How Motivation Works
As a personal trainer, I get many questions and a lot of whining. The most frequently asked question from my clients is, “How can I get ripped? I want to sculpt my body and put on muscle.” The most frequent complaint I hear goes something like this: “That weight is too heavy,” or, “I might not be able to lift that weight,” or even, “that weight hurts when I lift it.”
Hurts when you lift it? GOOD! What do you think, lifting weights is painless? Do you think it feels comfortable? NO WAY! It’s supposed to be hard, painful, and uncomfortable. Use these factors to become emotionally charged!
Many of us have moved away from the tried and true principles of exercise. We want to find a “magic” program that we can do forever. We think we’ll see results this way. Well, I hate to say this but you’re wrong! Routines need to be changed frequently, and hard exercises must be used.
Have you ever talked to someone that’s struggling to gain muscle? Most of the time, if you ask them about their training, they’ll tell you they’ve been doing the same routine for the last year (or longer)! We all know that our bodies adapt to the workouts we submit them to, but how many of us actually apply this knowledge?
If we did, we would understand that one routine isn’t going to cut it. We would realize that, to see continual progress, we would need to keep changing our routines. And why shouldn’t we — exercise shouldn’t be boring. I don’t know about you, but doing one routine for the rest of my life would get pretty boring.
Let’s Not Overcomplicate Things!
I’m not saying you need to create a detailed program that involves algorithms or some complicated theory. Just start changing your routines every month or every two months. It could be simple changes like the order of exercises, sets, reps, rest time, the exercises themselves, or which body parts you train together.
When you select your exercises, try to choose the ones you don’t like. Getting back to the hard exercises such as squats, bench press, shoulder press, and deadlifts — the ones you don’t like — is what’s going to give us those results we try so hard to achieve. The question to ask yourself isn’t, “what exercises do I like?” But rather, “what exercises are hard?” It’s time to start getting out of your comfort zone.
We learn in a state of discomfort; however, our bodies are programmed to seek out comfort. We want to be comfortable. It feels good, it’s easy, and there aren’t any surprises. However, we achieve, succeed, and move forward through the discomfort. Think about it. One percent of the United States’ population controls 95 percent of the country’s wealth.
That’s because the other 99 percent of the people aren’t willing to become uncomfortable. Getting success, building wealth, and building a great body isn’t comfortable. The 99 percent are stuck in their routine — their way of life. It’s time to embrace discomfort as a sign that you’re moving forward. It’s time to become emotionally charged.
If you’re comfortable, it’s likely you’re coasting through life — doing just enough to get by. Changing and creating something new isn’t comfortable, but that slight discomfort is a sign that you’re changing — you’re moving closer to success.
Think back to when you learned how to ride a bike. Getting on the bike was scary because you had never done it before. You were afraid of falling. Most of us had parents to help us by holding the bike until we got up to speed and rode the bike. At that point, riding a bike was no big deal.
Changing your life is no different. Starting is scary because you haven’t made this change before and might be afraid of failing. But, by staying with it and accomplishing your goals your new lifestyle becomes second nature. By pushing your body through the point of discomfort, you will grow and transform. You will see the results you know are possible.
No One Said This Was an Easy Game
In fact, if it was easy, everyone would have a perfect body. You and I are daring to be different — to go that extra mile and push ourselves where others aren’t willing to go. I know this can be scary. That’s ok. Use your fear to fuel your emotional charge and overcome any obstacles. Demand success from yourself because no one else will. In fact, some might want you to fail. Who cares what they think? Ignore and show them how powerful you are. Show them you are in control of your life.
Once you start living outside of your comfort zone, you will start achieving much more success — not only with your physique but in life too. You see, we limit ourselves from success because we don’t want to try something new or something risky. It scares us. We haven’t done it before and that makes it uncomfortable.
However, by going outside of your comfort zone (even on a micro-level such as fitness) you will become used to trying new things and taking risks. Why is this important? Well, for starters, you’ve just separated yourself from most of the nation. You’re also going to experience amazing things that you otherwise wouldn’t.
Each day, start doing at least one thing that makes you uncomfortable. Take risks, do things you normally wouldn’t, and stop dismissing activities and people that you think you won’t enjoy. You will grow a little more each day and before you know it, you will create a physique— and life — you never thought possible.
