How to Stay Motivated — Finding Inspiration

There are some days where I find it really hard to get my butt in gear and get a workout in, other days I can’t be bothered to pack my lunch for the next day or any healthy snacks and I end up ordering something to go that is marginally less good for me. Some days I feel like my life is never going to go anywhere (melodramatic much?!). There was a time that I would let these days turn into a week and sometimes…months (eek!). My motivation was extremely lacking and as the days went by I would get more and more hopeless because obviously I was so far gone that it would be too hard to get back on track. That’s when my self esteem would tank and it was just an all around bad situation.

That is the story of my life. Doing good for a bit and then falling off that wagon several times a year! I’m not saying that I have it all figured out or that I will never fall off the wagon again. Along the way though, I have picked up a few tips to keep these feelings of inadequacy to only a few hours instead of days.

1. Join a fitness accountability group on Facebook – I never thought being a part of a group full of strangers all supporting each other on their individual health and fitness journeys would be helpful at all…oh how wrong I was! These incredible women (and some men!) who have never met me and have only gotten to know me through little snippets of my life that I post to the group are so supportive! They post so much inspirational material that if I am having a bad day I know I can go to the group and get a dose of empowerment. If you’re not already part of one you can find one or start one with your friends and celebrate each other’s goals!
2. Read your favorite blog or watch your favorite YouTuber – I’ve wanted to launch a blog for as long as I can remember. On those days when I felt like it was never going to happen because I wasn’t good enough I turned to those blogs that inspired me to start one in the first place! My favorites range in topics from self love, to beauty, to lifestyle, to food, and anything and everything in between! Here are a few of the ones I read regularly: The Anna Edit, Gala Darling, A Beautiful Mess, Niomi Smart, How Sweet It Is, Half Baked Harvest, In The Frow, Poppy Deyes, Carly Rowena, and Poor Little It Girl. Enjoy!!
3. Talk to a friend – This I find extremely helpful! I have a friend that I meet up with every Thursday after work for coffee. I always leave this hangout feeling energized and inspired. It is a really good feeling having someone close to you that you can bounce ideas off of and share your fears and frustrations with. Someone you know won’t judge you and will give you constructive criticism when you need it.
4. Go for a walk – I get a lot of clarity when I go walking. There is something about getting outside in the fresh air that helps right things in your mind and put them in perspective. I walk with my dad every Saturday morning and we NEVER run out of things to talk about. I bounce ideas off him or I talk to him about little frustrations I am having and he’ll talk to me about what is going on in his life. You can do this with the friend I was talking about in #3 and kill two birds with one stone…catching up and some exercise! Endorphins can really turn a frown upside down!
5. Write your goals down…again – Or you can reread them! You were inspired at the time you wrote them originally. I find that those feelings tend to return when I read over what I want to accomplish. I actually try to read over my goals once a week and find it does the trick to remind me what I am working hard for.

How do you stay motivated?