Momentational Motivation

Momentational Motivation

                I will like to start by saying; I do not think “Momentational” is a word.  However I find it fitting in this instance. Let me give you my definition of this self created term. Momentational Motivation is the motivation of a person for only a certain period of time. Once the moment is gone, so is the motivation. Let me explain why and how this popped into my head.

                We all have clients that start to give up during a workout or pause to take a breather and we jump on them to keep pushing forward.  I am currently working a project where I am helping a young person to take a on a big project (I cannot go into details now, but you will all see very soon what I am talking about).  The client is not use to pushing this hard or doing my kinds of workouts, so the client tends to slow down at key points in the workout and basically give up when they are tired.  Instead of doing the typical trainer move and saying things like, “Get Up! Keep going! You can do it!”, which are all very great things to say. I have been stopping the client and asking them WHY they are giving up.  When they explain they are tired, I simple say, “Yes it is obviously not an easy workout so you’re expected to get tired, but that does not explain why you are giving up. I want to know the reason you are quitting on yourself. “.  I am looking for the deeper issue.  It may be lack of confidence, lack of internal drive, fear of failure, chronic laziness.  It can be any number of things.

Why ask these questions?

                By asking the client these types of questions, we can find the source of their issues.  We can empower them to address the real reasons why they have not been successful in certain situations. These types of questions transcend workouts and dive into the LIFE issues your clients may have.  When you can answer why they quit in a workout you can also answer why they gave up on their marriage, why they haven’t asked for a raise, why they don’t spend time with their kids, etc.  If they quit when the workout gets hard, chances are they quit when everything gets hard.

                This brings me back to Momentational Motivation.  Standing in your clients face and pushing them to do one more rep will no doubt get them thru the workout.  It will help them in that Moment when they are struggling. BUT, if you have to do it ALL the time to get them to finish, you are actually doing them a disservice.  What we need to do, is find why they are quitting and give them skills to learn to get past that sticking point all the time.  This way, they can learn to push themselves when you are not around. They can learn to be inspired and not just motivated (inspiration vs motivation is another topic for another time).  I am not saying motivating your clients is a bad thing, because it is certainly part of the job.  The point I want to make is that it is not enough.  When you are not there to motivate, will they be able to get by? This is a question you must ask yourself.

                Back to my client that I am currently working with.  The method I use to help my client to push past sticking points is by telling stories.  Yes, I said stories.  I will tell tales or running towards the roar, finishing strong, mountains and pebbles, succeed as bad as you want to breath, no days off,  changing your approach, etc.  These stories stay with my client and so do all the sayings. When they are ready to quit or give up, they actually hear me in their head saying these things and it makes the push thru.  I don’t need to be around and my client will remember the morals of the stories.  My client has told me about life things that have happened and how she now has a different approach and can tackle these task.  Will this method work for you, I don’t know.  What I do know is that it has worked wonders for my client. I don’t have to yell or get in their face, I just have to sit back a push a few buttons and watch them push themselves past their comfort zone.  I know when I am not around; I have armed them with a better sense of self and an ability to overcome challenges that will face them in life. I know that they will not only be better physically for training with me, but they will also be better people and enjoy a happier and healthy life.

-FLO