Are you waiting to start working on your fitness goals because you aren’t “motivated”? Sorry, but that is the biggest mistake you can make.
You see, motivation does not just happen. You must create it.
Think about it. The root word of motivation is “motive”. Ask yourself, “Why do I want to lose weight and get fit?”
That reason must be emotional for you – not your mama, your daddy, your husband, your wife, or your doctor. It must be important to you and emotional for you.
Logic will only get you so far. The part of your brain that controls your daily actions responds best to emotion and to pictures.
So to create motivation, you must give it what it wants:
1. A good emotional reason to take action now
2. A clear picture of the benefits you will get when you do.
For example, my emotional reason for getting in shape was because my grandmother died of a stroke at age 47. I saw that I was headed in the same direction. I missed knowing my grandmother growing up and I did not want to rob my loved ones of future opportunities to enjoy my presence.
I knew I had to protect my health so that I could fulfill all my days…and make them good days as much as possible.
That’s the emotion part. The second part comes from a definition God gave me one morning of the word “power”.
He defined power as this to me: “Force directed toward an expected end.” Our God is one who declares the end from the beginning (Isaiah 46:10).
When you get fit, what is your expected end? How would your life experience as a fit person change versus how it is now? Write it down. Make it big, real, close, and present tense.
Write it using vivid word pictures so that you can see it and feel the pleasure of being fit right now.
Finally, take a step toward that picture every day. That is the key to using your power. Force yourself to take one step every day, no matter how small it is.
Take an extra glass of water. Eat an apple. Eat a green vegetable. Lift some weights. Whatever you can do, do that!
One of my favorite quotes is this one from John Maxwell, “Nothing will change unless you change something you do every day.”
Recap: To get motivated to get fit, first define why getting fit is important to you. Next, create a picture of your expected end when you get fit. Finally direct force at that picture by taking action every single day until that picture becames reality.
And when you do that, you WILL get results!
So what is your motivation for getting fit and what is your expected end? Post it in the comments below. I’d love to hear about it.
Be blessed with health, healing, and wholeness,
Kimberly Taylor
Author/Christian Life Coach of the Take Back Your Temple program
P.S. When it comes to weight loss, do you often know what you should do but have a hard time doing it?
I struggled with this issue on my own weight loss journey, but I discovered that “Nothing is different until you think differently.”
The value of the Take Back Your Temple program is that you will learn how to think differently through using Biblical keys to overcome obstacles. You’ll discover how to win the Spiritual and mental battle that often causes us to become inconsistent and get off-track on our weight loss journey.
Join a community of like-minded Christians losing weight and keep it off.
Click here to learn more about the Take Back Your Temple program
Good morning Kim, I’m 73 years old and still fighting the weight battle. I’m in my 3rd goaround with God’s Word is Food. I’m not losing much weight, BUT I am gaining a bigger victory and that is my spiritual life is growing and overcoming so much negativism in my mind and heart–daily battles. I start each day new and fresh and thanking God for yet another day.
There are three Christian women not in my church that have had such profound influences on my life; Anne Graham Lotz, Beth Moore and now my newest heroine Kim Floyd. Jan Foreman is my pastor’s wife and she too is an awesome influence. I will continue to fight the good fight. Also the all of the blog entries under “Does God care about your weight?” I really thank all of those women and their on-target comments.
Thank you again for your leadership and inspiration in this timely, all-too-consuming topic.
Hi Carole, I am really touched by your comment. Thank you! Yeah, I know how hard it can be to tear down mental strongholds, which are behind negative behaviors. Those negative ways of thinking have probably been with you for years, maybe decades. It’s only by learning about what God’s word says that you can recognize what thought patterns don’t agree with that and then take those thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ as the bible instructs. I applaud you because it takes courage to fight those daily battles. And yet, the quality of your life is at stake. I can’t think of a more worthy battle to fight!
Hang it there. Don’t forget – the end of the story is already written. We win! So keep in mind that you are going to win as long as you don’t give up.