Motivation is one of those things can be an abyss with all types of different ways to approach the subject. When it comes to a healthy lifestyle there can be many factors motivating you such as family, friends, health concerns, looking good naked (I had to throw that one in), etc. The list goes on and on. Each person has their own frame of mind when motivating themselves. Some are better than others at being consistent. However, I think that intrinsic motivation is the most powerful form of achieving your goals. That's what I want to talk about today - using intrinsic motivation to achieve your goals. This is the essence of maintaining consistency.
If I was to ask you what motivates you to lose weight or get healthier, what would you say? Maybe your answer would be, I want to look good naked (as I mentioned above), or perhaps you want to be thinner, stronger, better, faster. Any of these will do, and surely you 'want' these things to happen, but they should not be what motivates you. Instead you should use intrinsic motivation. It's far more powerful. Some examples of intrinsic motivation are:
- Being able to go rock climbing
- Not having to shop at big and tall stores anymore
- Sleeping through the night without getting up every 3 hrs
- Keeping my glucose levels below 100 mg/dL every day
- Having enough strength and energy to hold my kids all day without getting tired
Now that we have a loose handle on what exactly intrinsic motivation is, it's time for you to think about what it means to you specifically. Once you have identified your intrinsic motivation(s). These should become your goals that you are pursuing along your journey. A word of caution - don’t have too many. Two or Three should be enough to keep you focused. Even having one is enough as long as you stay challenged. For me, in the beginning my intrinsic goal was to be able to walk 3+ miles without feeling drained and exhausted. Currently my intrinsic motivation is to be able to perform 15 hand stand push ups against the wall (like this). As you can see these are very different goals but my nutrition and training are essential to achieving them.
Many times we are bombarded with contests or monetary rewards for achieving a goal. This usually leads to a less rewarding experience because a person may ask themselves what the true motivation behind something is, if there is a prize being offered to achieve it. On the other hand, if the motivation is intrinsic, a person's enjoyment of an activity provides sufficient justification for their behavior. I can tell you this: if you are keeping yourself motivated to achieve your health and wellness goals via contests and monetary rewards (or worse yet - working towards being able to eat a cheat meal), that will only fuel the fire for so long. For sustained inspiration, you should create a foundation based on intrinsic rewards, and that will last you a lifetime. So go out there and get intrinsically motivated. It will feel good!
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