A common reason people don’t make progress toward their fitness goals is because they lack motivation! Change is hard, so it’s critical that your reason for wanting to make a change, your WHY, is greater than the effort required to make that change. Let me explain.
Any change you want to make requires a certain amount of effort. You also have a certain amount of desire, or motivation, to make this change. Let’s evaluate a common fitness goal of weight loss. Say an individual is told by their doctor that they need to lose 20 pounds or they will need to go on blood pressure medication. Losing 20 pounds is going to take a lot of effort and this individual may decide, possibly sub-consciously, that it’s easier and preferable to take the blood pressure medication. Now let’s say this same individual is dealing with debilitating knee pain because of their excess weight that prevents them from hiking with their family. Losing the 20 pounds will still take the same amount of work, but now this person has a much greater desire to put in the work because spending time hiking with their family is incredibly important to them and their quality of life.
The difference between having the motivation to lose the 20 pounds is that in the second scenario the individual’s WHY is greater than the effort required to lose the 20 pounds. It’s critical that you ensure your WHY is greater than the effort needed to make the change you want. If it isn’t, you’re unlikely to reach your goal. Powerful WHYS- the reason you want to reach your fitness goal- lead to results, while misaligned “WHYS” are a top reason people don’t succeed.
Try this simple drill to align your WHY and your effort. Write down your top fitness goal. Then, ask yourself why you have this goal. Then ask yourself why this matters to you. Continue asking “why” until you discover the real reason you have this goal. Once you have your real WHY dialed in, estimate how much work it will take to reach your fitness goal. If your WHY is more important to you than the effort it will take to reach your goal, you’re on the right track! If not, don’t worry! The best thing to do is to adjust your goal so it takes less effort and that the effort required to reach your goal is less than your WHY. Check out this video we made on motivation, effort and reaching your goals!
This is where joining a personal training program can make a huge difference! A qualified personal training, like those who work at 212 Fitness, can not only guide you through your workouts, but through the process of aligning your goals, your WHY and the effort required to reach your goals. Interested in learning more? Book a complimentary fitness consult with us here.