What To Do When You Lose Motivation

We lose motivation to workout.  It happens to everyone. Athletes and non-athletes eventually find themselves wondering why they should do an activity that at times, can be very painful and monotonous.  No one is immune to these feelings.  Muhammad Ali said, “I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.’”  Some people may have the illusion that elite professional athletes and fitness guru’s love to workout. The truth is they don’t always love the training, but they do love what happens to their lives if they do train.

My athlete came in the other day with a new quote, “A body in motion stays in motion.” This is a reference to Newton’s first law of physics, which was not intended as motivation to keep us working out but fits perfectly. This quote makes me think of two very powerful points.

First, there is something magical about a human that has gained momentum. This person is very hard to slow down. Sports commentator’s talk about momentum as an edge for whoever is lucky enough to possess it. It is not something that is tangible or has been proven to exist in a scientific experiment. It is just a phenomenon that we have all seen and felt. This phenomenon applies to all areas of life. “I didn’t want to slow down, I was on a roll,” is a common phrase people have used when undertaking any task, i.e. raking leaves, washing the car, giving a speech. So…tell yourself the next time you don’t feel like going to the gym, ”Just show up and get the ball rolling.”

Second, our bodies are not designed to sit still. This reminds me of an old speech given by Zig Zigler. He was talking about how many things, just like our bodies, are not meant to be neglected. He gave a big list like, cars, boats, and buildings. If you store a car for a year and don’t touch it, there’s a good chance it will get rusty and the battery will die. If a boat sits in the harbor unattended for years, it will gather mold and barnacles, and require hours of labor to make serviceable again. Abandoned buildings decay. Wood rots, wires fray, plumbing cracks. Our bodies are the same. If you neglect them (stop training) they will fall apart. There will be muscle loss, bone loss, weakening of the heart, and the immune system will start to fail. Fitness is the fountain of youth. There are no magic pills or surgeries. Working out keeps us younger longer. Jack Lalanne left this world kicking and screaming, not in a walker. If we don’t work out, eventually we become medical disasters. Hips break, and hearts fail. The medical system in America will rob you and your family blind once that happens (had to throw that in there as extra motivation to get in shape).

When searching for reason to workout, ask yourself what is the alternative. Trick question, there is none. Workout and enjoy a high quality of life or don’t work out and fall apart. Many things in life require hard work to enjoy. It is a recurring theme in most endeavors. Keeping ourselves strong and healthy is no exception.