Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that motivation is where it all starts. A very shy: 'maybe today I will hit the gym' is half the success. Even if it is only about this one time, it is still the motivation that makes you put on the sweats and go to the gym.
The success is when you make "hitting the gym" a regular thing and the real magic happens when you make a work-out your addiction. I will try to tell you how to do it. Or... if I just tell you that you are a lazy ass will that work? ;)
Where did I get my (initial) motivation from? I really do not know!
All of you who know me from high school, remember that I was always the last to get my butt moving. Always with a doctor's note stating that I couldn't exercise (a bunch of boohaki of course, greetings to my GP who used to give me a note for a smile), waiting on the bench till the rest finished squats, basketball match, splits or whatever else they were doing. I hated any kind of physical exercising. Oh, no, there was a period when my friends :* and myself used to rollerblade HEAVILY to "Ghetto Gospel" by 2PAC!
What happened to a girl who would cry if you asked her to lift a dumbbell? Here's a short story.
When my Kevinuzzo and I moved to a new place, we had a well-equipped (for a girl who had never seen a cross trainer in her life before) gym downstairs. Kevin said: 'you will have to go with me to the gym.' I said : 'sure' and deep inside I was desperate, crying, thinking how to get out of this, would a doctor's note help this time? No, there was no salvation for me. I put on my old sweat pants and we hit the gym. I didn't know what to do, how to exercise, how to set up the machine, but I survived and I felt like I was the boss: 'Yeah! I did it, now leave me alone'. He didn't...
We went to the gym a couple of times more, Kevin dropped out and I stayed. Why? Because I started seeing the results! I saw my abs slowly emerging, I was stronger, reaching higher goals, and, overall, I felt a lot better. At that point, I started researching, looking for more exercises, subscribed to youtube channels where I could find routines and valuable tips, etc. I still wasn't sure if I was doing the right exercises (the right for what I wanted to achieve), but I kept on going.
Month after month, more knowledge, more exercises, more equipment, more motivation... until I got to the point where I am now. A day without sore muscles is a lost day and a day when I should work out (you need to have a day or two of rest, but we will deal with it later on) is a day I MUST work out, no excuses. Make me miss my work-out and I will cry and punch you!
So here we go, I strongly believe that you take your motivation form the results! Imagine doing a strength training and getting no muscles, or doing cardio and losing not a single cm of fat! It wouldn't be worth it. However, once you start seeing that you feel better, your clothes fit you better, you feel more energised, you name it... you will stick to your fitness plan and eventually you will make it a habit, and then an addiction. Hey, but you need to give it some time! That takes me to another point.
What about the initial motivation, the one you need for the first month (or even less! I am not kidding, you can totally see amazing changes within a month)? Well, this is a tricky one. You need to want the change to stick to your work-outs. If you don't care about changing your body, or if you admire your love handles, do not care about your health then there is every likelihood you will not succeed. You will not see the point of trying and struggling (it is a struggle! In my next posts I will share with you work-outs that will make you feel like you are dying). If you are happy with your knowledge of Spanish, you can only say: 'Hola! Como estas?' and you claim you are proficient you will never start learning. If you can make only dried-out scrambled eggs and you call yourself a chef, you will never start learning how to cook. Pretty simple. If you do not want to change your body, you never will...
So you need to want the change and the best shocking therapy is when someone else points that out: 'Have you put on weight recently?', 'With this much fat you will surely survive winter!' (I am awful, I know). Of course, I do not want you to hear any of these and I hope you will realise it yourself (just as I miraculously did) that staying active can change your life. I am not only talking about the health benefits, but also about the looks. Bikini will be your best friend ;)
And there are no excuses. You have no time? You have an engaging job? You have no money to subscribe to the gym? It is cold outside? No no no no no!
I have an extremely engaging job (not too much time), I am studying (even less time), I am taking online course as a part of my CPD (super no time for anything), I am running from one meeting to another (time in debt), I am no millionaire, and I live in London where it rains 27 hours per day and summer doesn't visit. So I will not believe you saying that you cannot spare 1 hour (or less) of your day. You can exercise at home, you just need a mat, a pair of dumbbells, maybe a resistance band, a jump rope and your own body weight - the total cost of around £50 for a good start (indeed, that's a fortune).
Motivation is a b..... She makes you do stuff. This is why it is better to befriend her ;)
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