The Roots of Change - Uncovering Your Motivations

If you’ve ever been on a weight loss journey you know all too well how the scale fluctuates (maddeningly so at times) regardless of how consistent you’re staying with supportive habits. Seeing the needle on the scale move upward, having a few bad nights of sleep, running 1 mile instead of the 2 miles scheduled in your training plan, or breaking your daily meditation streak can be discouraging for some. To miss the mark we’re aiming for on any given day, or to see our numerical progress stall out can leave some of us feeling like we’re falling short, that the hard work we’re putting in is “all for nothing”. It’s super crummy to feel that way. Changing our behaviors comes with enough twists and turns, we don’t need the added stress of “I’m not doing enough”, “this isn’t working for me”, “I’ve failed”, “[insert any number of other similar statements]” to the mix. 

This is where digging into our motivation and uncovering our “Why” comes in handy. In doing this, we’re delineating between external motivators for the goal and internal motivators for it; both are driving forces behind why we’re doing what we’re doing, but they support the way we engage with our journey in unique ways. 

Measurement vs motivation

When we set goals related to our health we tend to focus on specific measurements:

Measurements like these are great because they give us something specific and concrete to aim for. And when we're setting goals, I encourage clients to be as specific as possible so we have quantifiable objectives to measure. Otherwise, it's really hard to know where we're going, how close we are to getting there, or if we've gotten there.

At the same time, I also encourage digging into your motivations (aka your "Why") for wanting the specific outcome you're aiming for in your journey. While seeing ourselves make progress toward those measurable outcomes (pounds lost, A1c, reading, miles run, hours slept, etc.) can be motivating, it's risky to rely on them alone as our source of motivation.

External Motivation

External motivators come from outside of us. They’re things like those measures listed in the image above (i.e. pounds on the scale, number of miles run, days in a row we maintain a streak, etc.). They can also be recognition or praise we receive, acceptance we feel from others, peer pressure, expectations from others (boss, partner, doctor, etc.), or even fear of negative outcomes or criticism.

What’s tricky about external motivation is it’s often temporary, and how strongly we feel motivated by external influences fluctuates based on the amount of feedback we’re getting. So, if we’re losing weight, being told how inspiring we are to run every morning, or seeing that streak continue in our tracking app we tend to feel proud of ourselves and like what we’re doing is “good” and worthwhile. However, if the scale stalls or starts increasing, we “only” run 2 miles one morning, or we miss a day in our streak it can be easy to lose steam and slowly drop consistency in doing the things each day that help us make progress. The lack of consistency ultimately leads to not achieving our goals which reinforces any low key (or loud) beliefs we may have that we’re not capable of doing what we set out to do. 

Having external motivation is normal and 100% okay. And experiencing moments where the shine of behavior change wears off and you feel a bit unmotivated, discouraged, or out of sync with your habits is part of the process. To help navigate these moments with self-compassion and resiliency it can really help to have an anchor; this is where internal motivation comes into play.

Internal Motivation

Internal motivation comes from within us. It’s our inner drive to do something because it’s personally meaningful and rewarding. Although individual internal motivators are unique to each of us, some common ones include:

Going beyond the measurements we use to gauge how close we are to achieving our goal and digging deeper underneath external factors that we find motivating helps us really connect to that internal desire we have for taking on a goal. In doing this, we allow our behaviors to be driven by personal interest, enjoyment, or long-term value. This can be so empowering and can give us a stronger sense of control and freedom as we make lifestyle changes.

If you’re on a change journey and would like an extra hand of support in digging into your “Why”, I’m here for you - schedule a free 15-minute consultation today and we’ll chat about how personalized health coaching can support your journey.