Start asking, “What’s My Motivation?”
Yes, the post title contains a Newsboys reference. Big whoop. Wanna fight about it?
It’s June now. I can now look back at the month of May and see that I’ve completed a full month on my 10,000 step walking thingamajig, and it feels good. I’m still not much closer to actual weight loss, but for now, it’s not the point.
A strange thing happened once June hit, though - I lost my motivation.
Part of the problem is that I’ve been bribing myself to walk. I’d walk 3000 steps to Maine Roasters and back just to get an iced coffee drink. Or I’d walk to Borders to “just look” at some books. However, when I start getting low on funds, it’s harder to justify walking somewhere to spend money I don’t have - especially when I’m trying to get steps in while at work, right around the mall area.
People driving have an advantage in that respect. Just being in the vicinity of retail and fast food establishments is like walking through one big advertisement.
When you’re driving, you only get a fraction of what you could be walking through: the wafting smell of McDonald’s fries promising something infinitely tastier than what any McDonalds actually delivers *; the sight of “Huge Clearance Sale” signs at Strawberries - things like these are hard for me to resist. I’ve tried to adopt a zen-like attitude toward it, because, as the man said, “desire breeds desire,” but when you’re planning an entire walk around a to-do item like “price productivity gadget at Staples,” then it’s quite easy to become…well, very un-dude.
After a few slow days, I’m getting into the swing of 10,000 steps again. The struggle now will be trying to find motivations for workday walking that don’t involve money or sugary caffeinated beverages.
* McDonald’s fries are not actually one of my spending weaknesses - the bulk of my discretionary spending goes to coffee or books, but the aroma of said fries illustrates my point quite nicely.
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June 6th, 2007 at 8:57 pm
What about walking to get your normal groceries (pick a store further away, if you have one close by), walk to visit a friend, borrow a dog to take for a walk, find a walking partner so that it can be a social occasion as well as exercise, listen to music while you walk. Another trick I find useful is to have a reward when you get home after your walk, a hot chocolate, a favorite tv program to watch, a good book, and you can only claim that award after you complete your steps. I personally prefer green tea (it’s an acquired taste) as it helps you lose weight by speeding up your metabolism. That’s my two cents worth anyway…..
June 7th, 2007 at 9:08 am
Some good ideas there, Bryan. I think lack of a social aspect is one thing I’ll have to see about remedying. Curse my introverted tendencies!
June 8th, 2007 at 4:11 pm
Don’t beat yourself up, dude. I haven’t been able to walk at all this week, and I’ve been eating pretty badly. You’ll find your momentum again. Speaking of which, do you want to go kayaking this summer? shine on.