How to get motivated when you don’t feel like working out (or eating that salad)
Photo credit: Inspired Stock Shop
Have you ever had one of those days where you just didn't want to exercise? Okay, who am I kidding -- almost every day is that day! But today was especially one of those days for me.
I'd planned to run this afternoon, but I woke up with a sore throat, congestion from allergies, and all day long I was tired and in a fog. All I wanted to do by the end of the day was come home and get in my pajamas.
To make matters worse, I had to run an errand which took me right by my house on the way to my running trail. It would have been soooo easy to just go home.
Luckily, it was a beautiful day and I really wanted to stay on track with my exercise plan for the week, so . . . after much internal debate while stopped at the red light . . . I sucked it up and headed to the trail.
Of course, after my run I was really glad I made myself do it, and I felt SO good! Was it because I had an awesome run? Nope. I was seriously dragging and it was NOT pretty! It was one of those runs where you hope you don’t meet any other runners on the trail because you know you just look so pathetic that it’s embarrassing. THAT kind of run.
But I didn't care. I felt so much better -- physically and mentally. Have you ever experienced this? Where you almost talk yourself out of a workout, but then do it any way, and afterward you just feel unstoppable -- even if the workout itself wasn't anything to write home about?
It's those workouts that have given me more satisfaction than some of my best performance workouts. I started thinking about this on the way home and wondering why that is, and I think I figured it out.
This workout was more meaningful because it was an example of me honoring my commitment to myself. When I planned my exercise schedule for the week, I made a commitment to myself that I would do those workouts.
If I'd given in and chosen not to run today, I would have broken that commitment. That may not seem like a big deal, but when you get in the habit of breaking the commitments you make to yourself – even the small ones – it eventually causes you to lose trust and confidence in yourself.
Think about it like this . . . if someone repeatedly fails to follow through on their commitments to you, even if they were just little things, over time you’ll lose confidence in that person, right? You won’t trust or believe them when they commit to doing something. That’s EXACTLY what happens when you break commitments to yourself.
On the other hand, when you consistently keep your commitments you make to yourself, you BUILD trust and confidence in yourself. And it feels awesome.
Sadly, I think most of us are more likely to break a commitment to ourselves than one we make to someone else. And that’s just not cool. YOU are just as important as the people you make commitments to!
So when you make a commitment to yourself, whether it’s to exercise 5 time a week, pack a healthy lunch for work every day, or anything else, take it seriously and honor it just like you would a commitment you make to your best friend, fiance, or a co-worker.
You'll build self-confidence, have greater belief in yourself, and set yourself up for success in achieving your goals and creating the life you want for yourself.
The next time you’re tempted to ditch your workout and need some motivation, think back to this and remember why it’s so important to keep that commitment.
Here are a couple of other little motivation tricks:
Think about how you’ll feel if you DON’T do the workout you committed to, and then think about you’ll feel if you DO.
Remember WHY you’re doing the workout in the first place. Get into that feeling and visualize yourself successfully achieving it. Visualization of your desired outcome is a strong motivator.
Believe in yourself -- you can make anything happen that you want badly enough!
