mean, who wants to lose the weight 'temporarily'?
Raise your hands...LOL....I don't see any takers.)
So....it therefore follows....only two questions remain:
1). HOW to accomplish this goal, and
2). HOW to stay 'motivated', i.e, COMPELLED, to do the things that will get us to our goal.
HOW is easy. It's the TSFL program using Medifast meals. It's staying OP, day after day. It's drinking our water. It's exercising (hopefully) or at least getting a bit more active. And it's working on our heads...our habits..analyzing our daily habits that may have gotten us into trouble before. And CHANGING them.
Don't question the 'how' if you've been OP for more than a week because you already KNOW 'how'. Minor details about program may remain but you know it works. So you don't have to find the 'HOW' anymore. (which is a blessing in itself!)
But HOW do you stay COMPELLED, i.e, MOTIVATED, to stay OP and do the planning and logging and exercise and drink your water and all the rest of it?
Especially when we're surrounded by food...everywhere.
When 'giving up' and 'giving in' would be so e-a-s-y.
When your fat brain is telling you "One won't hurt" or to take a day "off" and "restart" tomorrow. When you don't "feel like" cooking your L&G or you don't "feel like" getting ready to go exercise.
It's certainly easier to sit on the couch and veg out, isn't it?
But we've all 'been there, done that'. For TOO LONG.
We want HEALTH now. We want to be PROUD of ourselves. We want to wear pretty, even sexy clothing. We want to be able to live longer, fuller, more enjoyable lives than we were living when we were overweight.
So how do you stay motivated?
Here's some tips I have used that I hope help you:
- First of all, understand that the excitement level and enthusiasm that 'peaked' when you first started doesn't last. And that's OK! There's nothing wrong with that! It's just the nature of the beast. Your motivation will ebb and flow based on the scale, how your jeans fit today, what social events you have coming up, etc.
And that enthusiasm/motivation can be 'pumped up' a bit by reading uplifting or exciting blogs. There's nothing like hearing the excitement and energy in someone's voice when they blog about how they just reached 50 lbs off or got to Onederland or made goal. It 'rubs off'; you smile, you remember how YOU felt when you reached that milestone (or look forward to it if you haven't gotten there yet). And that can help KEEP you OP that day as your brain remembers that excitement level and wants to experience it for itself.
And another help? I hope you took pictures of how you looked when you started this program. If not, ask a family member to comb through the old pictures and find some at your heaviest. Now look at them. Really study them. Try to put yourself back into the moment when the picture was taken and what your emotions were at that time.
Then have someone take a picture of you NOW (or do a 'selfie' using your cell) and look at those as well.
Now COMPARE the two. If you've made substantial progress, this should give you a shot of motivation...because you should already be seeing some changes. If not, ASK a family member...I bet they will tell you that you HAVE lost weight.
Another idea? Take our your list (I hope you made one!) of your "Reasons to Lose Weight". This very detailed, very private list is something that you should look at often...because you will begin to 'check things off' your list as you lose the weight. And you will be inspired to KEEP AT IT, keep going and get the rest of the reasons 'done'! You will see that it IS possible.
And what about your closet? And clothes shopping? The spring clothes need to come out now. No more heavy coats to hide under....now we have to think about shorts, and Easter dresses, and wearing newer more colorful fashions for the season. Go through your closet. Pull out things that look too big (chances are they are!) Try them on. If they are swimming on you, DONATE them .. get rid of them, and make a mental note to replace them with a smaller size! Nothing is more fun than buying clothes in a smaller size in my opinion....
Last but not least, what about how your energy level is? Are you sleeping better? Are you able to get more done? Are your friends and relatives remarking on your progress?
ALL of these can be motivating....as you see and confirm to yourself that the program WORKS.
So all you have to do is keep doing it!
When temptation strikes, REMEMBER your list of reasons...REMEMBER those clothes in your closet...REMEMBER those pictures of yourself.
One of my strongest motivations is when I'm in Spinning class, in order to keep going (because it's TOUGH!) is I have a water bottle with my 'before' and 'after' pictures on it. I look down at that water bottle and I KNOW I don't EVER want to go back there...and that motivates me to keep going, to NOT GIVE UP.
Today I spent a very happy hour in the garden....cleaning up after the long Winter....and I couldn't get it ALL done, it has to be little by little...but I was happy with my progress.
And I realized afterwards, I did this IN ADDITION TO working out at the gym doing back-to-back classes this morning! 2 hours' worth!
That would've been physically IMPOSSIBLE when I weighed 235 lbs. I just didn't have the stamina or energy level.
But today? I got to enjoy the sunshine and fresh air and the feeling of having my hands in the dirt again (love it)... AND I got to enjoy the camaradarie of working out doing Body Pump in a full class as well as Body Flow afterwards.
It was a 'new release' too, which is always challenging. The lunges alone....WOW....but I got through it!
And tonight I'll sleep like a baby.
Tomorrow I'll get up and stay on my food plan AGAIN. It's one day at a time even though it's maintenance! It's necessary. I can NEVER 'let myself go'. It's not possible because if I do, I'll be right back up to 235 so fast it'll make my head spin. So it's important to me to stay the course.
So it's important to STAY MOTIVATED....even though the scale doesn't move anymore! My motivation is no longer to 'get' somewhere, but to 'stay' there!
But that doesn't mean I don't have challenges, and I think having challenges keeps you going. So for me there are other challenges now that are only possible now that I've lost the weight!
There is helping others. There is improving my body through exercise, toning, losing body fat. There is improving my brain and my spirit with meditation and understanding. There is becoming a better PERSON, inside. To go with my new 'outside'.
LIFE is a series of challenges 'if you do it right'. That's my opinion, anyway. If you don't challenge yourself, if you sit on your butt night after night and watch TV and stuff your face and complain that you want to lose weight but don't STRETCH yourself to actually DO something about it, something that requires WORK, and TIME, and PLANNING....then you're just stagnating. You're not becoming anything better...you're not growing as a person.
Remember that this is a LIFETIME challenge. It doesn't end when you get to goal. So it's important that you establish the good habits, and KEEP yourself motivated.
Don't look to others to give you motivation or keep you motivated. ONLY YOU can do the work, so YOU need to self-motivate.
Keep on keepin' on!
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