TIP 85
GET OFF YOUR BUTT
The girl who can’t dance says the band can’t play.
How many years have you had “lose weight” or “get in shape” as your New Year’s resolution? If you’ve had this goal for a number of years, then you have two options. First, toss this goal out (Tip 4). Why waste any more energy not doing it for another year and then feeling bad about it? If you really can’t do the first option, then go for the second option: delegate it and hire a personal trainer or nutritionist to whip you into shape. Take Oprah Winfrey, for example. The key to her diet success the second time around was giving up the idea that she could do it herself and hiring someone to do it for her. She put her physical fitness in the hands of someone much more qualified. If you wait until the moment of inspiration hits you, you could be waiting a good long time. The problem with moments of inspiration is just that—they last about one moment.
You are probably saying, “I can’t afford a personal trainer every day.” Well, how about once a week? If you can’t afford that, how about once a month to keep you on track throughout the year? Or perhaps you can hire a trainer for one month to show you an effective workout routine, and then you’ll be confident enough to do it on your own. Sign up for a dance class, a yoga class, or anything that will inspire you to get moving. (Again, if you are having trouble coming up with the money for taking extremely good care of yourself, go back and work on handling the money and on getting your needs met.) All you really need is a super-strong structure for support. That could be a jogging partner who will knock on your door and make sure you are up at 6:00 a.m. for a run. If you aren’t moving, you just don’t have the proper support system in place.
The key is to get help getting over the initial inertia. The definition of inertia is “a property of matter by which it remains at rest or in uniform motion in the same straight line unless acted upon by some external force.” In other words, inertia is the tendency of bodies at rest to remain at rest, and it is a very powerful force indeed. On the other hand, momentum is the tendency for bodies in motion to remain in motion. This explains why it is so hard to get up off the sofa and get to the gym (inertia is keeping you there), but once you are at the gym, you find it is pretty easy to do an extra 10 minutes on the treadmill (momentum). The secret to success is to find some “external force” to provide the necessary boost to get you moving. Any external force will do as long as it works. Willpower isn’t terribly effective because it is an internal force and isn’t very reliable, so I highly recommend that you choose some other force and forget about using willpower.
My client, Yvette, was becoming quite the couch potato. She was working full time and starting a business, so she didn’t have much spare time. She started to notice that her once firm thighs were getting rather bumpy looking. This was mildly disturbing. I suggested that she stop beating herself up for not exercising and hire a personal trainer to come to her home every Friday night to work out with her. For a while, this was the only exercise she did. Then Yvette started walking to work one hour in the mornings. A few months later, she joined a gym and did an additional session of aerobics without her trainer. Now Yvette exercises three to five times a week on her own. Yvette still wouldn’t describe herself as “motivated” in the fitness department, but she feels better and has actually noticed some muscles developing in her arms—triceps to be exact. This is progress! Her personal trainer, a gorgeous, muscular man, has tons of energy and compassion. He more than makes up for any motivation Yvette may be lacking. He knows just how hard to push her and ensures that her heart gets into the appropriate training range. Left to her own devices, she wouldn’t work up nearly as much sweat. He encourages her to go beyond where she would normally stop; which, she hates to admit, would be the sofa. The point is to find someone else to motivate and inspire you. Don’t waste any more energy trying to motivate yourself when there are plenty of people out there who can provide the necessary encouragement.
My client Howard, an entrepreneur, discovered that he hated going to the gym and working out. After joining a gym, he went the first few weeks, got bored, and stopped going. He felt guilty wasting all that money, but couldn’t seem to find the motivation to go. I pointed out that in all areas of his life, he thrives on variety. Howard needs the constant change and challenge of different activities to keep his interest. Don’t feel you have to go to the gym to get a great workout. Howard now makes a tennis date one day, goes roller-blading another, golfs or sails on the weekend, goes for a morning jog when he feels like it, and takes yoga once a week to relax and keep limber. Because Howard is using many different muscles in his body in different ways, he is now extremely strong and lithe.
Above all, make sure you are having fun. If you are bored of aerobics, take up ballroom dancing instead, and before you know it you’ll be dancing for three to five hours straight because it’s so much fun. There is nothing attractive about a couch potato. Don’t try to work up the motivation by yourself. Call your friends and find a walking partner, sign up for a class, or get the name of a great trainer and make your first appointment today.