A few thoughts on motivation, goal setting, and sticking to your routine

Have you ever struggled to build up the motivation to start your healthy habits because of how long and difficult of a process you know it’s going to be?

Have you ever given up on your training routine or eating habits altogether out of frustration from not reaching a certain weight, performance, or aesthetic goal?

Here are some actionable tips for finding motivation, setting goals, and sticking to your routine for the long run:

Okay.

In my last video I touched a little bit on accepting responsibility after taking some time off from healthy habits, or habits that are moving [us] towards our goals, or… you know… training… or eating well… or whatever.

That’s what we talked about.

We talked about accepting responsibility and deciding that, “Okay. Time to get back on track. I’m in control here.”

Now, that can be a very difficult thing to do, and it’s totally normal to feel a tremendous amount of resistance to actually taking those steps, regardless of how confident you are in your ability to make them.

Even if you know exactly what to do — and you know you can do it — sometimes the idea of putting in all that work and consistently doing things that you know are probably going to — at least in some way shape or form — go against your internal, primal, instincts to seek out pleasurable food and experiences, you know that’s gonna be difficult — especially the idea of doing it for weeks, months, years, or however long you plan on it taking for you to reach your goals.

That is a hell of an intimidating idea, so I offer you a couple… well, I’m gonna start with one suggestion and then see if I end up barreling into others…

In case you couldn’t tell, I don’t really plan these out too well.

I got my general ideas down but…

First, let’s say if you know it’s gonna take a few weeks to get to where you need to be.

I don’t know how you would know that… if you’ve done it before, that might be how you know it, but anyhow…

First, my advice to you would be to acknowledge that it’s going to be a certain period of time of doing things consistently, but just worry about the next meal, or just worry about the next training session.

Don’t think about the eight or twelve week program you’re gonna go on.

Don’t worry about, “Holy crap… There are how many meals that I have to prepare and eat over the next few weeks?!?”

Don’t worry about that.

That’s way too much to think about when just getting back… getting back on track… getting back to what you’re gonna do.

Instead, think about just the next meal and just the next training session.

That’s the focus.

That’s it.

Focus on this dinner, or this lunch, or this breakfast.

Don’t worry about the whole day, just worry about now.

Don’t worry about next Friday’s training session, just worry about today’s.

That’s it. Just show up… show up and do this next meal and do this next training session — do it well.

That’s it.

That should be your only gauge for success.

That’s the first goal.

That’s all.

Second suggestion — and this is gonna be a little bit more of a long-term process, this isn’t gonna be something that you’re gonna be able to just flip on like a switch — is don’t do these things… don’t… don’t start a 12-week program… or a training program… or… or don’t start a new way of eating, or go back to an old way of eating… don’t do that solely for the purpose of looking a certain way or seeing a certain number on the scale, unless you are a combat fighter who has to reach a certain weight for competition.

Those… you know… looking a certain way or seeing a certain number on the scale… those are more external factors.

Rather, you should do these things or come to a place — I shouldn’t say “you should” — what I should say is, rather you will likely see more long-term success in terms of how you look and feel and perform if you do these things not for external validation like a number on the scale or what you see in the mirror, but if you do these things rather because of how they make you feel, both physically — well I shouldn’t say “both” cuz I’m gonna list a few things here — how they make you feel physically, emotionally, and mentally.

Do them for yourselve… self.

Do them for how they make you feel and do it because you know that it’s what you deserve.

We’ve talked about self-worth a lot, in case you haven’t told… in case you haven’t noticed.

That’s been a recurring theme in these videos, is valuing yourself and that’s why… that’s why we do these things.

That’s why we eat food that helps us feel and look good. Even looking good… looking good is really just a reflection of health.

Is it not?

It’s suitability for mating.

Ultimately, that’s what it is. Right?

You want to look good to get it on, and that’s a reflection of health.

We’re all seeking out healthy mates, so make “health” the goal.

Your health is the goal, and your health is something you should strive for, completely separate from hitting certain numbers or having six-pack abs.

Being healthy does not mean having a six-pack.

At one point, I ran myself into the ground and lost entirely way too much weight — I looked kinda like an alien… I did… I looked like a little… I don’t know… Martian… because I was chasing abs.

But, I mean, abs on a skinny guy are like… “Who cares? The dude looks like crap” [in my case].

I mean, I have no problem saying that. It’s an objective statement [I know… I misspoke… it’s not].

Some of us, though…some of us, though… will be able to have abs.

Some of us will be able to be chiseled, and cut, and be healthy.

For others of us, we won’t.

The natural amount of body fat we carry around varies quite a bit just depending on our genetics, but… uh… but I digress…

The fact that matter is — focus on the next meal, focus on the next training session, and don’t do it because you’re trying to look good.

Do it for yourself.

Do it because you deserve it.

Yeah, looking good is awesome, but why is that?

It’s because of how looking a certain way makes you feel.

It makes you feel confident.

It makes you feel wanted.

It makes you feel desired.

You can have all that without a six-pack.

You can have all that without seeing a certain number on the scale, but what that requires is being confident in things other than your body.

What that requires is feeling worthy of having people value you for things other than your body.

Shift… shift away from your body. Shift away from that.

Focus on yourself, focus on your worth, and focus on getting healthy as hell.

Just focus on getting wicked healthy.

The body will come, and it’s totally cool to be proud of that when it comes, but don’t beat yourself up over not being able to have it immediately and don’t put so much pressure on yourself to have it.

Every meal and every training session is just for that meal, just for that training session, just because at that point in time it’s what’s good for you.

Just because at that point in time you’re gonna eat that meal and you’re gonna hit that training session because you know that you deserve it because you freaking rock.

That’s all.

Got it?

I think that’s it.

Cool!

Thank you!

Originally published at https://coachroba.com on September 24, 2017.