Goals
Goals.
One of the hardest things about working out is staying motivated. Its enduring and the results take some time and that can get frustrating so people quit. I’ve been working out consistently (minus 3 weeks off due to a crazy work schedule) since January. I can attest, there were times where I was getting bored, and wasn’t losing as much as I wanted. That’s when I started doing some research. I looked up other workouts, and watched other people working out for new ideas to add to my own routine. I also read up a lot about nutrition, learned about fat, and how to do the math to get to your goal. For me crunching numbers set me on a more clear and defined path and it was up to me how I wanted to tackle it. Before I get any further let me explain what I mean by crunching numbers. I’m talking about learning how many calories are in a pound of fat, how many (avg) calories do you burn a day, calculating your lean body mass, BMI, how many calories do you have to burn per day to lose x amount of lbs a week… That type of stuff.
Now, on to goal setting. What worked for me was combining things I already like to do (shopping) with my workout progress. For example my current goals are as follows: When I lose 5lbs (get down to 155) I will buy myself a new workout outfit (woohooo!). When I lose 10 lbs, I will purchase the Nike+ shoes and the ipod tracker thingie. (Boo Yeah now were talking!) When I lose 15 lbs, I will purchase a heart rate monitor/Calorie tracker watch (Oh shoot, keep it commin!) When I lose 20 lbs, I will have reached my goal and will go out and purchase that bikini and or little black dress I have been working to get into.
This is what worked for me, so your motivator may be different. If you find something you love doing, you can turn it into a reward for your self to reach your goal. Even though the rewards may seem small, it means so much more because of the work that had to go into it.
August 28, 2008 at 2:44 pm
Good idea.. I am going to create a reward system right now!!!