Some days I come home from working all day and just want to veg or do my school work. But I know I should be working out!!

So, what motivates you when you really don't want to work out? What do you tell yourself to get up and go? What do you tell yourself to get moving?


(btw... if this thread already exists, please direct me. Thanks!)

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.

LOL! Awesome answer!

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!

I have a workout partner for running and a personal trainer for weightlifting. If I schedule an appt with someone, I don't miss.

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 ...

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.

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.

I remind myself that it's the day after day that works, not the once in a while.

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 .