How Do I Find the Motivation to Exercise?
- Kate Costello, MS, CNS, LDN
- 14 hours ago
- 5 min read
Full disclosure, I don’t wake up motivated. I’m not motivated to get out of bed, it’s cozy, the light is beautiful, and I’d happily stay there for another 20 minutes.
I’m not motivated to drink water before coffee.
I’m not motivated to workout.
My secret? I’m not finding motivation to workout, I’m building routines that don’t require it.
We’ve been taught that motivation comes first, that we should wait to “feel like it” before doing it. We say “I want to feel motivated” which makes motivation an emotion, not a strategy! Like excitement, sadness, frustration, it comes and goes. If your health behaviors hinge on an emotion, you’ll only do them when that emotion shows up. I might workout 1x a month waiting for motivation!
I’m not motivated to get out of bed or drink water first thing in the morning, but the sooner I do it, the sooner I get to coffee and my morning writing practice which for me is the best part of the day. When I’m done writing, I head out for a walk. One habit leads to the next. This is not motivation first, it’s routines and rewards that leads to motivation to exercise.
Why Habits Beat Motivation- It's Not as simple as "Find the motivation to exercise!"
In the book Atomic Habits by James Clear, he discusses the difference between motion and action. Motion is planning, researching, organizing, and learning. Action is the behavior that actually creates change. (Clear, 2018, p. 143)
Planning a workout is motion → doing the workout is action
Looking for health recipes is motion → cooking and eating a balanced meal is action
The two words are similar but they produce very different results. Many of us get stuck in motion because it feels productive without exposing us to failure. We convince ourselves that if we just gather a little more information, buy the right workout clothes, find the perfect meal plan, or wait until life calms down, then we’ll begin.
Most of the time we don’t need another plan…we need another repetition.
Think about brushing your teeth. At some point, it stopped being something your parents reminded you to do and became something you simple do. You don’t wake up every morning wondering whether you’re motivated to brush your teeth. Same thing at night. Even the nights you realize you didn’t brush your teeth but you are cozy in bed, 9/10 times you will get up to do it because it has become a part of who you are. That’s exactly what we’re trying to create with movement. Not a life where we’re constantly searching for motivation, but a life where moving our bodies becomes as normal as brushing our teeth.
The Habit Loop
One reason habits are so powerful is that they reduce the number of decisions we have to make. James Clear explains that every habit follows a predictable loop: a cue, a craving, a response, and a reward.
It starts with a cue, something that reminds your brain to act. Maybe it's your alarm going off, pouring your morning coffee, finishing work for the day, or seeing your sneakers by the front door.
That cue creates a craving. Not necessarily a craving for exercise itself, but for what exercise provides. Maybe it's the feeling of accomplishment, a clearer mind, more energy, stress relief, or simply the satisfaction of checking something off your list.
Next comes the response, the habit itself. You lace up your shoes, head outside for a walk, or pick up a kettlebell.
Finally comes the reward. You feel better. You feel proud of yourself. You have more energy. You sleep better that night. Your brain remembers that this behavior produced something positive, making it just a little easier to repeat tomorrow.
The more often we complete this loop, the less we rely on motivation. The behavior gradually becomes part of who we are. Eventually, the behavior becomes part of our identity.
Let's Redefine Discipline
When I say discipline to clients they cringe! They picture a drill sergeant, punishment, white-knuckling, forcing themselves to do things they don’t want to do.
What if there is another way to think about discipline?
For me, discipline is simply routine. It’s reducing the number of decisions I have to make. It’s setting me up for success before I need willpower. Most importantly, it keeps my emotions from deciding whether or not I take care of myself.
If I make every workout decide whether I’m “good enough”, I get stuck in my head. Missing one workout becomes “I’m lazy” or “I’m failing again”. That guilt pushes me out of the routine, and once I’m out of the routine, it’s much harder to get back in. Instead, I try to keep the behavior ordinary.
It’s not an internal battle to go to the gym…it’s a Tuesday, I go to the gym on Tuesdays.
It isn’t forcing-feeding myself breakfast…it’s simply breakfast.
I may not feel like getting out of bed to brush my teeth…I get up and do it anyway.
If I miss today’s workout, I haven’t failed, I simply workout tomorrow.
The routine stays intact because my identity isn’t hanging on whether I check every box perfectly that day.
Discipline, to me, isn’t about being hard on yourself. It’s about creatine routines that make caring for yourself the path of least resistance. As the kids say…it’s not that deep.
Reduce the Friction
The next time you catch yourself asking “How do I become more motivated?”
Try asking:
How can I make this easier?
What's getting in my way?
What's the smallest version of this habit I could do today?
Make it ease, make it small, make it repeatable.
Closing Thoughts
Motivation is a fleeting emotion, a fair-weathered friend, a missing sock. You can never seem to find it when you need it!
You don't have to feel motivated every day. Sometimes you simply have to simply begin.
Habits create consistency
Routines reduce decision fatigue
Discipline isn't punishment, it's creating systems that make healthy choices easier
Action creates momentum → momentum creates confidence → confidence makes the next action a little easier.
The next time you find yourself waiting for motivation to exercise, let that be your cue to get up and get moving! Build routines, repeat them often enough they become second nature. And if joint pain is a barrier for you during this phase of life, check out some of our other blogs on joint pain!
As Nike has reminded us for decades: Just do it.
Kate
Every woman's menopause journey is different. If you're ready for a personalized approach instead of more guessing, book a free strategy call. We'd love to learn your story!
Reference:
Clear, J. (2018). Atomic habits: An easy & proven way to build good habits & break bad ones. Avery.
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