In order to get motivated to keep up with your workouts, it’s good to start by getting an understanding of what motivation is. Read on to find out how this article could help with your fitness goals.

Motivation is defined in the dictionary as “the reason or reasons one has for acting or behaving in a particular way” and “the general desire or willingness of someone to do something.”

If we understand that external motivation (the motivation we derive from sources outside ourselves) is only fleeting and as such, it can’t keep us motivated over the long term, then what I’m really talking about throughout this article isn’t just motivation; rather, it’s really the second source of motivation I’m speaking of: self-motivation.

Self-Motivation
Self-motivation is primarily internally driven, in other words, the origin is YOU and when it comes to maintaining a long-term commitment to yourself, it is definitely the best kind of motivation to tap into.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the years it’s that it’s much easier to be self-motivated when we have a positive frame of mind than when we have a negative frame of mind.

This truth explains why some people have an easier time with motivation than others. Some people choose to live their lives from a limited mindset, a mindset in which they believe things can’t change no matter what they do.

Obviously, this negative outlook would make it quite difficult to get self-motivated.  On the other hand, those people who live with a growth mindset, a mindset in which they believe anything is possible as long as they stick to it, find it much easier to stay motivated.

Procrastination
Procrastination is arguably, the opposite of motivation.
The dictionary defines procrastination as “the action of delaying or postponing something.”

The main reason we procrastinate is because the task is viewed in a negative light and as something we really don’t want to spend our time doing.
Motivation and procrastination are both fueled by your thought process. View the task in a negative light, and you’ll procrastinate. View the task in a positive way, and you’ll be motivated to complete it.

Positive-Positive or Negative-Positive?
When you view a task in a positive way and take a positive action on it, it’s called positive-positive motivation. Although I prefer to be motivated by the positive-positive, there are some people that successfully get motivated from the negative-positive viewpoint.

People that are motivated by the negative-positive viewpoint, use fear to drive themselves. For example, some people will never allow themselves to feel good about the way they look because it motivates them to keep working out and eating better. They’re afraid of letting themselves become satisfied with how they look because they think being happy with their results will cause them to lose motivation to keep it. By always feeling bad about their results it keeps them motivated to continue working on it. And that’s why we call it negative-positive motivation. By staying negative it creates a positive outcome for them.

That’s not for me. I prefer to create a strong desire for that which is necessary for me to accomplish my goal.

This week, I would encourage you to work on your motivation by creating a short list of the desirable benefits of attaining your goals. Be sure to think about the difference it would make in your life and how it would make you feel.

If you need extra motivation and desire extra help in attaining your goals, you may benefit from having a personal one-on-one coach. We offer one-on-one nutritional coaching through my Lean Body Coaching, which you can learn more about on www.leanbodycoaching.com.