motivation
The reason you’re not making progress
There’s a reason you’re not making the progress you want in the gym. In fact, there’s likely many reasons. For example, you could be following the wrong program, perhaps working too low in the rep-range. Or maybe it’s that all body, routine you switched to recently. Perhaps you’re doing a little too much cardio; not enough cardio. Ah, you don’t have macros? That’ll be it. Oh, you do have macros, but you’re not tracking? Yeah, track your foods and hit the macros, that will help. Your rest intervals could be too long, or too short, of course, and what’s your tempo like? Exclusively machines? Dope, switch to free weights… but not barbells, just dumbbells. Did you say you are or aren’t benching? Well whichever it is, do the other…
Confused?
Training with Attitude
I assume you are going to the gym at some point this week, but are you going in with the right attitude? Are you going to just show-up or are you there to make shit happen?
Don’t be one of those muppets that breezes through a workout, surfing your Instagram and Facebook feeds between sets.
You’ve committed your time, and given yourself the chance to make real progress. Don’t waste the opportunity… seize it!
Crush your workout and leave the gym happy and satisfied.
If my words aren’t enough to fire you up, here’s what Jason Statham has to say about attitude:
“I’m a firm believer in attitude. Some people just don’t have that desire, and they need a good kick up the ass. Look, you’ve come to train… let’s fucking train! Your body is like a piece of dynamite. You can tap it with a pencil all day, but you’ll never make it explode. You hit it once with a hammer: Bang! Get serious. Do 40 hard minutes, not an hour and half of nonsense. It’s so much more rewarding.”
You are only going to get out of a workout what you are prepared to put in. Put it in. All of it.
Happy Monday!
Is discipline enough?
Struggles, like seas and seasons, ebb and flow in the natural order of things.
I struggle with motivation, not just in the gym, but in life also.
I struggle with futility, not just in the gym, but in life also.
I struggle with trust, not just in the gym, but in life also.
How progress is made
I stumbled across this rather excellent quote from Thomas Henry Huxley this morning, and it summed quite nicely the foundation on which I firmly believe progress is made.
“Perhaps the most valuable result of all education is the ability to make yourself do the thing you have to do, when it ought to be done, whether you like it or not. It is the first lesson that ought to be learned and however early a man’s training begins, it is probably the last lesson that he learns thoroughly.”
I often hear people talk about the psychology of training or dieting, as if this notion were an adjunct to the physical challenges of exercise or hunger.
Monday Morning Motivation
Here’s a little Monday morning motivation for you; six minutes and forty-nine seconds of energy-boosting, mind-blowing, soul-searching goodness. How bad do you want success?
http://youtu.be/uMZ-fy8JK6Q
Fight on
I stumbled across this passage early this morning, and given it’s Monday… well, I thought that “Fight on!” seemed appropriate!
Also, I enjoyed the closing remarks:
“There’s no first place or second place in life. No rewards or diplomas. Just choices. And those choices will either echo throughout the ages or turn to dust the moment you die.”
… will the choices you make today stand the test of time?
That’s how winning is done!
This scene from Rocky Balboa gets me every time. Every. Single. Time.
Heck, I even have a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes as I proof-read this post!
Yes, I know it’s a movie, and sure, the words are explicitly intended to create a sense of drama and elicit an emotional response from the audience. But there are quite literally thousands (millions?) of movies, books and theatrical works that try to achieve the same result and fail. Of course, one’s reaction to any given dialog or scene is a deeply personal experience. But why is it then, that this speech from Balboa to his son stirs so much emotion in me?
Goals + Motivation ≠ Success
When individuals fail to meet their goals, they often attribute it to not being sufficiently motivated enough to see things through. However, in my experience goals plus motivation seldom equate to success.
Consider this common scenario:
- A goal or desired outcome is conceived, usually as a result of some external influence, and motivation to move toward that goal is high.
- For a few weeks, concrete progress is made toward the goal and you start to see results.
- Then, just as everything appears to be going well, life gets in the way: Work gets busy. Events come-up. You travel. Friends and family vie for your attention. Chores need to be done. You get injured. You’re not sleeping well. The list goes on…
- Slowly but surely, motivation wanes and progress slows to a crawl or even stops completely.
So why is it then that, despite having concrete goals and good amount of motivation, you don’t accomplish your aim?