Positive Motivation In Fitness & Nutrition

[Mkayl]

I've been trying to figure out how to make high fitness and good nutrition a consistent part of my life for a long time. But I kind of failed every time .
Once I did a lot of climbing for two years, got hurt and had to quit. Once I did a lot of martial arts for 2 years and then lost interest. Once I did a P90X for some month and then got lazy. Now I'm kind of going for a run, doing some intense workout or yoga from time to time and I feel healthy. But I also feel like this is just not enough. I want high stamina, strength, flexibility and coordination.

I noticed that there is a lot of negative motivation in my wish to be at peak performance. Like being aware of the consequences of letting fitness and health slide. Or like wanting to look good. Or thinking that I can't enjoy life as much without it.
I also notice that I lack a vision for what I'm trying to achieve here since I catch myself being content with 'feeling good enough'.

So I ask myself: How to make consistent, good fitness and nutrition a part of life based on positive motivation? What does that positive motivation look like for you?
I'm interested in hearing from people who had some success with this.

[drelamore]

"Be the change you want to see in the world"

Think about all the benefits exercising and health have to you and as a result to other people you interact with, which creates an endless feedback loop between you and the world.

If you can't do it for you, do it for the world

That's what YOU need to hear at this point...

 

[carrotqueen]

Instead of the "crash into it approach" I would suggest an "ease into it approach." I've done p90x myself and it is intense.

If you are someone that yo-yo's or falls off the wagon, I can see why, most people do, and I suffered from this myself until something clicked for me. So I've lost  almost 40 lbs in the past 18 months.  I did this by making small lifestyle changes over time.

As of right now, my diet is super clean, but it did not start that way. It happened by slow adjustments and listening to my body.  I would do small tasks every day that add up over time. For example, I do pull ups every morning. Each day I push myself a little bit farther than the day before. This only takes me about 3 minutes, but the key is consistency.

If you tell yourself "I need to work out for 3 hours a day until I lose this weight," that is not sustainable. Also when you get to your goal with that type of thinking, then you are done in your mind, and that's how people gain weight back. Try to slowly change your goal from weight loss to loving your body and being more healthy. A lot of it is about changing your thinking from a 'denying' thought process into a loving one.

For instance, instead of thinking about what you are losing like "I can't eat this piece of cake," think about what you are gaining, "Wow, this apple makes me feel great and gives me energy. I feel so clean and fresh after eating it." Make the choices that our out of love instead of punishing yourself. I honestly believe that health and fitness is mostly mental, the workouts are not the biggest hurdle and neither is the eating, it is reprogramming our minds that is the key. So tomorrow, maybe tell yourself, I'm going to drink one more glass of water than I normally do. Etc. So before you do any workout or change in your diet, ask yourself this: "Am I doing this because I love myself or because I am punishing myself?" If the answer is the later, then ask this question "How can I change my approach from a punishment into being more loving?"  So that might be, telling yourself that instead of HAVING to do an hour and a half of p90x every day, you're going to go as far with it as you can today and see how you feel.

And if you cheat, miss a day, you will forgive yourself and keep moving forward, because you love yourself. Hope this helps.

[Elena]

Interesting question- I have the same problem. Its cool thinking about all the awesome stuff I could hypotheticly do if I train hard consistently but the truth is that sometimes the only thing that makes me go to the guym is v\fatpeoplehate

[ElenaO]

Working out for me is a pleasant thing. I love the feeling when the blood starts circulating fast. That's why cardio is so awesome, in my opinion. I do feel sometimes tired, and then I just push myself to do it. But most of the times that's not the case. I would guess the best solution to this would be to make exercising enjoyable. In fact, I don't even need any motivation (neither positive, nor negative) for exercising.

This, of course, wasn't always like that. It took some time to develop the habit to exercise. And I've also done at some point a serious commitment that I will always take care of my body. I think that's one of the biggest investments you can make in life: in your body.

[Choks]

In my experience, it took me years to eliminate my bad eating habits and have a steady workout routine. My advice is: DO NOT GIVE UP! I was fat almost all my life since elementary all the way to college. I had the worst eating habits: eating at night, junk food, sugar, skipping breakfast, sodas, etc. For dinner and lunch i ate my protein (chicken, meat, etc) with rice and bread. I loved rice and bread a lot. After may attempts of trying to lose weight, one day i just had enough and decided that the only way i could achieve this goal was to change my mindset, my lifestyle, and approach this not only as a goal im trying to reach, but as a life long journey of taking care of my fitness and my nutrition. 

I'm 5'6 and weighed 185 in my prime and dropped down to 128. Went from a 34 pant size to 28. I didn't use any mainstream diet (south beach diet, atkins diet etc.). I did my research and it really wasn't that complicated, the hardest part is the long and steady determination you need to start noticing changes. In a nut shell, I dropped more than 50 pounds by: Never skipping breakfast (i hated breakfast, i forced myself to eat the first couple of weeks.. now breakfast is my favorite meal of the day). Drink a LOT of water, Replacing all that rice and bread with veggies. So my dinner and lunch would basically be: Steak with salad, chicken with salad, salmon with salad, Tuna with salad and so on. Eliminated completely sugar and sodas. Only drink water and natural juices. And one of the most important things that made me lose weight: the power of snacks. This is important for two reasons. My eating cycle before was: Breakfast 7AM, Lunch 1PM, DInner 7PM. By having this huge gaps between my meals i accomplished two things: my metabolism shuts down and secondly, by the time it was lunch or dinner time I was so hungry I ate too much. 

My new eating cycle looks like this: breakfast: 7AM, Meal: 10AM, Lunch: 1pm, Meal: 5PM DInner:7pm. Besides helping my metabolism functioning at its best and when it was time for lunch or dinner I wasn't starving, I also used the snacks or meals in between to boost my metabolism. My favorite meals were: organic low fat yogurt with granola, added some berries and also added hemp fiber. I also like to eat fiber packed corn flakes with banana and it kept me full. In my weight loss experience i never starved, i was actually very full almost all the time. It is not how much you eat, it is what you eat. 

Finally, a lot of exercise. Weight lifting and cardio. Workout at least 5 days a week. At first it was really hard but you have to make a commitment and make it part of your lifestyle. If i did it, you can do it to. I just took simple tips even from pinterest or other websites which basically say the same thing: 5 meals, lot of water, exercise, no junk food, no sodas. Sometimes my friends ordered pizza and I watched them eat pizza or fried chicken without even hesitating to get a slice. I was so determined that not even the smell of pizza, or other junk food made me want to lose all the effort i put into this. I recommend swimming and switching up your cardio routines. I lost 50 pounds in 8 months. Keep motivated and if you really want it, you will achieve it. I feel better than ever now. I'm fit, my body feels great and aligned. I feel that I'm not loving myself by eating junk food or sugary drinks, and think of all the damage I'm doing to myself (i had kidney stones at the age of 19 due to bad eating habits). I just wanted to share my story and good luck to everyone that is on these beautiful journey of taking care of your body, being conscious of what your eating, and implementing exercise into your daily routine because that's how it's supposed to be in the first place. The outcome of all the effort you put into this is so worth it. Even if you fall back into bad eating habits. Start over, make everyday count. 

[Cabot]

On 2/12/2016 at 9:52 PM, carrotqueen said:

Instead of the "crash into it approach" I would suggest an "ease into it approach." I've done p90x myself and it is intense.

If you are someone that yo-yo's or falls off the wagon, I can see why, most people do, and I suffered from this myself until something clicked for me. So I've lost  almost 40 lbs in the past 18 months.  I did this by making small lifestyle changes over time.

As of right now, my diet is super clean, but it did not start that way. It happened by slow adjustments and listening to my body.  I would do small tasks every day that add up over time. For example, I do pull ups every morning. Each day I push myself a little bit farther than the day before. This only takes me about 3 minutes, but the key is consistency.

If you tell yourself "I need to work out for 3 hours a day until I lose this weight," that is not sustainable. Also when you get to your goal with that type of thinking, then you are done in your mind, and that's how people gain weight back. Try to slowly change your goal from weight loss to loving your body and being more healthy. A lot of it is about changing your thinking from a 'denying' thought process into a loving one.

For instance, instead of thinking about what you are losing like "I can't eat this piece of cake," think about what you are gaining, "Wow, this apple makes me feel great and gives me energy. I feel so clean and fresh after eating it." Make the choices that our out of love instead of punishing yourself. I honestly believe that health and fitness is mostly mental, the workouts are not the biggest hurdle and neither is the eating, it is reprogramming our minds that is the key. So tomorrow, maybe tell yourself, I'm going to drink one more glass of water than I normally do. Etc. So before you do any workout or change in your diet, ask yourself this: "Am I doing this because I love myself or because I am punishing myself?" If the answer is the later, then ask this question "How can I change my approach from a punishment into being more loving?"  So that might be, telling yourself that instead of HAVING to do an hour and a half of p90x every day, you're going to go as far with it as you can today and see how you feel.

And if you cheat, miss a day, you will forgive yourself and keep moving forward, because you love yourself. Hope this helps.

I feel carrotqeen has made the most important points. It's all about the mindset.

Stuff like P90X is very advanced, and unnecessarily complicated. Just stick to basics. Consistency is the name of the game when it comes to health and fitness. 

Motivation? Love yourself. This is the only body you'll ever have, make it as amazing as you can.  Consistent, small improvements every day. It adds up.

Good luck!  

 

[cirkussmile]

Find your "WHY?" 

It could be anything! No matter if it's getting stronger, be healthier or just to look good. If your "why" is bigger then what you're currently doing then you will make results. When you feel your why then you have to find something that you can stick to. Ask yourself "Can I do this everyday for the next 10-20 years?" If you can then you have already reach your goal. The goal will change over time and that's a good thing to remember. 

The hardest thing for me was accepting that it takes time. Just do the small things everyday and it will be a part of your life. To DO something is way better then just thinking about it. Thinking about it will NOT get you where you want. You have to take action. You have to find a way that makes it easy. Something you can stick to. And then it's all about living it fully. If you do right everyday the results will come sooner then you think.

 

[Guest SCM]

hmm..maybe working out or doing some type of sport is not making you fulfilled!? there's a difference btw admiring something and being that one. do you have to be doing the same sport all your life or for that many years? maybe you get bored easily and need the change. change is good! some people will do the same thing over and over for a lifetime, but is that exciting and how can you learn from that? life is short, try yourself...test yourself. i think admitting that you are not that type of person is the first step getting closer to what you really want to do.

[JevinR]

Have a vision for yourself, and pure willpower. Just literally force yourself each and every single time, do what the navy seal would do, as in fitness I had so,so,so many times where I just wanted to quit because my mind couldn't take it. Just brute force it, be relentless. Personally, I noticed fitness was mentally one the hardest things in my life, and when I broke those mental barriers, everything else came together. As Elliot would say, the body is the mind. Stick with it, and you will be an unstoppable force of nature. I'm just gonna black and white it for you right and outright tell you that if you stop/quit, you will be miserable fkin parasite for the rest of your godforsaken life. On the otherhand, if you absolutely obliterate this, you will a god forsaken unstoppable force of nature. 

 

 

Exercise builds willpower, as does meditation

 

 

That's why I love fitness, it's all about busting through each and every barrier in your life, and absolutely decimating all mental barriers you have in life, truly pushing yourself to the limit.

 

I'm masochistic in the bed, and masochistic in the head. It really is a mental-disorder, wanting to put yourself through soooo much, making it feel sooo goood, to receive alll that volumptious, sexually arousing pain. Re-program your subconscious mind to love the pain and misery, because it really is joyful. I took this sht to the next level and focused all my chi energy as bruce lee would do with his one-inch punch, as I did do boxing with a man whose grandmaster had some relation with one of bruce's trainers master' trainer or some other constrigent tree-line of master, and smashed a plastic table with a chop, some portions of my forearm wear bruised/cut and I began to slurp up the blood like a sociopath from the videogame borderlands, and ohh it felt soo good, letting my inner-animal out, I don't suggest you take it to extremes, but fck it why not? Some times you've got to be a little crazy, better than being a little lazy. That's why arnold loves the pump, it feels like he's cumming all day, as exercise without the endorphin release would be absolute hell. Join a bootcamp, a real bootcamp and test your limits. Also don't try cutting a body-part to slurp some blood, not worth it. (Now I know why those borderland psychos get such a high off these kinds of things)

 

 

Edited April 5, 2016 by JevinR