Motivation for fitness and bodybuilding

Motivation is one of the important components of successful and long-lasting training. Without it, most likely, the athlete will sooner or later lose interest in training or be disappointed, not getting the desired result and not meeting his hopes. Motivation is necessary not only for beginners, but also for professionals, because victories in sports cannot be achieved without strong motivation.

Introduction

Training, nutrition, rest, all this will have absolutely no meaning if you don’t know why you are doing it all. Why did you even come to the fitness club? What do you want to achieve? For what purpose did you even decide to complicate your life so much that you systematically go to training, monitor your diet, follow a regime and constantly motivate yourself to realize your plans? And in general, how to motivate yourself to workout? By the end of the chapter, you will have to answer these questions yourself, but for now remember that if you want to achieve something, you must first understand why you need it.

So, let's define what motivation is.

Simulation of the situation

It is common for every person to replay upcoming stressful situations in advance. Going to the gym for the first time is really stressful! Not only is the newcomer’s body far from perfect, but also an unfamiliar place, people...

The brain starts up and focuses on desires, then calculates the ways to achieve it, then analyzes the options, and draws conclusions. Can you imagine the stress our psyche experiences in order to ultimately satisfy our physical body?

What's running through your head? What are you hoping for? Are you sure that you will quickly gain weight or lose weight? Or maybe, on the contrary, you think it’s unrealistic? Maybe you don’t give a damn about this whole attitude, and you just came for company, to have a good time?

Whatever your goal with each set, repetition is a small step towards the body of your dreams. Sometimes these steps are incredibly difficult to take! How to train motivation in each specific approach?

Motivation

Motivation is the process of inducing a person to action, which controls his behavior and determines his activity. In other words, the beginning of any active activity is preceded by the receipt of certain motives for action. Something that will motivate you to take these actions.

Motive is a physical object or result of an activity, the achievement of which is its meaning. The motive is given to a person in the form of certain emotions, which can be characterized either by the experience in the process of waiting to achieve a result, or by negative emotions associated with dissatisfaction with the current situation.

In other words, motivation for fitness and bodybuilding in the first case can act as a photograph of a certain athlete who has the kind of muscles that you are striving for. In this case, you are full of expectations and worries about achieving this result. In the second case, you begin to act when you realize that your form leaves much to be desired, and you strive for some ideal result for yourself. This is the case when you are dissatisfied with the current state of affairs and strive to correct it. In general, both of these definitions are similar in that the motive is used as an incentive to action, both in the first and in the second case.

Again, before you start doing anything, you must first be motivated to act. This motive is the answer to the question: “Why do I need this?” But one should not confuse motive with “goal” and “need,” because a goal is the result of a specific task statement, and a need is one of the simplest reactions of the body, which is aimed at eliminating discomfort. In search of an answer to the question - how to motivate yourself to play sports, identifying the types of motivation will help us.

Clear your mind

You may have already had a negative experience at the gym. Put these thoughts aside. Clear your brain of these memories. Don't think about it. This happened before, now you are stronger and more experienced. Now it will be different. You know how to achieve results!

Your body follows your thoughts. Learn to generate positive energy within yourself. It is developed as a result of the desire to manage the process, positive thinking. And the energy that doubt and fear cause is destructive. She is poisoning you.

Even if you train competently, but are constantly in doubt and fear, then as a result of such stress, your body will produce so much cortisol (the stress hormone) that you will negate all your achievements.

Your desires can become reality. Set yourself up correctly.

Types of motivation

As for motivation, there is a division into two categories: external and internal.

External motivation is not related to the composition of a specific activity, but its nature is determined by the environment external to the person. The simplest example in this case is a family where parents are involved in sports activities. In this situation, the motivation for sports, as an external factor influencing the child and, by and large, independent of him, in the future will be his involvement in the same passion for sports. This is the so-called influence of the environment in which it lives. The same goes for company on the street or at school. If all your friends play sports, you will likely experience some discomfort if you don't participate in the same activity, which will further motivate you to start exercising.

Intrinsic motivation is motivation tied not to external circumstances, but to the very content of the activity. In this situation, you determine for yourself what and why you want to do. Internal motivation is exactly what you should focus on when starting to play sports.

Sources of motivation

Motivation for fitness. Why is it so important? You will come to this, but not immediately. Time will pass, and you will realize that you only need to look for motivation in yourself. Of course, if you become interested in fitness or any other sport, you will watch various motivational video clips filmed specifically for these purposes. Perhaps you will read magazines devoted to relevant topics. You will follow competitions and leading athletes. You might want to get on the cover of a magazine, star in some video, compete in competitions with people like you, but a lot of time will pass before that moment, and you will experience various failures.

You won't have enough money for a gym membership, you won't have enough time after work or school, you won't have enough money to buy food, let alone buy sports supplements. Teachers will tell you that because of training, you often skip classes, and you may be kicked out of school. The employer will be dissatisfied with the fact that you eat containers of food every two or three hours, because this distracts you from work. Your parents will tell you that you are doing anything but eating, sleeping and exercising, and that is wrong. With work/study and training, you will have little time for your personal life, and sooner or later your gym activities may cause a breakup with your partner. Friends will say that nothing will work out for you, that it is better to sit with them in a tavern in the evening than to go to the gym.

In other words, when the whole world turns against you and neither your parents, nor your partner, nor your friends will support you, what will you do? Where will you look for strength to continue studying? It is at this moment that you will think most about how to motivate yourself to workout.

Only at this moment will you come to the conclusion that, of course, it was not worth starting classes for someone. You often hear: “I went to the gym because my girlfriend said I was fat,” or “My boyfriend said that if I didn’t become fit, he would leave me,” or “I have no desire, but the boss said that until I get in shape, he won’t make me head of the department.” Of course, you won’t become one, you’re not doing this for yourself!

Motivation for fitness or bodybuilding, contrary to popular belief, works most effectively from the inside - out (from thoughts to actions), and not from the outside - in (from external factors to internal motivations). That's why you need to look for it only in yourself. In the second case, after watching enough motivational clips, you can say that it’s beautiful, but remain indifferent. In the first case, if you have decided within yourself why you need this, you yourself serve as a source of motivation for yourself.

People will never appreciate your efforts, no matter how close they are. You will quarrel, fight, break up, and you will understand that everything you did for them has gone to waste. This is mistake! You don't need to do this for them. Do it for yourself. Don't let anyone influence your results. Don't let anyone get in the way of achieving your goal. You can and should motivate yourself to play sports on your own.

When you are asked why you are doing this, you will have to answer: “I am doing this because I want it myself. I like it. I want to become better, more beautiful and attractive. I love what I do and I don’t care what others say.” In this case, it will be difficult to lead you astray. When you are confident in what you are doing, when you exude confidence, you will be perceived differently. If they tell you that you won’t succeed, send them to hell. This is what those who cannot achieve anything say. They don't want you to rise above their level. They don't want you to improve. They drag you down. They are all those who stand between you, your desires and your dreams. That is why in the modern world motivation is so important when doing fitness and any other sport.

You will definitely hear that nothing will work out for you, but we know that it will work out.

They will definitely tell you that everything will sag in old age, is that true? Look at the photos. You will be accused of saying that sports supplements are chemicals. In 100% of cases, those who don’t understand anything about it will say this. They will tell you that all the “jocks” are stupid. This is often said by those whose lives are dominated by beer, sunflower seeds near the entrance, frequent drinking bouts, and a low level of education and, accordingly, intelligence. They need to take attention away from themselves. You will also hear that this is bad / wrong / ugly / a waste of time, etc. This and other things are always said by those who are trying to justify themselves, their laziness and their inaction. Be prepared for this. Your motivation for sports: if you are criticized, it means you are on the right track.

Pictured above: Rusty Jeffers, DOB: May 14, 1964, Age: 52. Denise Austin, born February 13, 1957, age: 59 years old. This is what they look like at the moment.

Gym Quotes for Men and Women

"No pain no gain. Shut up and train.”
“Wake up. Exercise. Look hot. Kick ass."
“Go the extra mile. It’s never crowded.”
"Sick. The most pleasant pain.”
“You don't have to be extreme, just consistent.”
“Good things come to those who sweat.”
“I don’t want a good body, work for it.”
“Hustle for that muscle.”
“I don’t stop when I’m tired, I stop when I’m done.” — David Goggins
“The body achieves what the mind believes.”
“Making excuses burns zero calories per hour.”
“Don't be afraid to be a newbie.”
“The difference between desire and achievement is discipline.”
“When you feel like quitting, think about why you started.”
“Motivation is where you start. Habit is what keeps you moving forward.”
“Sweat is magic. Cover yourself with it daily to fulfill your desires.”
“At first they will laugh. Then they will copy it. Do not give up."
“What seems impossible today will one day become your workout.”
“Push yourself because no one else will do it for you.”
“The only bad workout is the one that didn’t happen.”
“I may not be there yet, but I am closer than I was yesterday.”
“A good workout is when your dry cut shirt looks like a fake advertisement.”
“70% of people who start doing fitness quit. Except you. Not this time."
“Fitness is like a relationship. You can't cheat and expect it to work.”
“I don't count my squats. I only start counting when it starts to hurt because they are the only ones who matter.”
“Of course it’s hard. It must be difficult. If it were easy, everyone would do it. What's hard is what makes it great.”
“Less sugar, more fruit. Less baking soda, more water. Less driving, more walking. Less worry, more sleep. Less words, more actions.”
“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but squats will make me tough.”
“Your body can handle almost anything. It is your mind that you must convince.”
“The hardest thing is not getting your body in shape. The hardest thing is to get your mind in shape.”
“Remember, Rome was not built in a day. Work hard, good results will come.”

Types of motives

Well, you've decided to take up fitness. You already understand for sure that you don’t want to be like everyone else and you are ready to start training. But what exactly motivates you to take these actions? How to motivate yourself to workout? What specific motive should I choose? Let's look at this issue in more detail, from the point of view of their varieties.

The motive of self-affirmation is a person’s desire to declare himself in society. This motive is associated with a sense of self-worth, importance and indispensability. The individual wants to show people that the value of his personality is quite high, that he wants to become valuable and respected. Do you want to assert yourself? Get big and strong.

The motive for identifying with another person is the desire to be like the person you consider an authority. This motive pushes a person to work on himself. Want to be like Jeff Seid? Work just as hard.

A procedural – substantive motive is an incentive to active activity, in which a person likes the very process of what he is doing. Here, the motivation for fitness and bodybuilding lies in enjoying the process of training itself. If so, keep up the good work!

The motive for self-development is the desire for constant improvement. The importance of this motive lies in encouraging the individual to work on himself and develop. This is an effort aimed at discovering one's potential and the desire to be an expert in one's craft. Do you want to realize yourself in sports? Start working hard.

The motive for achievement is the desire to achieve new heights and improve performance. It manifests itself in the selection of difficult tasks and the desire to cope with them. Achieving success in any type of activity lies not so much in your skills and knowledge, but in the motivation to achieve.

Negative motivation is activity caused by the likelihood of troubles that may appear in the event of one’s own inaction. In this situation, the individual is driven to activity by the fear of problems and the desire to avoid them. How to motivate yourself to exercise? Take action.

Goal setting

So, you have decided to go in for sports, and you have the appropriate motivation and a certain motive for action.
But what is your goal? What do you want to achieve? It's time to talk about what a goal is and, in fact, goal setting. A goal is a visual image of the desired result, which determines the nature and direction of a person’s activity. A goal can be in the form of knowledge, an assumption, or even a feeling. In the psychological theory of activity, the goal in relation to the motive acts as its specific, visual form. The motivation for doing fitness in this case is the goal of looking like, for example, Jeff Seid (born: June 12, 1994, 22 years old). And a photograph of it can serve as a visual image to achieve the result (see photo).

Goal setting is the choice of a goal, with the determination of possible options for the course of events to manage the process of achieving it. Often, the process of choosing a goal is interpreted as a person’s understanding of his activities from the point of view of setting goals and achieving them by the most rational means.

If you combine these two terms into one, then simply put, it will sound like this.

Goal setting is a person’s desire to achieve a certain goal in the shortest possible time in the most effective way.

Now that you have added a very specific goal to your motivation and motive, you can begin to move towards achieving it, and for this to become possible, you need two conditions: determine your starting point and set your destination. You can't achieve what you want if you don't know exactly what you want. This is why it is very important to make your thoughts concrete. Motivation for sports should always be specific and have a clear form.

Result

In the end, of course, it will be he who is important. No one except you knows how much time, effort and money you spent on achieving it. No one knows what you went to and what you gave up to achieve it. We all know in principle what a result is, but let’s take a closer look at what it is and what it is.

Result is the final consequence of specific actions, expressed qualitatively or quantitatively. A possible end result could be advantage, benefit, value, or victory. That is, the result is what it all began for.

The ultimate goal of fitness training is to achieve a certain physical shape. It doesn't matter whether you exercise to gain muscle mass or to lose weight. It doesn’t matter what your motives are, moral or material, because you already know how to motivate yourself to train. Fitness and bodybuilding are body building. And here it is the achievement of the goal that you have set for yourself that plays a role.

You may have completely changed your lifestyle to achieve it. Perhaps you skipped classes at the institute in order to attend training. Perhaps you saved your last money to pay for a subscription to a gym or fitness club. You, of course, carefully kept a training diary, did not miss training in the rain, snow, or thunderstorm, did your best in training, constantly monitored your diet, refused the temptation to eat anything that you usually wouldn’t Allow me. You constantly followed the regime. We went to bed on time, completely exhausted after a hard day at school or work and an evening workout. You constantly went to the store for groceries, chose cereals, vegetables, fruits, meat, bread, etc. yourself. You refused to go to the cinema, theater or amusement park because you had to go to training. You have endured all sorts of statements addressed to you about the fact that nothing will work out for you. More than once you yourself were on the verge of a breakdown and were ready to give up everything, but then you again found the strength in yourself and moved on. You have experienced a lot of problems, you have endured, fallen and risen, gone through successes and failures, understood what victory and defeat are. And in the end, you have achieved the result you have been working towards for so long. You made the right choice. No matter what, you still remained faithful to your work and achieved a result that 90% of beginners will never achieve.

Best Quotes for Gym Motivation

“Love yourself enough to lead a healthy lifestyle.”
“When I lost all my excuses, I found my results.”
“Good things come to those who sweat.”
“The body achieves what the mind believes.”
“Making excuses burns zero calories per hour.”
“Nothing truly great has ever come from a comfort zone.”
“Someone busier than you is studying right now.”
“Don't limit your problems, challenge your limits.”
“You are the only one who can limit your greatness.”
“Work in silence. Let success be your noise.”
“Working out for an hour is 4% of your day. No excuses.”
"No pain no gain. Shut up and train.”
“If it doesn't challenge you, it won't change you.”
“Get rid of distractions. Feed your focus.”
“It's never too late and you're never too old to improve.”
“What seems impossible today will one day become your workout.”
“When you want to stop... think about why you started.”
"Calm down. And one day you won’t have to drag him in.”
“A year from now, you may regret that you started today.” — Karen Lamb
“Motivation is where you start. Habit is what keeps you moving forward.”
“Push yourself because no one else will do it for you.”
“Train crazy or stay the same.”
“The pain you feel today will be the strength you feel tomorrow.”
“When you feel like quitting, think about why you started.”
“Success begins with self-discipline.”
“Exercise is like telling your body, “You’re going to hate me for this, but you’ll thank me later.”
“There are no shortcuts to living your best life and becoming your best you.”
“The definition of a really good workout is when you hate it but love finishing it.”
“If you still look good at the end of your workout, you didn't train hard enough.”
“Your desire to change must be greater than your desire to remain the same.”
“Don't give up on your dreams, otherwise your dreams will give up on you.” — John Wooden
“Never give up on a dream just because it will take time to achieve. Time will pass anyway.”
“Your body can handle almost anything. It is your mind that you must convince.”
“Most people fail not because of a lack of desire, but because of a lack of commitment.” — Vince Lombardi
“I don't count my squats. I only start counting when it starts to hurt because they are the only ones who matter.”
“I'll beat her. I will train harder. I'll eat cleaner. I know her strengths. I've lost to her before, but not this time. She's going down. I have an advantage because I know her well. She's the old me."
“The only person you are destined to become is the person you choose to be.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson
“Of course it’s hard. It must be difficult. If it were easy, everyone would do it. What's hard is what makes it great.”
“Success is not always greatness. It's a matter of consistency. Consistent and hard work brings success. Greatness will come.”