the notebook
Getting your motivation back
Not long ago, my friend James blogged that he was having a rough go of it. It happens to all of us at some point. We lose our motivation and stop eating (and exercising) properly. Sometimes we just lose sight of our goals and get off-track.
Losing his groove
James wrote:
I got proud, I lost sight of my journey. I gained 40 [of the 140 pounds lost] back. I maintained a 100 pound loss for 2 years. I’ve had a difficult time breaking back through to continued loss. I’ve had a ton of stress in my life. I’ve not worked out as often as I should, consistently. I’ve eaten healthy but I still overeat and once in a while I eat utter garbage, and have a small binge, and feel awful.
I met James when we both decided to sign up for The Diet. The Diet was a fun challenge a couple friends and I came up with as a way to motivate ourselves to be more active. Throughout that time James was a rock. He still is. He was humble about his success but he kept going. He is an inspiration to myself and many others.
Getting his groove back
There are a couple things James is doing to get through this rough spot—accountability and support.
To hold himself accountable, James created a new Twitter account (leihufit). He's using this account to log his meals and workouts.
James' wife and friends are very supportive. After reading about his rough spot, we chimed in with words of encouragement and support. Sometimes that's all you need to get fired up again.
Additional motivational tools
Not everyone is the same. What motivates you might not motivate your friend, spouse, or sibling. Here are some other motivational tools you can use.
- Competition Create some type of competition around getting fit and staying fit. People thrive on competition.
- Re-evaluate your goals Sometimes you just need to start over. Take a look at where you are and consider making new goals.
- Rant about it A good rant is a helpful thing. Getting your frustrations out can alleviate the pressure you're putting on yourself.
- Make the consequences more drastic Make the consequences of not achieving your goals more embarrassing and/or cost you more.
