You remember the story of the tortoise and the hare, right? The hare ran as fast as the wind, but lost his motivation half-way through the race, while the slow, plodding tortoise never took his eyes off the prize. In the end, the tortoise did what he set out to do while the hare made excuses and talked about what could have been.
Most people have the potential to be extremely athletic. But most people don’t work at it long enough to make their mark.
It’s easy to work hard in the first few weeks of a new fitness program. In those early days, you’re pumped up about reaching your goals, and the early enthusiasm is like an injection of nitrous oxide into a dragster’s engine: it revs you up so far and so fast that you surpass your own expectations.
Then, a month later, reality sets in and you decide to sleep in one morning instead of getting up and working out. And this, my friend, is the beginning of the end for yet another attempt at getting physically fit.
How do you keep your levels of sports motivation up far enough so you don’t end up quitting? Read on…
Pick one main goal
You can’t spread yourself too thin.
If you try to do everything at once, you’ll end up accomplishing nothing.
Pick one thing to work on — fat loss, bulking up, cardio, muscular endurance, etc. — and make that the focus of your workout routine. Work out with this goal in mind for a few weeks or however long it takes. Don’t allow yourself to be distracted.
Of course, you can (and should) make sure you balance your workouts. Avoid creating a glaring deficiency in your physical fitness.
But, having said that, unless your goal is simply to maintain the status quo, you must prioritize one part of your overall fitness routine.
Get a partner or two
No man is an island, entire unto himself — John Donne
It is difficult to keep up your levels of sports motivation if you work out alone or in secret. You will not be able to push yourself as hard as you might if you had a like-minded partner right there with you.
Some people thrive in the company of other kindred spirits, while others need a drill sergeant to yell at them. Whatever you prefer, you’ll do better if you have someone there with you to keep you honest.
Even if you have the tendency to let yourself down, you probably won’t let your partner down. Peer pressure doesn’t have to be a bad thing.
Track your results
You won’t squat 400 pounds just by working hard at it for a few weeks. Uncommon athletic achievements of this sort take years of dedicated effort.
You know what’s really a lot of fun? Going back over your workout journals from years past and seeing what you were doing back then. You’ll be amazed at the progress you made in the interim, and amused by the mistakes that you’ve now corrected.
Keep track of where you’ve been. If you don’t, you’ll underestimate your own progress. Seeing the hard facts written out there in front of you is one of the best ways to stay motivated. It can mean the difference between having a quality workout or just shortchanging yourself.
Good record keeping allows you to see the steps you’ve taken in the right direction. Without records, you’re confronted with a seemingly-impossible gap between your current abilities and your goals.
As long as you can clearly see the path ahead of you, you’ll keep going.
Surround yourself with positive imagery
To get good, follow the lead of others who have gone before you.
Use other peoples’ success stories for inspiration:
- Read biographies of the great sportsmen who blazed a trail that some said would never be followed.
- Dissect your favorite athlete’s career and seek the parallels between his life and yours.
- Look for the common threads shared by all the great athletes of the past — those character traits that allow them to strive for greatness and achieve it — and try to incorporate those ideals into your own life.
In your workout area, put up posters or inspirational quotes and work out secure in the knowledge that you’re on the right path.
Find the positive, supportive people in your life and tell them that you are working out towards a goal. Let their interest in your progress keep you focused on the goal; don’t let them down.
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{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
If you have a goal which you intend to achieve, you never should give up despite the circumstances. It is not uncommon for many people to be motivated at the beginning, but end up giving up. I think what is important is persistence and it is always more preferable if you monitor your performance.
Many people — especially young people — have never accomplished anything that takes persistence and long-term planning. They don’t intuitively understand how to plan and execute a big project and see it through to its completion. So yes, persistence is crucial to success.