How do you pump yourself up to go hard?

[allthingsarebecomenew]

I’ve been making it into the gym somewhat regularly for about 6 months which is fantastic for me, but I’m barely getting stronger and I think (know) it’s because I just don’t have the motivation to like… try hard.

I know motivation is a fleeting thing and I need to just do it but, as previously mentioned, it’s so HARD.

How do yall pump yourselves up to try harder than a half-ass workout? It matters that I’m now working out in the morning before work, which contributes majorly to how little motivation I have, but I just don’t have the time to go after work (or technically I do but I like to have a relaxing evening after work/chores are done) i used to work out midday which was perfect but no longer an option for Me.

Edit: I’ve gotten tons of great feedback and here’s what I have decided to do

1. Start using my husbands noise cancelling headphones/buy my own— everyone concurs that music is the best motivator and right now my headphones aren’t noise cancelling, so I hear a combo of my music, the loud ass gym music, and gym noises. I think noise cancelling will help me get into my playlist better
2. Maybe try pre-workout? Gotten this suggestion a lot!
3. Eat better before gym
4. Get a solid program— I’m on a program now, but I may need to find one that’s a better fit where I don’t feel like skipping exercises every time I work out
5. Don’t be too hard on myself— I’m still in the “getting consistent” phase of working out, so I think it’s ok for me to not worry too much about how hard I’m pushing. At least for a little while longer

 

[txlove]

@allthingsarebecomenew Try doing one set to total failure a session. You don’t need to do that every set or every session, but I find that myself or my clients are lacking the motivation in the gym, it’s due to complacency. To break that, we do one set to total failure, on whatever lift they or myself chooses. That really exposes how far you can go, and allows you to recalibrate your exercises to a higher intensity. Lots of other good advice here, but I didn’t see this bit. Hope it helps!

 

[dayofgrace]

@txlove gonna try this in this coming week - i’ve been interested recently in training to failure but i feel like a lot of the people i see promote it are much farther developed than me/doing bodybuilding fitness when i am just not up to that yet. i really like the idea of rotating and doing one set everyday! so ty for the inspiration i am excited to see how much i can push

 

[allthingsarebecomenew]

@txlove I really like this advice. I think it will help me to know that I at least did ONE thing that day that tested my limits. I think I’ll start implementing this, thanks!

 

[struggler89]

@allthingsarebecomenew I think about things that make me angry. Maybe not a great way to motivate but it feels cathartic.

 

[brianb6885]

@allthingsarebecomenew Sounds like you’ve gotten great advice so far especially about music to motivate you. I’m just going to share what I use to push through the last set of heavy lifting. I imagine I’m being chased by zombies and my daughter is in my arms. I have to lift her up to safety to save her. Sounds dumb but it works every time

 

[allthingsarebecomenew]

@brianb6885 Oh my gosh this just reminded me, when I was a kid I did gymnastics and they would make us run for conditioning. I had read this book where the main character was tasked with literally carrying a young princess out of danger (like on her back) and she ran/hiked with the child on her back through a mountain pass. On my runs for gymnastics I would pretend I was the book character carrying the princess away from danger to motivate me lol. All this to say it’s a great idea and I should definitely implement this tactic again!

 

[weixiao]

@allthingsarebecomenew omg this reminds me of that zombies, run! app that trains you to run by giving you a story about outrunning the zombie apocalypse. haven't tried it myself (yet) though!

 

[dawn16]

@allthingsarebecomenew Taking unforgiving rest days when I need it. I find that when I FULLY allow myself to rest, I come back even stronger and more motivated for a workout!

 

[ekanem]

@allthingsarebecomenew I’m in the gym because i have hated parts of my life. I recognized my failures DEEPLY. I also want to show myself and others how hard I can work. I also recognize the very clear health benefits to training your body… so I workout.

Edit: read your edit and didn’t see any mention of of the three variables I discussed. Nonetheless I hope you succeed in your goals and are happy!

 

[bluesky741]

@ekanem Same dude. Also my Garmin tracks and auto posts everything I do to Strava and my mum follows me on there, I know it makes her smile to know I’m doing well enough mentally to look after myself which is kind of a self fulfilling prophecy and it helps my motivation a lot.

 

[godshapedhole]

@allthingsarebecomenew Having a quantitative goal. I have an apple watch but having any exercise tracking watch helps. Once I start a strength training activity, i’m not gonna stop until I’ve hit a numerical goal. I rely on this on my hardest gym days

 

[biblicalastronomy]

@allthingsarebecomenew I try not to.

Set everything up for a successful energizing workout and commit to completing it. Then pay attention to how my body is responding and correct the underlying dysfunction if its not getting amped on its own. It's like walling a dog, if it's not into the walk don't yank and yank. Give it space and time to clear the barriers so it's natural passion for movement will shine.

Is my body already overworked from stress, or under fueled from lack of sleep or food? We can fix those pretty easily with tightened (or permissive?) nutrition and sleep. Am I just bored? Time to switch it up a bit.

Also, remember the benefits of a workout are in the recovery. Pushing through too hard will rob all your gains and burn out your energy and commitment. Use your workout to understand how to master the rhythms of your body, and with that, the rhythms of your life.

Alternatively, it can be temporarily effective to hate scroll fitspo pictures for 20 minutes, call myself a fat pig in the mirror, snort a line of pre-workout go hog wild while slamming Gatorade and making sure I'm sweaty enough no one can see the tears.

 

[proverbs3v5]

@biblicalastronomy I concur with the last paragraph

 

[pathofphanuel]

@allthingsarebecomenew I would start with HIITs (High Intensity Interval Training) on the cardio machines. The cool think about HIITs, you can make it as intense as you want! Take an elliptical workout, for example. Start with a pace at 130 rotations/min, for l2 min, and then bump it up to 150 or 160 or 170 rotations/min, for 20 seconds, and then go back to 130 rotations/min. You’ll feel winded after the intense interval, but you have the 2 min recovery to get ready for the next intense interval. Shoot for 5 intense intervals at first. It will make the cardio machines more fun, because you’re engaged with the workout. Perhaps the next workout you could up the amount of intense intervals; go for 7 instead of 5. Or do a more intense interval! Or do a lesser recovery interval. You’ll be amazed how quickly you adapt to the higher workload! Also, once you up your fitness level, you’ll get used to “being uncomfortable” and it won’t seem like you want to die. You’ll actually crave that level of exertion!
Bonus fact: HIITs when you’re jogging are called Fartleks, which help people improve their speed! Good luck, and have fun!

 

[raeh]

@allthingsarebecomenew Dry scoop of pre.

 

[mike12912]

@raeh Why dry though

 

[raeh]

@mike12912 Because I forget my shaker bottle 9/10

 

[braden2245]

@raeh Fr? What flavor? Gaggggeh

 

[leemills]

@allthingsarebecomenew Good music (and black coffee…the OG pre workout)!