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CONTENT DISCLAIMER: All motivation mantras mentioned below are based on my personal experience. You don’t need to consult a physical practitioner before trying these on. However, if you get a heart burn or a nosebleed or BOTH, after following these nifty tips. Do not SUE ME! I am a poor man trying to make your life better. Motivating you to train, so that you look great naked and feel like a million bucks.

Read at the angry therapist, motivation is a bit like sex. You can’t force it. http://www.theangrytherapist.com/motivation-is-like-sex/
I agree, forcing sex is not a done deed. And yes, you need to set in the mood to make love. However, waning motivation to move your ass could use some force.

When it comes to training I don’t create a conducive environment for it. I just shut my mind off and do it. I grab my pity self by the scruff of the neck and bark orders to change into sweat pants, swap the remote control with the running shoes. My motivation mantras are not all blood, force and drama type. If your motivation levels to train are sagging on a daily basis try these tips on for size.

GET UP! AND SHOW UP!  Works for me you know. Sometimes you just don’t feel like working out. And the days you don’t feel like, you must get on with your training. The trick is MOMENTUM. When the alarm announces the dawn, temptation to touch the snooze button is massive, choose not to. Switch the alarm off get and sit on the bed.

Don’t think much I bet your mind will coax you to hit the 10 minute snooze. Instead, dart off the bed, yes dart off! Like a bleeding ballistic missile with its tail on fire. A bit dramatic, but trust me, helps shake the slumber off.

Gulp a glass of water, grab a fruit and get to the gym or park or box wherever you train. Trust me getting off the bed is half the battle won. Once you show up you end up getting some work done.

KEEP YOUR KIT READY. Another visual key that helps me, I keep my stuff ready. Hang your training kit and shoes close to your bed. So you are not rummaging through your closet looking for sweat pants and socks. By doing so your mind can’t trick you to miss the workout because you can’t find your favorite shorts, socks, lucky underwear or whatever that is. Keep your kit ready! That’s what i see when i wake up. My italian stallion tee, tracks and running shoes.

GET REAL! Both in your life and the fitness goals you set. If your activity levels are lesser than that of a sloth, gloating over fit specimens in glossy magazines and wanting a magazine cover page body, is a lofty goal. P.S You are setting yourself for failure. Start small, it could be for 15 minutes three times a week stick to it. Graduate to a jog or ramp up to a run the following week.
Make minute meal changes. Swap the pizza for a piece of fruit. Set smart goals that are attainable. Don’t get me wrong I am not saying you can’t be a men’s health cover page model. It’s just that how you go about it will make all the difference. Set small goals daily, weekly monthly goals. Success in small goals makes the end result very achievable.

TRAINING DIARY. Arnold had one. I have one too. Not the fancy app or website version. Good old pen and paper pad sort. Here is a page out of my training diary.

Created with Nokia Smart Cam
The contents on the page, the date, time of the workout, the workout, the reps, rounds and time taken to complete. I also tend to make notes as to how I felt before and after the workout, movements/exercises that need work when I re attempt the WOD.

The best bit about journaling your fitness journey is that you can track your evolution to a fitter, faster, and a stronger YOU. And that is a big motivator. So if you are a no-nonsense technically challenged soul like me, a good pen and paper pad would do the job. Or else a google search would give you torrents of apps for your tabs, androids and fruity phones.

Created with Nokia Smart Cam

The days I feel lazy yet force myself to workout I have an acronym. (YAY) it stands for You against You! It’s a big mental boost. It usually denotes days when I push past my mental limits (too tired, too sleepy, too hungry, too lazy sort of excuses).
When I flip back through my training diary most of the pages are peppered with YAY’S. That itself is a big motivator. Getting your training in on days when you don’t feel like moving a muscle gives you a mental edge.

DON’T FLOG YOURSELF FOR FAILURE. No matter how motivated and committed you are. There will be days where you give up, bunk working out or just lay wide awake and stare the ceiling. Case in point, just a few days back my alarm went off at 6 am I woke up, did nothing but stared the ceiling till about 8 am. I did not sleep, I didn’t train either.

I wasted two hours of my life tackling a tug of war between my mind and body. I drifted through the day, massively mad at myself and the world. But this is counterproductive if you do end up bunking, don’t FLOG yourself.

Enjoy your day off and focus on the next day. Yes the days you don’t workout be mobile. Take stairs, squeeze in a walk get some air, some sun and stay in a sane headspace. The more flexible you are the more committed you will be to your training.

I have just resumed to train regularly (it’s been two weeks to be precise) and making a start is a mean task. One video that really inspires me to workout is this one. P.S Please pay attention to the script. 


If you too are starting out, or have constantly failed in your fitness pursuits tell me about it in the comments. Let’s give our fitness goals a GO! Start over, I motivate you, and you motivate me. Cheers to a fitter, faster and a drop dead sexier world.

“Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.”
~Thomas Edison

PHOTO COURTESY: quickmeme.com, www.memegeneokerlund.com, kailash menon