In a word--clothes. Seriously. I like nice clothes, and they're hard to find beyond a size 14/16--although the selection is getting somewhat better in larger sizes.
As I tell my friends, it's the clotheshorse (sp?) in me that drags me out of bed at 5:15 when my alarm goes off.
I have a friend who inspires me a lot. She has Lupus and yet she's at the gym two hours a day. One hour cardio, on hour weights. I have chronic migraines and I still workout. I also have a foot injury and a child with special needs and I still work out. The point is that I just do it. The hardest part is showing up. I sometimes tell myself that I"ll only do x amount of minutes, but then, I convince myself to do more.
I have come to realize that at the end of the day, I am too tired and can come up with a million and one excuses not to get exercising. So to combat that, I workout before my day even begins. Yeah, I'm tired when the alarm clock goes off and it's still dark out in the morning.....but I am a lot less tired then, vs when I come home after work. Do I like having to exercise? NOOOO......but in order to reach my goals, I MUST do it, so I do!
For me it isn't motivation. Motivation comes and goes. For me, it isn't an option. Just like going to work, and cleaning the house, and paying bills - I WILL exercise.
Really - it is non-negotiable. I allow myself to choose WHAT I will do, not IF I will do.
I'm having a problem with getting motivated to work out as well. I actually started out today via SparkPeople with strength exercises with my DD13 (the baby 10 mos. was down on the floor with me too). I figure that if I start off slow it will help me to move into cardio (which I hate) and then I'll be addicted. Everybody says you get addicted once you start doing good in cardio. We shall see.
For me, I really just feel better if I have exercised that day. I am old enough now (42!) that things are starting to hurt even I don't do anything. If I have exercised I can at least attribute the hurt to that!
I work out early in the morning. I lay out everything the night before, and then in the morning I'm too sleepy/stupid to do anything different. By the time I wake up, I'm done for the day!
Seriously, though, working out in the morning fits my schedule and temperament best. If I tried to work out later in the day, there would just be too many things that can get in the way. I put my morning workout on my calendar and stick to the schedule!
The other thing that helps me is to set specific goals -- I'm usually training for a race or some kind of event. Then I'm not working out, I'm "training", and if I miss workouts it will impact my ability to reach my goal. It keeps me going ...
I have a workout partner for running and a personal trainer for weightlifting. If I schedule an appt with someone, I don't miss.
Similar...
I schedule the appointment with myself. "Oh, I've got a 4:00 meeting with the treadmill, can't miss that!" Motivation is fleeting, so I've chosen to make it a routine instead of just when I feel like it.
For me it isn't motivation. Motivation comes and goes. For me, it isn't an option. Just like going to work, and cleaning the house, and paying bills - I WILL exercise.
Really - it is non-negotiable. I allow myself to choose WHAT I will do, not IF I will do.
Agree 100%! Exercise is simply part of my life now. It's not if I do or don't want to do it, it's just something I have to do.
At this point on my off days I feel a bit weird that I don't have plans for the gym. I work out 5 days a week with 2 off.
Good question. For me, my motivation is seeing myself thin in my mind and my two little ones. I have diabetes and hypertension. I want to improve my health so I can be here for them for quite awhile yet. So when I do not feel like I want to do it I look at them and do it anyway and envision myself buying clothes in a normal store while I am doing it.
Diana
I also try to remember that there are plenty of times when life keeps me from sticking to my food and exercise plans. So I don't need to add in any intentional deviations. A forced one will come along soon enough .