TLDFitness Motivation has been one of those words thrown around all over the place this last year I think more than we realise, whether you are looking for it or have it in abundance.
What does it mean to you and how do you maintain it ?
Motivation to me is wanting to work towards goals you have set yourself that have an outcome you desire. I have learnt over the years especially through work about making sure that the goals I set are both short and long term. This will vary from short term goals over a three month period to long term goals that are the next three to five years, which will seem daunting to some. The key thing to think about when making these goals is that you follow the SMART principle for each goal.
Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Realistic
Timed
For each of the goals I set myself I make sure that I work with the SMART principle and after time it becomes part of your routine. It is important not to overload yourself with lots of goals as it becomes more challenging to stick to any of them as you are spreading yourself too thin. Below are examples of large goals I set myself for 2021 & 2022 which will all have different end dates, some of which will also continue and develop into new goals.
- Complete an Ironman
- Achieve weight loss figure I have set myself
- Develop my business by completing a course
Each of these big goals that I set myself will all be made up of smaller goals to achieve the overall challenge. This all then links back into motivation. In order for me to achieve the outcome that I desire I am going to have to work my arse off and try and maintain focus which is challenging. We are human and make mistakes, there are times where I am too tired to train or have had a blow out with food and regretted it after. It is how we deal with our setbacks and get back on track. Motivation is not there all the time and we have to work hard to remain focused. I am a keen believer of using incentives and this has helped me massively over the last year to get to where I am today. At the start of 2021 I wrote myself a list of what “rewards” I would get when working on my weight-loss goal. My partner agreed to support me and reward me when I hit my mini goals along the way however if I slipped off track and had a weight gain then I had to pay him a small fine. Some may not agree with this but it works for me and sadly my partners bank account has been suffering this year.
Motivation is not something you find or is readily available, it is something I believe that you have to work hard for and create yourself. Sit down write out what goals you have and set out a plan on how you are going to achieve them. Each time you get a step closer to these goals you will see the motivation increase and help you to remain focused.
Let me know what helps to motivate you and what your views of motivation are below in the comments.
