Understanding Your Own Motivation For Exercise
Everyone is different and chooses to exercise for different reasons, so rather than sharing my own motivators, I am sharing how you can understand your personal motivation when it comes to exercise.
Let’s start with self-control, or the ability to regulate and alter your responses in order to avoid undesirable behaviors, increase desirable ones, and achieve long-term goals. It’s an important part of exercise! Self-control can be separated into two separate categories:
1) Intrinsic Motivation: Motivated by the self
People with intrinsic motivation, or internal motivation, for exercise engage in exercise because they either:
Realize something is good for their future or fits with the identity to which they aspire
Example: Individuals who are having a hard time keeping up with their children decide to exercise because it will give them the endurance and strength to play with their little ones outside.
They genuinely love to do it
Example: Individuals who find yoga calming and recognize the psychological benefits choose to do it because it makes them happy.
2) Extrinsic Motivation: Motivated by external factors
People with extrinsic motivation, or external motivation, for exercise engage in exercise because they either:
Have a desire to change an external factor of themselves (appearance, body shape)
Example: Individuals who want to change their body size by losing 20 pounds.
Have a reward system system set up
Example: Individuals tell themselves they can have “X” after they workout or reach a fitness goal (Think: Dinner at a nice restaurant, a new article of clothing, etc…)
I love the feeling of jogging around new cities, countries, and seeing the world on my feet :)
Location: The French Riviera
In order for you to truly find a motivation that sticks and keep with your exercise routine, you must find an intrinsic motivator. Many studies surrounding people who have struggled with motivators cite that the motivators were unsuccessful because they were external factors. Why does this happen? Over time, individuals will lose motivation because they are no longer interested in the reward or they prioritize other rewards first.
So… How can you find internal motivation? This is the key part!
Try: Set Up an Environment That Supports Your Growing Motivation
Find something you like (walking is a good start- put on a podcast or your favorite playlist!)
Decide to stick with something for at least two weeks (when you get better and your self-efficacy increases, you will likely enjoy it more)
When this does’t work, experiment! Just because the first pick wasn’t “the one,” hop to something else and give it a 2 week try.
Try: Journaling
Make a list of the things that your strength and physical ability allow you to do. Next to this list, make another list of what a stronger you could achieve.
As you reflect on your own motivation for exercise, what thoughts come to mind?