What do I tell myself when I don’t feel the motivation to exercise?

Being consistent has almost nothing to do with motivation 

Motivation is great when beginning the journey of a new goal we set out to achieve. It helps to light a fire under us and is usually triggered by outside inspiration or yearn for change. We feel invigorated, ready to take on new challenges, and feel the zest to get going. What’s the one big problem with depending on motivation? It isn’t sustainable. Motivation is a fleeting feeling, something that comes and goes and we can’t always control when it does which. It feels wonderful when it gets us up and moving, but when it’s not there, we have to depend on our own self will and inner voice to tell us what to do. When motivation isn’t present, I start to have a conversation with myself to talk about why it logically makes sense to move my body, even though I don’t feel like it. 

Here’s how a conversation like that goes :

I start to talk to myself by saying “You have no motivation at the moment, but remember, keeping a consistent exercise schedule has to do with how disciplined you are. Our brain is trained to protect us from uncomfortable situations, so that’s all this is in the moment. Knowing that I’m about to challenge myself and do something I necessarily don’t want to do, my brain is going to do everything in its power to stop it from happening. It’s safe for me to do this, in fact, I will feel so much better afterwards. I will feel happy, healthy and energized. I will have a strong body when staying consistent, and this helps me do all the activities I enjoy doing. It helps build my confidence and allows me to do an activity where I am focusing on myself”. 

Even if I am not excited about the upcoming physical challenges, I know factually, I always feel better after a workout and it will benefit me in the long run. Bringing logic into the conversation takes out the dependance of a fleeting emotion to get things done.   

Another thing I tell myself is to not make habits out of temporary emotions. When low feeling emotions start to affect healthy habits that benefit us in the long wrong, we end up neglecting those healthy habits while self sabotaging. When we give into those low emotions, we may tell ourselves, we can just workout “next time”. The more we give in, we start to form a new habit of allowing ourselves to fall off of our intended path, then having to completely start over and retraining ourselves back into incorporating a healthy habit. 

The more we nurture a healthy habit, especially in the beginning phase, the more it will be ingrained in us.

Over time, practicing this method allowed my subconscious mind to get into the habit of getting things done, no matter how I feel at the time. My body and brain has gotten so used to bringing me into the space where of physical movement, that it doesn’t take much thought to get there. I could be feeling a mix of emotions but my body and brain will start to crave that feeling of reward that physical movement brings. It is now part of my routine where my week would feel incomplete if I don’t get at least 4-5 days of physical exercise in.

Motivation is wonderful for the exciting launch of a new goal, but discipline is what helps us carry it out in the long run. So, what do you do the next time you seem to be lacking the motivation to move your body? Have a calm, logistical conversation with yourself and take control of your mind.