How To Get Motivated or Stay Motivated

Motivation is huge when you are trying to lose weight. You either have it or you don't. And then what happens when you lose it? I hate seeing when a person starts a new program, starts to see results, then loses their focus and goes back to old ways and so does their body. They lose their motivation. And some people just can't seem to find their motivation in the first place.

So what motivates you to lose weight? 


And once you find it, how do you get it to stay?

Motivation is something to prompt you to take action. Motivation is not just a one-time event, it is on-going. Motivation can keep you from eating foods you know are bad for you and Motivation can get you up in the morning to exercise. Motivation can come from a person or an emotion. Motivation is seen as an outside source, something to kick your butt and get you going. To me, motivation comes from the inside. In your heart and your mind, you can find that motivation to keep going.

Everyone is different. Every person loses weight at a different pace. In our advertising-overload society, we tend to over-analyze the commercials, the magazines, the stories that just don't seem too real. If we do believe them, we are discouraged when we can't do the same thing in our lives. If we don't believe them, we are discouraged because maybe it's not really possible to do it without a gimmick or pill. So we just trudge on, staying overweight.

My motivation after 8 years of struggling to lose weight was a photo. Ugh, that photo. The photo that motivated me to finally take action. I was wearing my fine maternity pants, and my youngest was 4 years old. It finally hit home. I still floundered for a while, but my motivation was so strong that I was unable to fail this time. I was very motivated to succeed because that photo showed me everything I had become was the opposite of how I viewed myself.

Being overweight has nothing to do with the kind of person you are inside.

But it does have to do with how you treat your body and may lead to other things that are "bothering" you or that you are "shoving under the carpet".

After training and helping clients the last five years, I've come to recognize many different ways of motivation for some, including:

• Clothing - wanting to fit in a certain clothing, ie a wedding dress, reunion dress, swimsuit.
• Money or a trip - this is a good way for some people. No results, no money, no trip.
• Contest - whether with a group of people or by themselves. Weight loss contest or upcoming 5K.

All of these are ways to motivate you, but again, I believe the motivation has to come from inside. Now in my case, I was very motivated by a contest. A weight-loss contest. It kept me accountable and it kept me motivated. But there was much more than the actual contest that helped me get the results I wanted. And also, this happened over a year's time. Don't think that you can get motivated and it's just going to happen. It takes hard work and determination, only part of motivation. I learned patterns, habits, destructive thoughts - all of these that hindered my weight loss in the past. Journaling is very constructive in weight loss. Discovering why you overeat, why you crave, why your body is like it is.

To find your true motivation, it takes soul-searching, looking into your past and being willing to make a change.

If you are not willing to make a change, it doesn't mean you are not motivated, it means you are not willing to make a change at this time.

The best motivation comes from inside when you are READY to face what's really wrong and make it right. I'm here to help you, friend!