Motivational Slump

Confession time: I have really struggled to get to the gym over the past few weeks.

Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been going regularly but lately I’ve been having to talk myself out of skipping my workouts.

I think the problem is that I have a lot going on in my life right now that I’m really excited about – the new house, my recent promotion at work, spending time with my nephew.

I’ve been devoting a lot of my energy and enthusiasm to these things, which is great, but it’s also making me less jazzed about working out because, quite frankly, there are other things I’d rather be doing. That and I’ve been in maintenance mode for the past six months so it’s hard to muster up motivation sometimes.

I’ve been trying lots of new classes to keep things fresh and fun but I can only do so many new activities. At the end of the day, sometimes you just have to suck it up and admit that working out isn’t always going to be shits and giggles. So, for those days when I feel like blowing off the gym, here’s how I talk myself into going:

1. It’s only 60 minutes – when you think of all the time you waste doing pointless crap like browsing Facebook, reading celebrity gossip or watching TV, devoting an hour a day to physical activity for the sake of your health and physical appearance is not much of a sacrifice (especially when you sit at a desk all day).

2. You’ll feel amazing after – no matter how crappy or tired I feel at the beginning of a workout, I always feel better when I leave and that energy helps me be a better girlfriend, aunt, employee, etc. So while it may seem like going to the gym is keeping me from doing something more fulfilling, it’s actually enhancing my ability to enjoy all of those things.

3. Use it or lose it – it took me a long time and a lot of dedication to get to the level of fitness I’m at now. Whenever I feel demotivated, I imagine having to start all over again – 20 pounds heavier, struggling through every workout, having to religiously count calories and stress over my diet in order to lean out. It’s a lot easier to just keep doing what I’m doing and maintain than to get lazy and have to start from scratch.

4. You might be at your goal weight but there’s always room for improvement – over the past few months, I’ve seen changes in muscle tone and I haven’t even been putting much effort into it. It’s made me realize that you don’t necessarily have to devote all of your energy to fitness and diet in order to see results; sometimes just being consistent in your healthy habits is enough.

5. It’s part of your identity – over the past two and a half years, I’ve transformed from a total couch potato into a highly active person. As one of my brutally candid friends put it the day before I ran a half-marathon last year: “I’m so proud of you – you used to be totally useless and now you’re actually a runner.” So true. I feel an enormous sense of pride about being physically active in a society that is generally not – I really don’t want to lose that and revert back into the person I was before.

As I write this, it’s drizzling rain and all I want to do is grab my book and cuddle up with my cat. But I’m going to go get ready for kickboxing. I’m not exactly thrilled about it but I know it’ll be worth it later.

How do you talk yourself into going to the gym?

Do you find your motivation wanes when you have a lot going on (good or bad) in your personal life?