Born To Move, Part III
Motivation to Movement: Goal Setting
In parts I and II we established some of the basic groundwork for the “why” of human movement, but have yet to step into the all-elusive “how”.
Before anyone can begin a proper exercise program, or even begin to change their behavior to move more regularly, one has to feel motivated to do so.
I started this series by posing the question that has perplexed me my entire career. Why is it so easy for some to move well and move often, while others stay stuck in a sedentary lifestyle and seem quite happy to do so? It’s a simple question with a not-so-simple answer.
Some of the beginnings of an answer, I believe, might be found in unpacking the psychology and neuroscience behind motivation.
As I began in the first part of this series, some motivation of behavior can be reasonably explained by our natural instincts through millions of years of evolution - both across species and in our own humankind.
In some way, we all have the underlying tools for proper motivation because our ancestors made decisions based on selection pressures to survive and reproduce. For example, the positive feedback loop of neurotransmitters and endorphins in response to exercise keeps us coming back for more without us necessarily “willing” it. These are deep brain processes meant to pattern behavior. However, as we all know this system has its flaws. Sugar, alcohol and drugs provide the same neurological response, but overuse of these causes a myriad of issues that we know all too well: obesity, addiction and psychological trauma, to name a few. Not to mention, exercise itself can be abused, as overtraining syndrome is seen more often than we’d like.
So, how are we to trust our motivations? How can we identify if our motivation is driving us towards a positive adaptation or change?
The most practical response I have to this problem is shifting the focus to goal-setting. Humans are quite literally target-oriented beings. Our eyes have evolved to not only physically aim and hit targets, but our minds have also done the same. By using our reason and perspective taking, we can sit down and map out our goals. Our ability to utilize memory and foresee future events using logic and reason sets us apart from even our genetically closest mammal relatives. By learning from our past mistakes (which, by the way, is the purpose of memory) and mapping out potential futures, we are literally creating goals for our lives everyday. Further, once a lesson is learned and a behavior begins to change, a tertiary or unintended consequence can also become apparent which helps reinforce the motivation to good behavior.
The mindset can then be applied to more granular life situations. For exercise development (perhaps joining a gym or hiring a trainer), the sequence might looking like this:
MEMORY: I was mostly sedentary and ate whatever because it was easy and felt good.
LESSON: I became overweight and injured my back while tying my shoe.
FUTURE GOAL: I need to move more and work on my basic strength to avoid this again.
UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCE: I am stronger than I have ever been,
I have more energy, and my overall mood is better.
Unfortunately, this pattern does lead to some harsh lessons, as many people are unmotivated to change unless something drastic happens to them. As mentioned previously, I’d argue that with respect to exercise science, we have some of the most robust data illustrating the positive benefits of changing your lifestyle habits away from sedentary into movement. A simple Google scholar search on the benefits of exercise will give you 2.8 million results. This alone should give many the proper motivation without hitting the preverbal “rock bottom” to change.
Through my career I’ve met clients with a wide range of underlying motivations and goals. To help you get started, here I’ll name a few archetypes of such people. I encourage you to identify with one or two, and challenge yourself to take whatever first step necessary towards that goal.
Client 1 “I have never formally exercised. I need the structure and habit of getting into a routine that is safe and effective”
Client 2 “I am very active, but I mostly do cardiovascular activities and need to gain strength”
Client 3 “I am coming off an injury and rehab, I’m looking to be as strong as I was or stronger than before”
Client 4 “I’m overweight and my baseline health metrics are all high (HR, BP, etc). My doctor says I need to exercise regularly”
Client 5 “I play a recreational sport and I’m looking to perform better and prevent injury”
Client 6 “I have “X Event” (wedding, family trip, etc) coming up and I need to lose weight and gain muscle”
Understandably, we all may not fit into these archetypes. Though we share the same evolutionary history, brain structure, and underlying needs, we are all vastly different.
That is what makes us human. Finding your difference might be the key to unlocking a healthier, stronger you.
