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2007/04/25, 04:05 PM
Well something odd has been happening to my motivation this week - I just can?t get the urge to go to the gym. Add to that I seem to be having more urges to eat junk than the last couple of months and something seems to be up.
I?m not sure if it?s a result of the way I?m tackling the challenge of getting into shape. At the end of january I set off without really knowing anything. I didn?t know how to do what I wanted to do and I didn?t know what I wanted to do any more than ?lose weight?. My time here has transformed that ignorance and allowed me to educate myself.
I filled my brain with as much info about nutrition and exercise as I could, probably became a bore with it to those around me and used that enthusiasm to put it all into practice. End result, 24lbs lost and inches all over reduced. I achieved one of my goals in taking up martial arts, and lots of people made comments about how great I was looking.
Now here I am halfway through the process (I estimate another 20lbs to go) and the comments are reducing as people get used to the new look. The progress seems to be slowing a little and I achieved one of my bigger life-goals. I suppose it?s the fitness equivalent of climbing a mountain, cresting the peak then looking up and realising you still have another peak to climb.
So I decided to give myself a break from the gym this week. I?ve been going 6 days a week for 3 months, maybe I exhausted my willpower for now? My routine isn?t firing me up, my goals seem fuzzy, and the end seems so far away. I?m going to spend the next couple of days working out the next goal, putting together a new routine and recharging my motivation batteries.
I?m not going to continue my life's challenge by thinking I am halfway to a big target, I?m going to take stock and go for a new, refined target.
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2007/04/25, 05:55 PM
I completely understand what you are saying.
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A morning without coffee is like something without something else.
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2007/04/25, 06:00 PM
I think you have the right idea. I have not worked out yet this week but not due so much to lack of motivation...my body was crying for recovery time and I decided I should listen. Maybe it is something similar for you...don't feel bad about not going...use it as a time to regroup. Your initial enthusiasm may be starting to wear off, which is normal, a new goal or approach can rekindle your enthusiasm. Maybe change to a workout that isn't six days a week for a little while to change things up.
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2007/04/25, 10:05 PM
Jon... you deserve a break! You have worked hard and made your 1st goal. Take a break let your body and mind recover then back at it. We all need a break every now and then.
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My Catahoula did it.
I saw a book titled \"Sex for Dummies\" and wondered why
anyone would teach dumb people how to reproduce?
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2007/04/25, 10:28 PM
jon I am there with ya bud I took off last week and broke diet mainly due to other concerns I have now joined a gym and worked out with my bud and seem to have remotivated me
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2007/04/26, 08:30 AM
I had the same problem. I was overtraining, lost motivation and enthusiasm. Taking a week off is the best thing to do.....just make sure you go back after that week.
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2007/04/26, 08:40 AM
6 days a week for 3 months you definetly need and deserve a break. Good luck when you fire it back up.
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Those who want tolerance must be tolerant to intolerance.
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2007/04/26, 10:30 AM
My problem is finding the motivation and desire to get back at it when I take a break...I've been on a much to long hiatus...I'll go for runs and hit the weights...if I'm lucky once a week...for 2 months now I have lacked the desire to hit it hard...taking a break is always a good idea...and needed...just beware of the wanting to stay on a break feeling...
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2007/04/26, 10:45 AM
jonshez - everyone goes through these times of demotivation or lack of motivation.
take a week off (you will find you are eventually restless and itching to get back to the gym) when you are ready, set some new goals for yourself and get back into the mix.
There is a psychological let-dwon that occurs after achieveing a major goal - which is why we need to set new goals. It is good to get to the top of the mountain, appreciate how awesome it is and then see a different, more rugged mountain and think - well - there it is - a bigger mountain, a harder terrain and gear up to attack that next goal.
Enjoy your week off, relax and do some recreational things like walking with your wife, biking, swimming, nothing to strenuous.
You are doing so well, don't let this become a tumble back down that first mountian, just think of it as reestablishing a base camp, restocking supplies, checking your gear and getting prepared for the next climb.:)
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Permanence, perseverance and persistence in spite of all obstacles, discouragements, and impossibilities: It is this, that in all things distinguishes the strong soul from the weak.
Thomas Carlyle
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2007/04/26, 12:18 PM
I've had a little setback with my appetite this week. I decided to let it go and start up again next week. We had to practice for a big evaluation (13-hour shifts) and I was getting up at 1 am to keep it going. At least I can sleep in till 3 am tomorrow. But because of all the chaos at work (my medical facility is also being inspected) I am having difficulty getting a workout readjustment. Maybe end of May will work. Hold up until then.
Maybe when you regroup, you can shake your routine up a bit too!
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2007/04/26, 12:23 PM
Thanks everyone for your support and suggestions.
Amy, you're exactly right. It's not exactly base camp (that is back down there in the mist!) but it is time to regroup and prepare for the next ascent.
Jon
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2007/05/02, 04:42 AM
Ok, that's weird.
Took a week off from the gym, and probably ate (what I thought was) less well. Maybe added around 300 calories per day extra. After a 3 week plateau where the scales hardly moved from 215-216 lbs, this morning I'm down to 213lbs.
My gut feeling is that maybe I was eating too little, but I'm concerned that I might be misreading the signs.
I've got a review with a trainer at the gym next week, going to change my routine round and make sure I'm using some new equipment and doing some new things. Should be interesting.
Not enjoying this period of blurgh.
Jon
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