Are you ready to be motivated?

by Phill Wright

My aim for this blog is that by the end, your answer to the title will be a resounding yes. If it's already yes, then I aim to help create an even more powerful yes.

I've not always been sporty or into fitness. As a young lad, I was never the most able on the sports field. However, I did possess an ability to push myself more than that of those around me. I remember doing the 400 meters in secondary school and coming second out of 8 competitors. On ability, there is no way I should have come second in that race but those with the talent seemingly didn't share that determination. I remember breathing so heavy on the final straight that I sounded like I'd just escaped from a smoke chamber. Teachers were a little worried that I was having some sort of asthmatic episode but after a couple of minutes, I was fine. (although admittedly it look a little longer for the redness in my cheeks to normalise)

As I said though, my childhood wasn't super sporty and it was only in my 20's that fitness became more of a passion. My school and student days were much more 'normal' although all school and progress reports shared one common theme...'Phillip is persistent'.

In NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) terms, two types of motivational directions are identified. They suggest that people are either 'toward' motivated or 'away' motivated. 'Toward' motivated would be someone working towards a goal, let's say their first 10km road race. However, someone wanting to avoid diabetes would be considered as 'away' motivated. In my mind, motivated toward is a stronger and more positive driving force as in this situation, an individual would be looking and focussing forward and ahead in time.

Irrespective of this, I believe that there is much more to how we as people are motivated and ultimately, I see it is a choice, completely under our control. We decide how much effort we apply to tasks, how organised we are, how much we seek assistance when something is alien or taxing.

So how can you start motivating yourself? Now these aren't tips, they're choices. Pillars that have helped me overcome obstacles and I completely believe they apply for us all and could make a huge difference for you:

• Set your goals - It doesn't need to be world conquering. This is a goal for you, no one else, you! Be SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, time bound) with it but also, check it weekly. If you're organised, be sure to schedule week on week how you'll stay on target. If you're not a diary person, just revisit once per week and decide how you're going to stay on track that week. Do it now though, don't read any further until you've set your goal and make a note of it.
• Learn to be resilient - Just like the time you learnt to walk or ride a bike, learn not to give up until you get there. It doesn't matter how long it takes you or how many attempts, you will get there.
• Start stretching your imagination - I'm not assuming that you haven't challenged yourself with your goal but in my experience, we tend to be a little cagey when setting goals. I want you to answer this question "Do you know what you're capable of?". Do you have any idea of where your potential lies? If I'm honest, I don't know where mine is but I most certainly will continue to step further towards it. Just because you haven't done it before doesn't mean it can't be done. As creatures, our instincts are to move forwards and we're at our happiest when we're achieving, it gives us a sense of purpose, self belief and self esteem.
• Only listen to self talk if it offers you something positive - Unlike popular belief, self talking isn't a sign of madness. Well, if it is then we're all clinically nuts. Unsurprisingly, many people charge their self-comments with doubt and criticism, also known as limiting beliefs. If you're telling yourself that you can't do something, answer this "How the heck do you possibly know that you can't?, have you tried it?, tried it again? and not given up until you've figured out how to?" The answer is that you can. Thomas Edison discovered some incredible inventions but it also took him hundreds, almost thousands of failed attempts to get there. In fact, his thoughts express this point beautifully "Many of life's failures are individuals who did not realise how close they were to success when they gave up". 
• Be what you expect from others - In the world we live, there are so many distractions, commitments and pressures that our sense of identity can be pulled, pushed, twisted, tied in knots and forgetting who we are is so easily done. If you expect and enjoy kindness from others, be kind. If you expect helpfulness from others, be helpful. If you expect love from others, be loving. What has this got to do with motivation? Being more in line with your own values will help your sense of happiness, purpose and help you stay settled in the world you build around you.

It does take continual effort but like anything in life, the more you do it, the easier it becomes and the less you need to think about it. 

I return to my original point, are you ready to be motivated?

Get Results By Being Deliberate

Phill Wright, Director of Creating Chaos

No one likes wasting time. I am certainly no fan of willing time away with little outcome and I'm guessing you're of a similar mind.

In the time I've spent in the fitness industry, there has been a huge influx in the abundance of information, guidance, support and available services which is fantastic for consumers. Ultimately, more choice is available and the likelihood of people finding something they enjoy is much greater.

So why are there still so many people committing to varying types of fitness and clearly not getting the results they desire? Personally, I don't think it has much to do with actually what they're doing but more how they're doing it. I would most certainly suggest that some methods of conditioning are more effective than others but even more important than that is the approach, the way in which people select their state and execute exercise.

When you look into it, athletes, those with seemingly unobtainable bodies and levels of fitness do many similar exercises to most gym goers...squats, presses, pulls etc. Ok, the programme athletes have will be written most likely by an expert but the most significant difference is that they take it seriously. Every single repetition of every single exercise is done to the best of their ability, often quickly and with significant load but importantly, they completely focus on doing the exercise.

So here's a couple of pointers to help you get more from every ounce of exercise you do:

1. Before exercising, prepare your session and rid yourself of as many destractions as possible. (put your mobile on aircraft mode if necessary)
2. Challenge yourself. Your body benefits from exercise by adapting to the challenges that it faces. If there are no challenges, the benefits will be less.
3. Commit to improve your ability to execute the exercise(s). No matter how many times you've done it, there is always room for improvement.
4. Enjoy how much self belief you'll feel knowing that every minute you spend exercising is completely worthwhile and helping you achieve your goals

NB. With the above, I'm not dismissing the importance of enjoying exercise or social sports. This is crucial and if you don't enjoy it, try something else