WYNTERDOLLIE
The Secret To Lasting Motivation
In Photo: Nick Croken
Motivation can only get you so far. A lot of times I get asked “how do you stay motivated to keep going to the gym for so long?” The truth is, I’m not always 100% motivated. Sometimes I’m on the treadmill, and I really don’t want to be there. Sometimes I’m driving to the gym, and I’m complaining to myself that my legs are sore from the day before. Sometimes I’m doing weights and I’m yawning in between sets because I’m tired, but I still made it there and I’m still doing what I know I need to do. How? It’s not motivation that keeps me going, it’s 100% Discipline.
“Motivation will get you started, but habit will keep you going.”
The amount of time it takes to create a habit is on average 60 days. Sure, the motivation is great to have around but remember motivation does not last. I’ve been going to the gym for as long as I can remember. Why? Because it’s just what I do. I don’t have to think. I wake up, get dressed, go to the gym. Next day I wake up, get dressed and go to the gym. Some days my motivation is low but most of the days I’m not 100% pumped, I’m normal. Focused. Because it’s already become a part of me. It’s part of my life, what I do everyday. I’ve chased this habit for longer than 8 years. Many times I’ve struggled to keep it going just like you. I’ve done everything to chase this habit. Bombarded myself with motivational pictures, videos and quotes, asked fitness enthusiast friends for their tips and suggestions as to how they keep it going, I’ve read tons of fitness articles on tips to keeping my motivation alive, I’ve fallen off and have missed one week, two weeks, sometimes even an entire month I’ve missed going to the gym and have had to start all over again. Today, I can stop going to the gym for 2 days and jump right back into it on the 3rd day without having to even blink. This is how strong my habit has become. This is all due to discipline.
So when someone asks me “how do you stay motivated to keep going to the gym for so long?” I’m not….it’s just what I do. It’s a part of my life. Just like how everyone wakes up to get ready for work, I wake up to go to the gym before work, no questions asked.
So how do we know when something has become a habit? When you start to do something like going to the gym, without even thinking twice about why you’re going or maybe you want nothing more than to just sleep in and skip the gym but for some reason find yourself in front of the gym, is when it’s become a habit. This is when something has become a part of you. At this point, motivational videos, motivational quotes & pictures are just a bonus. Most of the time when I look at them, I don’t feel anything anymore. The motivational ‘spurts’ come on their own.
Everything else, is a disciplinary habit.
My Motivation comes in spurts. Some mornings I’m 100% pumped and ready to take on the gym, some workouts I’m feeling the motivation and pushing as hard as I can push myself. In reality this feeling comes maybe 10-30 percent of the time in the span of a week. The other times, things get done out of discipline. Why do I have this habit? Because I wanted it. I wanted to live this kind of lifestyle, so I made it my directive to make this a natural part of my life.