Weight Loss Motivation - How to Get it

Q. What do i need to do to get my lazy ass of the seat and exercise. And I don't mean just exercising to lose weight, I want to exercise for life, coz I have tried it and it made me feel good. I am as desparate as can ever be.

A. You have to want what exercise will give you more than you want to stay sitting on that seat.

• What will exercise do for you?
• How will things change?
• Who else will be affected?
• What will be better?
• What will be worse?

Can you see yourself putting exercise into your life?

What kind of exercise? Sports? Hiking? Swimming? Weights? Aerobics, Pilates, Yoga? What? There are a million things you can do to be active.

If you could do anything, money is no object, equipment would be provided, etc., no obstacles, if you could do any physical activity at all, what would it be?

Is that something you absolutely have no way to achieve or is it something you could do, if you really wanted to? Did you pick something like sky diving or ice climbing? Something wildly dangerous? What about an African Safari?

The first thing is deciding what you want, second is deciding how you might achieve it.

I originally chose weight lifting (see the women's body building picture that originally inspired me) and riding my indoor exercise bike while I read. This works for me because I'm not necessarily athletic nor am I competitive. I do like to compete against myself though, so working to build strength and endurance is fun and challenging. The added benefit of seeing the changes in my body keeps me going. I've been weight lifting for over 20 years and can't see any reason to stop now.

Consistency is the Key for Exercise and Weight Loss

When I'm consistent any extra weight just falls off. It also has the added benefit of allowing me to eat pretty much what I want. The regular exercise habit also creates the tendency to want to eat healthier things (I may crave carrots rather than carrot cake) and I'll say no to treats a bit easier as well. It's also easier to cut back on quantities. Somehow healthier habits stack upon other healthier habits the same way lying on the coach tends to lead to eating from the bag of chips.

So, get out a piece of paper and something to write with and just start writing down ideas; first write what you want (be specific), and next write down why you want it. Write every single thing that comes into your mind, including objections, and see what you end up with on that paper. You can throw it away later, so get crazy and scribble your heart out.

Some people just start by jogging to the end of the street and back, and then around the block, and later they're running marathons. Once you get started and start to clock time or distance or how much weight you're moving or how many stairs your climbing, or whatever you choose, then you'll get interested in trying to accomplish a bit more every week. After a month or more you'll be exercising regularly too.

Make It Easy and You're More Likely to Follow Through

I'm a big proponent of starting out so absolutely easy that there is no way to fail, so I would start by choosing three times a week, exercising for as 10 minutes, and then just get it done. Who can't manage three times a week at 10 minutes each? It's not that you'll be achieving the body of your dreams that first week, it's getting started in a regular routine you're after. So what if it takes a few extra weeks to get the routine in gear, right? It's how I got started and if it worked for me, a self-proclaimed exercise hater, it can work for you too.

Don't try to do more than you planned that first week, even if you know you can. The point is to achieve the goal you set for yourself, no more, no less. Next week you can add time if you want, and once you are consistently working out three days a week for half an hour or more, if you want to add an extra day you can do that too. You may do far less than you know you can because you're more interested in achieving the success of following through. More time and greater intensity comes later.

To get started with regular exercise, it's making a plan and sticking to the plan that counts.

Slowly Build Time & Intensity Into Exercise Program for Best Results

After you've got that three days a week, 10 minutes at a time as a consistent routine, and that can be after only one week, if you really liked it and want to increase then start to add a few more minutes, maybe up to 15, and see how that goes for a week or more. Keep adding time, and eventually adding an additional day and keep at it, as long as you are consistent, then you'll find it starts to become something you look forward to and want to do.

You'll notice you don't want to stop when the time is up, but stop anyway. That way you are going to be really looking forward to the next workout, rather than dreading it, or thinking up excuses why you don't want to do it.

Give this some thought, and see if it helps get you off the couch and moving again.