There are many reasons to work out, choose from a plethora of times you made the commitment. The problem is staying motivated. Often we need workout motivation tips to stay active, engaged and healthy. You are note alone. In fact, I went to Reddit and posted a simple question which stimulated tons of responses. Maybe I should do this more often. After posting the query, I turned off my computer and did not expect any response at all. But when I opened my laptop the following day I was surprised by the tons of responses. I can’t help but smile while reading them.
I thought to myself, workout motivation for women is a good topic for the blog: Honest responses from people all over the world trying to stay fit amidst a busy day. Well, with all the responses, here are some which are worth reading. I have categorized them according to the motivation or purpose.
Here are the responses on fitness motivation for women arranged in no particular ranking: (taken from Reddit)
1. Avoid Existential Question
“Unless I have a ton of chores to get done at home, I get extremely restless if I don’t go to the gym on a normal gym day. I’ll finish cleaning up after dinner and just end up twiddling my thumbs wondering why it was I didn’t go to the gym, and then spend a while thinking maybe I should still go even though it’s getting too late to get a good workout in. Then I start to question my existence, which isn’t uncomfortable but I know it’s only happening because I didn’t go to the gym, which is just silly. Easier to just go to the gym.”
– MsCrane
This is one of my favorite responses. I’m sure a lot can relate to this. It’s not really avoiding the chores at home that make women go to the gym. It’s ultimately avoiding asking questions about one’s existence. It’s better to go to the gym than walk the road of Jean-Paul Sartre. That’s a road less travelled.
2. Workout Motivation: Dedication to My Goals
“I go anyway – its not motivation that gets me working. Its dedication and goals. If I’m truly exhausted then it’s a rest day for me (I don’t have scheduled rest days I just take them when I need them).” – firemonkee
3. Just Get Dressed
“Sometimes I tell myself ‘just put your sneakers on, then you can go to bed if you want.’ More time than not, if I get my sneakers on, I’m out the door.” – a blank username
A good way to get you going is to get dressed especially if you are too lazy to go at all. You will find yourself finishing a 2 hour gym routine in no time just by dressing up.
4. Workout Motivation Tips – Seeing the Gym as an Art Project
“I like to think about how I’m building / sculpting my body into what I want. It’s almost like art. Like my body is an art project that I’m working on, and it’s gonna be a beautiful piece by the time I’m done. Also, it helps thinking that when it’s done, it’s because of all the hard work I put into it, all the sweat and sore muscles, rather than some plastic surgery.” – sorakasbananas1
5. Pre-workout and Cute Gym Clothes
“Preworkout and cute gym clothes. And reminding myself that I’ll regret skipping a day, but I’ve never regretted going.” – Snej230
6. Mediocre work out is better than not going at all
“I try to remember how antsy I was all day about going to the gym (I almost have a countdown…), and I figure a mediocre workout is better than none at all. I also shut off my lizard-lazy brain and go on autopilot.” – the_fuzztron
7. Pride
“I’ll be honest, some of it is pride too – my gym is small and the owners know me by name (I love them). And they also put up a ‘leaderboard’ of people who went the most often every month. I want to be on that!” – the_fuzztron
8. Stress Reliever
“I’ve actually reached a point where I look forward to it after work. I’m a teacher and my brain is on all day. It’s mentally exhausting. The gym satisfies my need to have my physical level of tiredness match my mental level of tiredness. I sleep so much better. And it’s a good stress reliever! I don’t have to think about much beyond breathing and counting.” – probablyanalienbaby
“Motivation is what gets you started. Dedication is what keeps you going.” – thewrecker8
“Motivation since I started going in the morning is that it’s nice to know after work I can be in the pool or seeing friends and don’t have to be inside a gym. Go hard and get it over with before anything else.” – nickmillerism
“Motivation gets me nowhere. I shower at the gym in the mornings before work, so I force myself to go. The mental process is that I have to shower so I might as well shower there since it’s free water, and if I’m showering there I might as well see what exercise I can get done too.
To be fair, I’ve had a number of days where it’s just nope, too tired, not doing it. I try (and fail) to stop beating myself up over it and remember that fitness is a lifetime thing, one skipped session to help me cope mentally is not something to be ashamed of.” – MissBernkastel
Thank you to all the redditers who submitted their responses to my query. Credit goes to all. I hope to get more from you again soon. I have learned a lot about fitness motivation for women from your replies. I hope our readers get to take home some inspiration too. It’s not just about having a great body that makes women go to the gym. It’s not just the curve that they have to maintain or try to get. More than that, it’s discipline that makes women want to stay fit.
