Fit Villains: Selfish, Shameless, Sassy, Fitness.

As long as their not Creepy Camera Dude, they’re A-Ok with me!

We all go to the gym for different reasons and with different goals. There are stereotypes for everyone at the gym, and just because they fit the ‘type’, doesn’t mean they’re a bad person (some of you will certainly have rolled your eyes at a few of these guys).

Fir Sugar put together a list of 10 Gym Guy Stereotypes that you might see at the gym. You might not have caught them all in action, but you”ll recognize a few of these ‘types’ for sure. :)

Excerpt from Fit Sugar

1. The Former Athlete: The rest of the team may be just as tall as him now, but he’s still the big man on campus. He shows up sporting his college gear though his frat days are a distant memory. He watches the game on the TV while cycling or running, but is dedicated to his workout. What’s to love? Men with years of workout experience just get better with age. They remind us to appreciate a challenge — be it an occasional marathon, game of pick me up, or Sunday soccer league. The healthiest way to relive your glory days is to keep them alive.

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No matter who you are, or how fit you get, everyone struggles with motivation at one point or another. Even regular exercisers (AND personal trainers) have trouble getting pumped up on occasion. Whatever the reason for a lack of motivation, inspiring YOURSELF to get sweaty is an uphill battle that’s a normal part of this crazy journey.

Motivation is a tricky bitch.

People often say I’m lucky that finding the motivation to workout comes easily to me, but that’s not the case. Yes, it’s true that there are days when I really look forward to my workouts. But believe me, there are plenty of days when I couldn’t care less and plenty of days when it takes me an extra kick to get going. Lots of different things motivate me, and I need to use reinforcements to get my ass moving on a regular basis.

The internet is OBSESSED with quick tips that can help you find motivation, but they don’t address the biggest part of motivation: you. What works for one person will not work for everyone & what motivates you to workout one day might not work the next. The key isn’t finding one great motivator. It’s building a tool box full of motivators that work for you in different situations. You need to reflect on WHY you’re LACKING motivation before you search for HOW to treat it.

Motivation depends on two things

Your overall goals (what you’re aspiring to in the future and working towards)

Your immediate goals (what you want in that moment).

Your overall goal might stay the same as your immediate goals change. For example, you overall goal might be to lose 10lbs but your immediate goal might be to relax, to finish your paper, to hang out with a friend or to get your laundry done. You want those 10lbs, but you might not feel like working out that day. Or the next. That’s where tricks for finding motivation come in handy.

So where do you start?

The first step is asking yourself what’s getting in the way, and then treat it. Are you tired, hungry, stressed, sad, injured or ill? All of those things have an impact on whether or not you’ll want to get sweaty, and if they happen often enough, you can take steps to prevent them so they don’t get in the way. If you’re always exhausted at the end of your day, then maybe morning exercise is a better option for you. If you’re not getting enough sleep, it’s time to be your own parent and put yourself to bed earlier. If you’re lacking energy because you’re hungry, well you NEED to find a way to plan your meals better around your workouts (snacks on the go!). Don’t simply keep missing your workouts and feel bad about it: address the root of the problem.

After treating the obstacles, then you need to ask yourself what’s left? Ask yourself some key questions to help identify what could help you.

Here are 10 things you should ask yourself when you’re stuck in a motivation rut…

1. Do I have something to work towards?  When you’ve hit your weight loss goal, you might be less inclined to put in the effort that got you there. This isn’t true of everyone, but it’s common and one of the reasons a lot of people yo-yo in their weight. They hit their goals, don’t have the same drive to workout & start to re-gain the weight.

Don’t let it happen to you! Re-evaluate your goals: they don’t have to stay the same. Now’s the time to buckle down and get more specific: want to improve your pushups? Want to run  5K? Want to complete a 30 day challenge or address nutritional goals? Weight loss is great, but there are hundreds of ways to train for fitness. Get competitive with yourself; you never know how far you can go until you try. This might also be a good time to whip out those before pics… just to remember how far you’ve come.

2. Do I need a breather? Burn out is REAL. If you’ve been pushing yourself hard for awhile, de-motivation can be your body’s way of trying to get you to slow down. Burn out is very real and can last months unless you nip it in the bud before it gets out of control. Taking a few days off every now & then can re-energize you and get you itching to get back to your sweat sessions. Don’t let yourself feel guilty. Think about it: everyone needs a mini-vacation sometimes, even your body.

After a break try different activities for FUN like walks, swimming, sports etc. It’s okay to go off your training plan and explore fun classes and different ways to move. Some athletes train hard for a few weeks, then dial it back a week to recover: it’s your training plan, you can take time off when you need to.

3. Am I lacking energy? Like workouts, motivation takes energy. Sleep, nutrition and stress have EVERYTHING to do with it. If you haven’t been feeling up to your normal activity levels (or find yourself too exhausted to want to throw on your sneakers) take a look at how much sleep you’ve been getting, if you’ve been eating enough and whether or not you’ve just got too much on the go. Instead of pushing yourself into a half-assed workout, go to bed earlier, get some Zzzzz’s and hit it hard the next day. Your body needs sleep more than sweat sometimes. Boost your calories too if you find you’re lacking the energy you used to have, and address stress head on.

4. Does your workout get you excited? Like a relationship, you need to mix things up in your workout to keep the fires burning. Doing the same thing over and over is not only bland for the mind, but for the body as well. You’ll see better physical results if you challenge your body with new moves, intensity & styles. You’ll see better mental results by challenging yourself to try new things & making an effort to step out of your comfort zone, even if only for short periods of time. Add yoga, dance, sports, running, cycling or take it outside if you find that your current routine leaves you yawning for more.

5. Am I stressed out? Yes, it’s true that exercise can reduce stress, but only if stress doesn’t keep you from exercise. It’s easy to see your workout as just another thing you need to check off your ever-increasing to-do list, but if you’re stressed about fitting your workout in, some time management might need to be implemented. Ask yourself what you can do to make it easier. You can also try to see it as a break from everything else. Your ME time. Re-frame your thinking and try to see it as a treat rather than a chore. Turn off your phone, don’t think about work. let people know you’re booked for the next 30-60 minutes and enjoy the alone time, like you would a bubble bath. Hey, why not TAKE a bubble bath post workout while you’re at it.

6. Do I need a push? If someone else was here pushing me, could I do this workout? Trainers are awesome at pushing their clients beyond what they think they are physically capable of doing, and believe me trainers are great supports. But they are just people. You feel great at the end of the workout because the person doing the work is YOU. If you can’t afford a trainer, you can be your own trainer or imagine someone there pushing you to start. This doesn’t work for everyone, but sometimes it’s enough to get you started. Kick your own butt a little and exercise some tough love (imagine Jillian Michaels or Tony Horton right there next to you). There’s no shame in posting a few motivational mantras around the house either.

7. Do I need a buddy? If imagining a trainer isn’t working for you, maybe it’s time to call in reinforcements. If you’ve had a rough few days working up motivation, there’s no shame in asking for a little help. Ask a friend to go for a walk, come over to do a DVD or hit the gym. You may even inadvertently motivate someone else to get moving: a little pay it forward fitness love. 

8. Am I struggling to push PLAY? Sometimes, finishing the workout isn’t the problem. It’s starting. I know when I’m home about to get sweaty, it can take me up to a half hour of farting around from the time my shoes are on to the time I press “play”. I can lose momentum. Sometimes we need to just STOP THINKING our way out. Your mind will tell you things that your body can refute if given the chance. I use two tricks: First, I set a timer for 5 minutes to get my workout gear on, turn off my phone and turn on some music. I don’t think about my workout, but rather about just moving. Usually, within 2-3 songs my workout lust comes back.

If that doesn’t work, I use the 5 minute trick. Studies show that people who commit to only 5-10 minutes of exercise at a time, are more likely to stick through their whole workout once they start. If after 5 minutes you still have no motivation, you might need to take a closer look at what’s stopping you.

9. Is WHEN or WHERE i workout getting in the way? I like working out in the evenings after work, but it often conflicts with my clients, friends & other obligations. Often, I have to make plans around my workouts, which can be stressful. Working out in the morning is tough too, BUT it eliminates the stress of having to fit in a workout at a busier time. I also like exercising at home, which has it’s benefits and drawbacks. Like working from home, it’s often distracting to get a decent sweat on when there’s dishes to do. Solution? That’s when I head to the gym or take my workouts outside. You might find the opposite. If getting to the gym becomes a hassle, and you find yourself missing workouts, you might want to consider setting up a home gym, taking it outside or having a few DVD’s on hand. If when or where you workout is making it harder to workout, time for a change.

On days when you feel like working out, do your best to squeeze the workout in and make the most of it. Those are golden days, take advantage. More importantly, pay attention to what is different on those days: it may help you discover what’s missing on days when motivation is running low.

xo

I’m not exactly the shyest of people NOW, but even a few years ago you wouldn’t find me trying any of these moves. At least not in front of people.:)

A few years down the road, and I’m much less shy… but I have to admit, I still take a look around before busting these moves out (hip raises specifically). When you’re an instructor, you need to pull up your big girl panties and not care what others think: I have classes watching me all the time and if I’m insecure, they’ll be insecure. Hey, people stop and watch. It comes along with fitness territory and we all do it. And sometimes, in class, we tend to do things that aren’t necessarily, well, cool. Effective, but not cool.

Remember, the way you react to those watching has more to do with YOU than them: most people are motivated watching someone workout or aren’t really watching at all. It can take time to ‘not care’ what people think, so if you’re still working on developping that thicker skin, try these alternatives to some embarrassing moves instead. Doing something is better than doing nothing. :)

Read: Embarrassing Gym Moves and How to Avoid the Blush

Tell me: what other moves/workouts do you find embarrassing to bust out at the gym?