This week, I have thought a lot about motivation and mindset.  If I continue to keep it real with everyone, the lack of motivation and my mindset surrounding my “want to”, is BUSTED.

Seriously, I think my “want to” is broken.  Does anyone know who fixes those things?  It’s making an awful noise like “whyyyyyyyyeeeeeeeee” and “noooooooooooo” on repeat.  It’s the strangest thing, and I fear the longer I go without addressing the noise, the worse it’ll get.  I am afraid that’s my fault there.   I was riding the first few weeks of Shape Up Jackson like a “new to me” car.  I checked the tires, looked under the hood and everything seemed fine.  Turns out, I took home something that was broken and I’m not a mechanic.

My motivation has been on empty this week.  My mindset has truthfully, just stunk.  I have not felt like working out or eating the way I should, to fuel my body.  To put it plainly; I just don’t feel like it.  There, I said it. The weight isn’t falling off as fast as I thought it would.  Maybe some of you feel the same way.  Life situations, family or work has crept in and the stressors of everyday have distracted you from doing what we know we need to do, which is living a healthier lifestyle.

These feelings have me afraid of gaining weight back that I’ve already lost.  It makes me afraid to slip into this mindset again, because I’ve been here before.  How do I separate my feelings of “not wanting to” and just do it anyways?  How do I take back the control of those feelings?  Maybe, I need to get that awful noise in my head, screaming “whyeeeeeeeeee” looked at.

We make decisions every single day.  Big ones that affect our lives to little ones, like what socks to wear.  Taking control of my mindset is something I’m really frustrated with right now.  It feels at times, that I have no control over my thought pattern.  It’s not just with exercise or eating right.  In all fairness, I rarely ever want to mop my floors, but to have a clean house I must mop!  The same holds true to weight loss.  I must go through the discomfort of working muscles and planning ahead for the week with food choices, so that I can create a “clean” home for my body.

I decided this week, that I am intentionally taking my “used car” brain to the body shop to get some work done.  I did a little reading on how to create a better attitude for myself and found that most of us are procrastinators. Research shows that most people put things off until the absolute last minute.  This usually causes us more stress in the long run, leaves us feeling anxiety and even powerless if things don’t go well.  I don’t want to procrastinate on this weight loss more than I already have.  Some pretty serious health risks are at stake here.  So, what can I do to change my busted motivation and mindset to achieve my goals?

Simply put, just get up and go!  I almost have to trick my brain to just show up, because if I allow myself the opportunity, I’ll talk myself out of it.  It’s a daily fight. Many of you keep a gym bag in your vehicles to remove the excuse of not going to the gym.  This is amazing!  If I have learned anything about myself, it’s that my motivation is fickle.  Motivation is not something that will carry any of us through this process. You almost have to separate the “I don’t feel like it now” thought pattern and push through until you “want to”.  Something that gets me through workouts, is remembering the amazing feeling of the walk to the car after.  It seriously is the proudest I feel of myself throughout the week.  Don’t get me wrong, I usually have a good time during my classes or time working out but that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t rather be doing something else!  I will reason myself out of doing most things that are challenging or push me out of my comfort zone because who really enjoys being uncomfortable?

When the noise in your head is screaming “whhhhhyyyyyeeeeee” just do yourself a favor and remember, motivation is unreliable.  What we can count on, is that pushing through the lack of “want to” eventually becomes something that feeds our daily life and becomes a habit.  That’s what we can count on because habits are reliable.  I am practicing this right along with everyone but sometimes the struggle is real!

Because I love a good quote, I’ll leave you with this one from Roy T. Bennett.

“It’s only after you’ve stepped outside your comfort zone that you begin to change, grow, and transform.”

I have loved seeing every single one of you grasp a hold of your lives and work to change, grow and transform.  Keep killing it out there and I’ll be right alongside you.

-Jenny Lewis-