What is motivation exactly?

At some point, we’ve all been fired up to work out:

• Perhaps you watched an inspiring video and you’re excited to hit the gym.
• If you just signed up for a race or purchased a new training program, you may feel eager to start your new workouts.
• Maybe you’re one of the millions of people who, upon reflecting about the last year, feel a strong push to make changes on January 2.
• Motivation can also come from a negative experience, like not being able to button your favorite pair of jeans.

Many of us prefer to be in the right mood before we work out. If we “don’t feel like it,” we may not go to the gym today. Sometimes, when we don’t want to work out but know we should, we search for a bit of inspiration. If we can just find the right video, story, or transformation photo, then we will find the energy to drag our butts to the gym.

The problem with relying on motivation is that motivation is fleeting. It’s a feeling, and feelings come and go. Allowing our actions to be dictated by our feelings gets us into all kinds of trouble because we can’t truly control our feelings, only our responses to those feelings.

We need some way to ensure action even when we are dealing with a negative emotion or lack a positive one.

If you constantly seek motivation, the things that once inspired you will eventually lose their effectiveness. Those videos of impressive physical feats, tear-jerker personal posts, or jaw-dropping before and after photos? Eh, not doing it for you anymore. Now you have to keep chasing some new and novel source of motivation. Eventually you become numb to all of this stuff and still don’t feel like going to the gym.

Motivation feels good in the moment, but it can be counterproductive to long term success. We start to crave this good feeling and associate it with working out. On days we don’t feel motivated, inspired, or energized, it is  even harder to drag ourselves to the gym.

The solution? Use momentum

Think back to your high school physics class when you learned about inertia. Inertia is a property of matter that states that a body in motion tends to stay in motion, while a body at rest tends to stay at rest. This has many implications beyond its literal scientific application.

Getting started is always the hardest part of making a change. Once you’ve gotten the ball rolling, you’ll have a much easier time sticking with your new routine.

We are all creatures of habit, and habit can work for or against us. The choice is up to you. Make a realistic plan and don’t allow yourself to give up as you wade through the challenging first steps. Put your gym time on your calendar as an important meeting that cannot be skipped. After a couple weeks of practicing and keeping your commitments, your new habits and routines will start to become more automatic.

Momentum helps keep us going so we don’t skip the gym just because we aren’t feeling it. We may not feel inspired to work out, but we go anyway because we’ve been doing so well and don’t want to stop. This is the power of building momentum – the positive effects of your own actions take the place of fickle and fleeting feelings of motivation.

Our core identities start to change as we build momentum. When we consistently keep our commitments, we begin to look at ourselves in a different light. Instead of being a person who always skips the gym, we gradually become a person who never misses a workout. You can accelerate this process by deciding to live as if you’re already the person you want to become. Ask yourself, “what would a fit person do in this situation?” “If I never struggled to stick to an exercise routine, what decisions would I make today?” Then act accordingly.

Read More: How Taking Action Changed My Life (And How You Can Do the Same)

What to do when motivation doesn’t strike

Here’s my quick and easy advice for what to do when you don’t feel motivated to go the gym: do it anyway.

Each time you show up you build positive momentum, making it less and less likely you’ll skip workouts in the future. The majority of your workouts will feel pretty mediocre, and that’s perfectly ok. Just show up and do the best you can.

There are, of course, legitimate reasons to skip a workout. If you’re sick, it’s in everyone’s best interest for you to stay home. Emergencies, last-minute meetings, and unavoidable changes of plans happen. However, when you find yourself about to skip the gym, honestly consider whether you have a real reason not to train or if you’re just feeling uninspired. Consistency trumps everything else in the long run. It may seem harmless to skip a workout when you’re feeling lazy, but over time skipping chips away at your results.

If you find you are consistently unmotivated, you may need to reassess your training. Many people feel pressured to chase goals which don’t resonate with them or align with their values. Sit down and think about what is truly important to you. If your current workouts aren’t getting you where you want to go, it may be time to change course. Make sure your workout program is realistic and appropriate for your schedule and your fitness level.

If you’re still struggling to stick to a training routine, find some extra accountability. It’s much harder to bail on the gym when a trainer or workout buddy is there waiting for you.

Lastly, make sure you’re spending plenty of time doing things you like. Training should ultimately be fun and enjoyable on some level. If you don’t enjoy your workouts, you won’t stick with them for long.

If you want more tools, tips, and strategies to help you dominate your health and fitness goals, sign up for my email list here. I’ll send you my 4C System, a free 5-day email course teaching you to become a more consistent exerciser (without overly relying on motivation).