Motivate yourself with little victories

Everyone is always talking about dedication but what they should really be talking about is motivation.  Dedication is just motivation realized consistently over time.  So how does one stay motivated to train and eat properly day in and day out.  I will share with you some of my secrets, after all I've been training for over 20 years, that's a lot of motivating.

1.  Have a coach:

Yes everyone should have a coach.  I run my programs past the other staff at The Spot Athletics and other trusted strength coaches.  This ensures that my program is inline with my goals.  Also, even though I can break anyone's technique down, that doesn't mean that mine doesn't need breaking down as well.  Without a coach you cannot get better as a lifter because you can't fix mistakes you don't know you have.

2. Have training partners:

Getting ready for your workout is a lot easier when you know you have someone waiting on you to get it started.  We train as a team during our down times here at The Spot and it ensures that all team members stay training hard and going after their goals.

3. You will not feel like training all the time:

Knowing this can be motivating.  I used to think I had to "feel" like training when I was young.  I also thought people always felt like training.  Then I realized that you don't feel like it all the time but if you do it any way, those are your most rewarding workouts.  No one wants to train every session, but the ones that do, will get the best results.

4.  Have daily goals:

It's great to say you want to be "ripped" or "toned" but those may be long term and general goals.  Set small daily goals like "I won't eat any junk food today".  Those goals give you an immediate sense of accomplishment and motivate you to reach other small goals.

5.  Surround yourself with positive people:

My grandpa used to say "if you are always swimming up stream, maybe you should change streams".    People either give energy or take it away from you and if you have negative people always stealing your energy it is much more difficult to stay motivated.  Surround yourself with positive people who share your goals and passions and you will find it much easier to stay motivated towards those goals.

I hope you can use these little tricks to stay as motivated as I have with training.  Please share these tips with your friends so that you can be the positive, motivating person in your group of friends.  Also, if you have fallen off the training wagon or just need some help getting pointed in the right direction, get ahold of us at The Spot Athletics and we will get you back motivated and going in the right direction.

Thanks,

Coach JL