What helps keep you motivated to exercise???
 

Do you have any tricks to keep track of your exercise or to help motivate you?


People laugh when I tell them I have a desk calendar nailed to my wall next to my desk (desk is too full) and that I put different sized smilie faces on it for water workouts (depending on how well I work out) and stars for chair workouts on it and notes on bright post its to motivate me. That way I see at a glance if I did enough the last few days and when it is most tempting to slack. I plan to tack each month up on a bare wall in my computer room and that way I can see if I start to fail and pick up the pace, knowing each month will be staring me in the face helps

I write motivational sayings in the blank boxes, since I just broke up with my BF last month they are all relationship ones right now, but I write them on a lot of subjects including exercise. I may also start putting my calorie intake down int eh boxes at least for the next month and see how that goes, since I am already documenting on my calorie count site and my note pad for the dr.

Here is a pic of last months
http://www.msxxl.com/1-09calendar-sm.jpg

Love the new pic...You are one hot tamale!

First thing I want to comment about the other thread.... Whiners unite! hehe weather shouldn't hold me back but since surgery, I am sooooo cold all the time! True that at least when I workout at the Y my sweaty hair does freeze in droppets! :D

Ok, let's see...motivation?

* Well, it happens more when I leave the gym if I can get myself down there. I feel fabulous! The more I go the better I feel.

* Now getting myself down there is the key...that can be more difficult. I would say that making it an "every time I leave work, I head for the gym" sort of thing works best for me. That way it's a pattern and I am good with patterns. Now when I'm there, I want to mix things up!

* I am more of a self talker now a days..."you're doing GREAT!!" or "You can run now! woohoo!!" or "doesn't that feel good? Aren't you glad you came?" "You look maaaavelous!" :lol3:

* I like making friends with the trainers there. They are good about offering motivation.

* My girl friends motivate me to dance! I don't drink much so I can be the DD and don't mind it. I like being able to keep my friends safe AND I LOVE to dance so it isn't painful for me!

* I go and try jeans on...I love that! Too much fun though there is a set back...every time I can get in a new smaller size and look good in them, I have to buy them! Great for motivation, horrid for the budget!

The Greatest Motivation is telling myself "I'M WORTH THE EFFORT!' The more I say it, the more truth it holds!

Angela

Hey Hot Lady! You have Amazing Eyes and Cheekbones!
That's a great idea with the calendar. I join an exercise challenge in another thread and set a minutes goal for the month.
Also I just make it part of my day I work out in my Jammies. I thought about skipping this AM but I'm worth the effort and the sweat!
I also want to go hiking and Kayaking this summer and sitting on my butt won't prep me for that!

Motivation for exercise: Well, I really haven't had any. My exercise has been hit or miss through this whole process.....BUT.....As many of you know my DH started the same low-carb lifestyle that I have been doing and managed to lose 40 lbs and kept it off for 9 mos. He started it after cholestrol high, LDL high and sugar creeping up. Had a check up after the six month period and sugar is higher, LDLs are good and cholestrol is creeping back up. Now I know that some of this is hereditary, but he is a mailman and has a very physical job. What is blue and can jump 10 ft. vertically.....that would be my mailman hubby jumping over huge, huge, snow drifts.....anyway. He can walk miles, run miles and never raise his heart rate, so he is now my motivation to do exercises. We do so many things together and I'm hoping to exercise together. Now, I just have to find a time to do it. I doubt very much if he will want to do zumba, well unless it involves some kind of nudity! LOL!!!!! I'm silly! So I'm looking into an elliptical. I'm a bargain hunter and I know there has to be a dusty old elliptical sitting in someone corner that is just begging for me to buy it. I see them once in a while at the resale shops, but don't know enough about their workings to be able to be a good judge. I got out the old stepper and we are suppose to do that at 5:30 in the morning!!!! We'll see how long that lasts.

I was too sore to work out this morning Darn weather/fibro
Nan My advice for the AM workout start small and then ad on to it
That way it doesn't become a chore
I started wotj 15 min 5/6 days per week now I'm doing 30/40

Motivation
 

I recently joined a gym and wouldn't you know it, every time I go there, there's a new road improvement obstacle they just put up. Of the 5 or 6 ways I can take there from work or home, they all seem to be beset by road improvements. Go figure!

Anyway, I find it hard to keep motivated to keep exercising, so one reason for joining the gym. If I pay for something every month I'm more likely to use it.

Plus, I like the way I feel when I exercise regularly. I've had lots more energy since surgery between better eating and losing weight so I can't wait ti see what regular exercise is going to do for me. I hope I don't become like one of those hyper-puppy people I've found annoying in the past!

I like the way I feel toned when I exercise. I'm hoping that as I lose weight slowly and exercise, lots of flappy things will firm up, even though it's probably impossible for everything to since I'm in my 50s and have been majorly overweight since my teens. But, we'll see!

I hope to meet new people.

I like compliments I get from people who see changes in me.

I like moving down clothing sizes.:carrot:

I like looking in the mirror and seeing less of me.:carrot:

I know the good things I want from this surgery won't come without hard work. I'm reinventing many aspects of me-emotionally, physically, spiritually and working my body is integral to being successful.

I used to think exercise was the devil but it ain't. Poor health, confidence and self-esteem-they're the devil. I ain't walking with the devil again.:devil:

Let's keep moving girls! WE ARE WORTH IT!!!!!!:cheer:

Please feel free to resend this to me when/if I start b**chin' about exercise!

Feeling Unmotivate
 

didn't have the best weekend, and need some encouragement, and uplifting support. I was doing sprints on Friday and now I have a shin splint in the left shin... KILLER!!
I need some advice on workouts to do, and I am now going to do the slim fast diet for breakfast and lunch for the next two weeks to get me off this plateau that I am currently on. Lost 9 lbs, cant drop anymore, I went to the gym 5 days a week last week and plan on doing that again, but i just stay at the same weight loss of -9 lbs.
HELP ME!!:(

~discouraged

Hey Mizzaquarius!
 

OW, OUCH!!! SHIN SPLINTS!! ARGH! I used to run thirty years ago and I got the darn things so bad and finally gave up running.

Now, I'm not a diet expert, but.....here is what I'm finding out about myself and my DD is finding out the same thing about herself. When my weight was just standing still, I usually found out that I wasn't drinking and eating enough. Sounds weird huh! When I increase my protein and low carb veggies, increase my water, I lost. My DD was doing low fat and portion control and was hungry and not losing. She increased her protein, backed off the carby veggies, breads, etc, and increased her water. She has lost 8 lbs in two weeks and didn't lose a pound last week, but it is that TOM. Now I know everyone is different and sometime your body is just adjusting to what you have just lost. Body says, "Hum, they are trying to starve us and we are going to slow things down for a bit now." IMOP! Good Luck!

Mizzaquarius please dont go the slim fast route, it will give you a quick fix but will make it harder in the long run. Please go check out http://caloriecount.about.com/ or some of the other sites even this one has info on dieting sensably. I KNOW it is hard to believe but if you go too low in your intake you will NOT lose and if you do you will most likely yoyo up and down.
Go to the site, use their calorie tools to find out how much you should eat to maintain and reduce it by the amount they suggest. Count your calories for a few days and you might see that with the exercise you are getting less than 1200 calories a day, this is a sure path to plateau land as well as making you sick.
Try it first, if in two weeks it does not work then you can starve yourself