Motivation is a tricky concept. Oftentimes in the realm of personal training, clients and prospective clients will come in and say, "I am just really lacking any motivation to do X, Y and Z, but I know I should be doing them." We are here today to have a brief discussion on "motivation": I am going to compare it to a long, marathon-type bike ride.
Let's say, in our hypothetical analogy, that a racer (you) has to get from point A to point B (an objectively long distance); they'd like to get there in a certain time frame, but they take the pressure off of themselves to complete it in world record breaking time. The path will have some hills, the valleys that follow, and also some long, flat stretches. The racer knows that the hills will be more challenging; if they want to get to their finish line, they'll have to "push through the burn" and the slowed pace to make it to the next valley where things feel easier and they get a break from having to focus so hard. The flat spaces are pretty boring, but reliably steady. In our analogy, we can safely bet that the racer understands: the only way to get up those hills when they come is to stay moving, even if not as fast or as strongly as they were on a flat or down into a valley, because the inertia and momentum can only be made and kept by fighting through. It may not be pretty and it is never pleasant, but it's a non-negotiable to make it to the finish line.
Now, if we take our analogy and put it in the context of motivation: we know that motivation isn't something that just is, and a lot of the time, we have to be prepared to drop the expectations of constant perfection or "performing at our best" 24/7 to make it through the times that we just don't want to. We have to make our own inertia when the motivation (momentum) starts falling short. Quitting "the race" of whatever our goals are--either short term or long term lifestyle changes--is an easy thing to do when we expect nothing but faster, better, stronger, etc.: but that just isn't how life works. It's ok to feel stuck or slowed or frustrated or tired... but we can't throw it all away over a week of feeling "off", a tough month in terms of consistency, or a rough season in life. Usually, that makes it that much harder to build the foundation to get going again. Momentum is gained through inertia, and it's ok to "ride slow" when you need to, as long as you keep on pushing, even at a fraction of what that might have looked like "coasting down a valley."
I'm going to encourage you to focus on one big picture goal you have for yourself, and try to take it steady this month as you work on it. There's nothing wrong with going "all in" right away, just so long as you understand there's nothing wrong with having to slow your roll at certain points along the way. Be kind to yourself as you find and adjust your rhythm; you're working on making YOU better, and there's no time limit or expectation of perfection with that.
Have a great week and happy Monday, thanks for tuning in.
Margo
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