One way to keep you motivation fresh and active is to examine your intentions. When you have a certain intention, you expect things to work out that way, and you make a commitment to see the intention through. Think about spending a few hours running errands: you intend to get certain tasks done, like finally replenishing your supply of Post-It Notes, stopping by the store to pick up the trash bags you forgot, or shopping for new socks. When you accomplish all your tasks, you feel successful and satisfied.

When you are trying to create motivation to exercise, examine what your intentions are. Do you intend to fit into those jeans again? Do you intend to touch your toes, or tie your shoes more easily? Do you intend to walk up the stairs without losing your breath? Set your intentions broadly. Don’t specify how you will accomplish your intentions; just describe what will happen when you do.

Intentions need reminders, so they stay front and center in your consciousness. Since you have new Post-Its now, you can write notes to yourself! In your bathroom, at your desk, in your car, even in your lunchbag, remind yourself of what your intentions are for yourself and what they mean for the small choices you make every day.

When you see a note, when you see an example of what your intention can bring to you, or whenever you think about it, take a minute and imagine what it will feel like to live your intention. Use all your senses to picture it. When you are faced with the choice- to exercise, or not to exercise- call up your image of what life will be like when you have fulfilled your commitment to your intention. You woke up early for no apparent reason and now you have time for a 15 minute jog, but you’re still sleepy? You had a tough day at work, and could just go home instead of to your pilates class? The elevator is closer than the stairs? Imagine your intention- what do you intend for yourself? Making these choices are what it takes to realize your intention.

Your jog feels good with your new socks. Pilates makes you feel great with all that breathing and hard work. Your body feels better after you use it. Add that knowledge to your intentions. And keep your new trash bags close by, because no matter what you intend, you’ll probably be donating some oversized clothes pretty soon.

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“I had a brief debate with myself about working in a three-mile jog. I’d had to skip my morning run…I usually run at 6:00 when I’m still half-asleep and my resistance is down…Before I thought too much about it, I went up the spiral stairs to change my clothes.
…If I jog for ten minutes and really really hate it, I can turn around and come back. No shame, no blame. Usually by the time the first ten minutes have elapsed, I’m into the swing of it and enjoying myself.” These are the thoughts of Kinsey Millhone, Private Eye, in R is for Ricochet by Sue Grafton.

“Come back and take a class with us! It’s only a half hour.” “I know. I know I should. But I just don’t want to!” This was a conversation I had last Thursday with one of the staff at the clinic where I’m teaching mat pilates.

How does someone get from the latter mindset, (I know, but…) to the former (I just will)? How is motivation formed? This isn’t just the question, “What motivates you?”, it’s a dig into the (maybe not so distant) past to ask, “How did you get motivated in the first place? What changed?”

I have a good friend, a life-long runner. She just always has. She did in high school, it got her a scholarship to college, she has continued since she graduated. I can understand that long-standing habit. But how do people, who are so ingrained in sedentary ways, make an enormous shift?

I’ve been trying to find out an answer, by searching myself and reading all sorts of things. I came to the realization accidentally; I felt I was just fine, then when I suddenly found myself teaching pilates I also suddenly found my ‘just fine’ was actually getting better. Who’d a thunk it? But I know lots of people who have other things to do all day, who can’t quite get there.

Here’s one thing I’ve learned: People like praise, and they like company. Getting your efforts noticed and encouraged makes you more likely to continue. Also, this positive reinforcement doesn’t just need to come from an instructor; social connections made between classmates can create friendly competition, just what many people need to jumpstart them on the hard days. The lesson from this is: Join a class! Get responsible for other people, and get them responsible for you, by being socially engaged with the people you exercise with. Pilates, walking or running or biking, water aerobics, whatever!

If you’ve already got a partner or a group in mind, great!. Make a deal with a friend. If you know they really need to exercise, but won’t do it without you, doesn’t that give you more incentive, or MOTIVATION, to get out there? Can your need for them give them motivation? You’ve just accepted some responsibility for helping them, so make sure you team up with people you can count on, and make sure YOU’RE someone who can be counted on, too. And if a day comes when your friend can’t make it, do it yourself anyway to show everyone, yourself included, that it can be done.

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