Fitness Slump: How Do You Stay Motivated?
photo by timtak
Maybe if I buy some supercool shoes I’d want to work out.
I’m not a liar. (OK, I lied to The Man about my love—or tolerance—of sports when we first started dating. But whatever.) My main point here is that I won’t lie to you. I started this blog to journal the ups and downs of living with knee pain. I wanted to mark the fitness and nutrition and emotional aspects of living healthy. I set out to chronicle my journey through PRP, PT, and whatever other acronyms come my way. But…
I have to admit: I’ve put off posting about my knees on purpose. That’s because it’s my fault they’re sore. I’ve skipped the gym for an embarrassingly long time. Sure, I had some good reasons at first: PRP, a chest cold, a 10-day headache, packing up my old place, and moving into my new place. But I haven’t gone back since moving even though I’m fully capable. Frankly, I don’t feel like it.
Back in the day—you know, summer of ’09—I looked forward to exercising after work. Whether I’d hit up the gym or the couch wasn’t a question; I came home, changed, then got The Man and myself over to the gym faster than you could say “dinnertime.” Now, after being out of practice, the motivation isn’t there. I’ve been meaning to get back to the gym for weeks, but somehow everything else in life has bumped the gym to the bottom of my Must Do Or Else list—things like unpacking boxes, organizing new drawers and cabinets, researching closet shelves, and, um, relaxing.
I’m hoping (crossing my fingers on both hands, which is making typing a little hard) this post will shame me into getting me to the gym. As in, I can’t face you tomorrow with a big, fat lie. So, I’m going tonight and I’ll write about my experience tomorrow. There—I’m locked in. (I hope.)
I hope I can kick-start my motivation simply by forcing myself to just go. But how do you get out of an I-don’t-wanna-exercise funk? Do you have any tips to get motivated?
5 comments
Knee pain was the reason I sought out a personal trainer and I’m so glad that I did. Knowing that this person takes the time each week not only to train me one-on-one, but also to put together a personalized program motivates me to want to do the work between sessions. I’ve gained so much strength in the muscles or my legs that work to support the knee joint. This has decreased the pain to the point where it really is not even there.
I hope you’ll find what motivates you and start back on that path. When your knees hurt, there is a physiological reason and it’s only going to get worse with inactivity. (Hope that doesn’t sound harsh. I just lived with it too long and hate to see others go through it too.)
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Tracey Reply:
December 8th, 2009 at 7:41 pm
Karen, thanks for stopping by. You weren’t too harsh … it’s true! I started noticing my knee was hurting more the less I worked out. I did go to the gym tonight (yay!) and even though I’m so much further behind where I was only a few months ago, I’m looking forward to feeling the effects of stronger muscles.
I’m hesitant to use a personal trainer, though. Is yours trained in physical therapy and injury treatment, too? I’ve heard many trainers suggest using the knee extension machine–a huge no no for knees–which makes me wary of training with someone whose exercises could do more harm.
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I change up what I’m doing when an exercise funk kicks in. I will also do very short (10 minute) intervals on three different cardio machines to get myself to workout when I really don’t want to. And just thinking about all the benefits of exercise can help keep me on track too. Oh, and a new mix of workout tunes never hurts.
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Tracey Reply:
December 9th, 2009 at 10:12 am
So true! That’s what got me to the gym last night!
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So true, I think that many of us go through these slumps. I guarantee that once you go to the gym after two or three times, I think you’ll get back into it. At least that’s how it works for me. Once I start going, I get addicted to the endorphin rush of working out. Try treating yourself with a magazine or a special piece of fruit, or another small item you can look forward to after your first couple times.
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