The number one question I get asked all the time is, “Drew, how do I get motivated?”. Motivation is a common word in the fitness industry. Today, I’m going to give you my top 5 tips on finding motivation and staying motivated.
Find Your Why
Why do you want to be healthy? Why do you want to be fit? Why do you want to be strong?
The number one thing you can do is to find your why. It’s not just about something physical like wanting to look good and get a bikini body. That can be a way to get started, but if you want your motivation to last, it has to be something deeper than that.
It needs to be bigger than just about you. Maybe it’s about being there for your kids or having good health and good energy so that you can be the best version of yourself. I recommend you do some self-discovery before you get started to dig deep and find out what your why truly is.
Some things you can do to find your why are:
- Journaling
- Spending time alone in nature
- Meditate
- Speak with a counselor or therapist
It may not come to you at first, and that’s ok. Be patient with yourself during this journey, and don’t be surprised if your why changes from time to time.
Have a Support System
My number two way to get and stay motivated is to find a friend, a family member, a loved one, or a confidant. Having a support system is going to help keep you accountable for your goals.
Having someone to lean on helps keep you motivated as well. Set up a weekly call with them to share your goals, update them on your progress, and let them know what you have achieved. If you’re doing this by yourself, it’s going to be it’s so much easier to let things slide.
When I did my Back2Fit journey, one of the things that kept me motivated to lose weight was staying accountable to my audience. I knew that there were thousands of people from all over the world doing the program with me, and I thought, “Ok, if they can do this, I can do this too”!
Join an Online Support Group
Many people don’t have someone in their life who is willing to support them on their health journey. If this is you, I recommend finding an online community of support.
You can join my Back2Fit program and gain access to my private Facebook group, where you can interact with thousands of people from all over the world. Many people use that group to help them stay accountable by posting their weekly progress and receive support from others who share their struggles.
You might see someone else struggling who was where you were and how you can help that person and give them the motivation they need. It makes you feel good for being able to provide support to someone else. That type of motivation can be contagious.
Get Comfortable Being Uncomfortable
This one takes some mindset training. First, you have to train your brain to become comfortable in uncomfortable situations. It’s not easy to do, I get it, but it’s time to challenge your mind and body to get comfortable in these uncomfortable situations.
What I teach my clients to do before they even start working out is wake up first thing in the morning and make their bed. It might sound simple, but for a lot of people, it’s not so easy to do first thing in the morning.
Another way to train your body to be comfortable in uncomfortable situations is to take a cold shower. Slow your breathing down, and try to relax. Show your body and brain that you’re going to be ok in this uncomfortable situation.
These techniques make it easier to get comfortable and finish your workout, say no to temptation, and get so much more out of the time and money you spend on your health.
Ask Yourself “And Then What?”
Last but not least, you have to always ask yourself “and then what?”. It’s awesome to have a goal, it’s awesome to work towards that goal, and it’s even more awesome to achieve that goal, but what happens next?
People often reach their goals but then lose their sense of purpose. They don’t know what to do next, so they usually return to doing what they were doing before and lose all the progress and motivation they worked so hard to achieve.
You need to always think about what you’re going to do next before achieving your current goals. I recommend finding something you’ve never done before, like signing up for a race or competition, or maybe you could even do some type of learning skill.
You’ve worked so hard to teach your body to do hard things. Keep the momentum and apply it in other areas of your life, and I promise you that you will be so much happier, and your goals will get easier and easier to achieve.
