When going after a fitness goal, we hear a lot about WILLPOWER. The problem is that willpower is fleeting. Sure, we are strong for awhile. We pass up that candy at the office. We make it to the gym at least 4 or five times a week. We drink our recommended amount of water (which is ½ your body weight in ounces of water by the way!). We choose salads over the pizza we really want. For awhile. And then, then something happens and we fall off, maybe we fall off a little or maybe we fall off the deep end. Either way, often willpower is not enough to keep us on track OR get us back on track.
So, what do you do? You need to tap into your WHY POWER!
Your WHY is the thing(s) that keeps you so connected and engaged with your actions that you cannot fail. Your WHY is something you have taken time to think about, journal about, meditate on, pray for, cry over etc. It is the thing you may have never repeated out loud to anyone.
Your WHY is uniquely yours. It both motivates and terrifies you; it is likely your deepest desire and greatest fear coupled into one. When you know your WHY it is simply a matter of changing patterns, practices, and habits to achieve your goals.
Truly knowing WHY you are doing something is infinitely more powerful than just thinking you “should” do something. You can “should” yourself to death and never reach your goals. If you never connect with you goals in a sincere way, you will not make sustainable progress or get lasting results. If you are only eating clean because your doctor or significant other or coach or trainer told you that you need to, it will never stick. You have to do things because YOU want to, because YOU need to.
Know your WHY, get emotionally connected to it. Journal it. Pray on it. Post about it. Email it to me if you are so inclined to share it. Dig into it, really dig into it and discover what drives you; make an active choice instead of checking boxes.
When I started on my weightloss journey, I never intended to lose 100lbs. In fact, my why had nothing to do with weightloss at all. I had run my immune system so far into the ground that I got mono and was sleeping 20-22 hours a day for months. When I finally could stay awake for more than a few minutes at a time, I KNEW something had to change. My why started out as getting over mono and becoming human again; to live instead of just exist.
My WHY has changed over the years. It started with disease recovery. It morphed into a control issue. Then it became about changing careers. And now, now it is something else entirely, but much more connected to the original WHY of disease recovery, this time just more in the form of prevention. My WHY changes, and that’s normal. So will yours. But as you see, I still go back to the original one, to really LIVE. It’s the strongest one, it’s the scariest one.
Fitness, like life, is always transforming. But the things that make you come alive inside with equal parts joy and fear will guide you to your success if, and only if, you acknowledge and connect with them.
My guess is that you pretty much already know what your why is – it is that first thought that you had when you started reading this that you very quickly shut down, or shoved aside, no wanting to deal with it. But if you are having trouble uncovering your WHY, answer the following questions (ideally written out): If you were to accomplish your physical health and fitness dreams...
• How would your health improve?
• How would you feel about yourself?
• What could you do that you can't do now?
• What would you look like?
• Why are these things important to you?
• What is it costing you right now to NOT have these things?
When you have your WHY, write out 10-15 reasons why you want it. By the time you finish doing this, you will have absolutely zero excuses and your WHY will be completely engrained and your choices will become what you do to get your WHY instead of a constant struggle.
If you want to share your WHY with me, I would LOVE to hear it. And if you are having trouble uncovering your WHY, I would love to help guide you to it. I am just an email, text, or call away.
So, what do you do? You need to tap into your WHY POWER!
Your WHY is the thing(s) that keeps you so connected and engaged with your actions that you cannot fail. Your WHY is something you have taken time to think about, journal about, meditate on, pray for, cry over etc. It is the thing you may have never repeated out loud to anyone.
Your WHY is uniquely yours. It both motivates and terrifies you; it is likely your deepest desire and greatest fear coupled into one. When you know your WHY it is simply a matter of changing patterns, practices, and habits to achieve your goals.
Truly knowing WHY you are doing something is infinitely more powerful than just thinking you “should” do something. You can “should” yourself to death and never reach your goals. If you never connect with you goals in a sincere way, you will not make sustainable progress or get lasting results. If you are only eating clean because your doctor or significant other or coach or trainer told you that you need to, it will never stick. You have to do things because YOU want to, because YOU need to.
Know your WHY, get emotionally connected to it. Journal it. Pray on it. Post about it. Email it to me if you are so inclined to share it. Dig into it, really dig into it and discover what drives you; make an active choice instead of checking boxes.
When I started on my weightloss journey, I never intended to lose 100lbs. In fact, my why had nothing to do with weightloss at all. I had run my immune system so far into the ground that I got mono and was sleeping 20-22 hours a day for months. When I finally could stay awake for more than a few minutes at a time, I KNEW something had to change. My why started out as getting over mono and becoming human again; to live instead of just exist.
My WHY has changed over the years. It started with disease recovery. It morphed into a control issue. Then it became about changing careers. And now, now it is something else entirely, but much more connected to the original WHY of disease recovery, this time just more in the form of prevention. My WHY changes, and that’s normal. So will yours. But as you see, I still go back to the original one, to really LIVE. It’s the strongest one, it’s the scariest one.
Fitness, like life, is always transforming. But the things that make you come alive inside with equal parts joy and fear will guide you to your success if, and only if, you acknowledge and connect with them.
My guess is that you pretty much already know what your why is – it is that first thought that you had when you started reading this that you very quickly shut down, or shoved aside, no wanting to deal with it. But if you are having trouble uncovering your WHY, answer the following questions (ideally written out): If you were to accomplish your physical health and fitness dreams...
• How would your health improve?
• How would you feel about yourself?
• What could you do that you can't do now?
• What would you look like?
• Why are these things important to you?
• What is it costing you right now to NOT have these things?
When you have your WHY, write out 10-15 reasons why you want it. By the time you finish doing this, you will have absolutely zero excuses and your WHY will be completely engrained and your choices will become what you do to get your WHY instead of a constant struggle.
If you want to share your WHY with me, I would LOVE to hear it. And if you are having trouble uncovering your WHY, I would love to help guide you to it. I am just an email, text, or call away.
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