Do you consider yourself a highly motivated individual?

Hi everyone,

Being still a newbie to 80/10/10, I marvel at how people do this with such ease. I'm vegan for ethical reasons - so there isn't temptation there. However, I still am in awe of you all doing 100% raw, lfhc.

Please keep up the greatness!! Much appreciation to you.

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Permalink Reply by Reed on July 13, 2012 at 7:50pm

Motivation and drive can be taught. Motivation follows action, not the other way around. It's easy to sabotage motivation if you don't understand what kills it and what inspires it. So many people are not motivated because they never take the first step in reaching their goals. Many let false unfound fears destroy their motivation. Take jogging for example. Once you take the very first step you've accomplished a giant portion of your journey. There were huge stumbling blocks just to take that first step. It's too cold, I don't have a running outfit, I too fat, don't have the right shoes, I'm embarrassed to be seen running, I won't make it.

Set very small goals, intermediate goals, and long term goals.

Setting goals gives you long-term vision and short-term motivation. Setting a goal is actually an action.

If you can't “see” yourself reaching this goal, you probably won't.

The basic goal-reaching principle is to understand that you go as far as you can see, and when you get there you will always be able to see farther. ~Zig Ziglar

Example: In 10 minutes I'm going to jog 50 feet even if I can't find my running shoes! You start running, 50 feet was a piece of cake and you ran 1/2 mile. You set a simple goal and surpassed it. Actually you made it unbelievably easy to jog. Where you might have tried for years in the past and never took the first step.

If you said tomorrow I'm going to run 5 miles that might never happen as it might be unrealistic and too many mental hurdles will surface just getting out the door.

Unrealistic goals destroy motivation and self confidence. Too many people are not highly motivated individuals because they set unrealistic goals.

Intermediate goal:

Next year I'm going to do run a 5K. I don't care how long it takes me as long as I finish.

Long term goal:

3 years from now I'm going to run/walk/jog a 1/2 marathon and look better then I did 5 years ago.

Now if I said I was going to run a marathon in under 3.5 hours I might be setting myself up for disaster. That's a goal that has too many hurdles and it's too easy to demotivate yourself before you reach it.

When you read this, set some very easy and simple short term goals, intermediate goals, and long term goals. You can always make the intermediate and long term goals more challenging as you get closer to them.

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Permalink Reply by Ana on July 14, 2012 at 4:32am

You're so right, Reed. Baby steps are the right way to go. Oh how much time I've wasted trying to be and do it all right from the get-go. sigh. I still fall into those tendencies, lol,~one of my superhero traits is to put forth great effort whether or not my goals are clearly defined. Getting better, though...you know...baby steps! Good response.

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Permalink Reply by Banana Dude on July 14, 2012 at 4:42am

Great post Reed, I'm always sabotaging my own goals because I either can't see myself reaching them or I don't feel like I deserve them.It's really frustrating, and they aren't unrealistic goals just being thinner, or at a healthy weight so I can see lots of other things fall into place.

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Permalink Reply by J on July 14, 2012 at 7:22am

This is so well-said. Thank you, Reed, for sharing these great insights. Incredibly helpful.

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Permalink Reply by Mary TG on July 14, 2012 at 5:17am

I am highly motivated to stay hcrv for health (for me, animals and planet), and family reasons(3 kids- need energy and want to be a good role model) and it is STILL hard and challenging sometimes. But it is so worth it. And you have more energy to enjoy life and life just keeps getting better. It gets easier as you get used to it and the people around you get used to it.

I like to think of things in terms of last year/this year. What are the differences? Even the smallest steps show up with this kind of thinking.

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Permalink Reply by Freshtival on July 14, 2012 at 7:29am

Quote : "I marvel at how people do this with such ease. "

I wish I could say I took to raw with the greatest of ease but that isn't the case. Since 2007 when I started my journey I've "slipped" so many times that I lost count a long time ago. What keeps me persistently picking myself up and getting back on course is that I keep learning more about raw and unraw. This forum is a gold mine of useful information & motivation for those who tune in to the questions and answers that people are having with their health and their staying on the raw lifestyle. A big part of the learning experience is to participate in the forum because it intensifies the thinking process. The more I learn about the cause ---> effect relationship of lifestyle the more I know I will never give up and I will continue to pick myself up if/when I slip. Good luck to everyone who endeavors to be a healthier you. Stay the course.

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Permalink Reply by Kimberry on July 14, 2012 at 9:03am

Yes, it's all about picking yourself back up when you fall down. :)
It took me six months to "get it". A year later, it's second-nature (or should I just say nature?). :) You have to get used to it, and so does your body! Your body was used to how many years of eating a certain way, from birth to now? It's a big change! But an awesome one.
<3

It's not easy all the time. If I lived in the tropics with an abundance of ripe delicious fruit all the time, would I ever crave chips and salsa? Probably not! I wouldn't have a chance to be tempted with things I used to like and half-want when I see it.

There are definitely ways to stay motivated, simple things like making sure you always have ripe fruit in the house, not shopping when hungry, bringing fruit with you when going out for long hours, packing lunch for work. It makes it so much easier on yourself just to plan a little bit every day.

P.S. Grocery shopping when hungry is never a good idea. It doesn't mean you're weak, it means you're hungry. :p

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Permalink Reply by Sarah on July 14, 2012 at 10:24am

Honestly, before I started high carb low fat vegan I considered myself to be motivated in all aspects except for my health. After a couple weeks of high carb low fat vegan it made me realize what motivation and energy was really like. Quite amazing if I say so myself. It is just non stop fun and energy. My friends are funny because I went and helped them move into their new home for several hours and I worked super hard. We all did. They had meat pizza for lunch and I had bananas, rice, and mandarins. Afterwards I was ready to go to the beach, go surfing, and play in the waves. They all were ready for naps. So I went solo and had a blast. They ask me, where do you get all this lasting energy? I say hclfv. They're like but that's gonna make you fat! I say, no man, I've lost 46 lbs already! And still kickin it!

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Permalink Reply by Esra on July 14, 2012 at 3:00pm

Hi J!

Like you, I'm vegan for ethical reasons. What keeps me doing the HCRV lifestyle though is that I simply feel the best I have ever felt in my entire life, and it brings out the best 'me' there is (at least in my opinion). Even though I have always been a healthy person who rarely got sick, this is just above and beyond anything I imagined, and it really simplifies my life.

No sickness of any sort *ever* (not even a sniffle!), no body odor, no stomach problems, super smooth and silky skin and hair, bright white eyes, strong healthy nails, clear mind and conscience, being alert and sharp at all times, no problem in my life seems too big for me now. I don't stress over stuff like I used to, I let things go way more easily, the friendships I form are much more meaningful and fulfilling, I am a much stronger and more confident person now (I pretended for years ;)) ....so basically, it has made me into a the person I've been working so hard to become for a long time.

Why would I ruin that :)?