A common complaint among several fitness enthusiasts is how they lack the motivation and willpower to workout. But Arnold Schwarzenegger believes that the mindset has to take a turn to ensure the fulfillment of fitness goals.
In his recent newsletter, he addressed one of the common questions his ‘village’ asked him about – methods to increase willpower. Instead of going through a straight route by researching techniques to build it, Schwarzenegger asked people to turn the other way against finding motivation.
He argued that to depend on willpower or motivation solely to perform tasks wouldn’t always be fruitful. If the aim is to build healthy habits and perform difficult tasks, the strategy is to learn to work without motivation.
He stressed how willpower employed the same part of the brain that was responsible for performing day-to-day tasks and handling memory and focus. Therefore, by the time one is done with their daily chores, they might not find the motivation to hit the gym.
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“Unless you can shut off the demands and stressors of life, looking for more willpower won’t work.”
A study on the link between external motivation and exercising suggested that there was no difference in whether or not one received the push to work out. The only way out was to build a daily habit and stick with the schedule as much as possible to stay fit.
“No matter how you commit, remember to outline specific behaviors that will help you achieve your desired outcome.”
Schwarzenegger makes sure to promote healthy habits and push his village as much as possible with his words of wisdom. Sometimes, he also assigns tasks in his newsletter for his community to follow and benefit from.
Arnold Schwarzenegger challenged his village to get moving
At 76, Schwarzenegger never fails to set fitness goals despite being ill and going through medical procedures. Case in point, he recently went through heart surgery to place a pacemaker due to his congenital condition. However, the workouts never stopped, nor did his advice to get going.
Since he was barred from anything intense, he took it upon himself to stay fit even with minuscule steps. That led him to form a challenge for himself and his community, where he wanted everyone to walk and keep a count of steps. Each day, the goal for the number of steps increases slightly higher, thus making it challenging. That’s how Schwarzenegger keeps everyone on their toes, even without needing the willpower to get going.
