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We've all been there. You're beat down by work or school, exhausted, and don't feel like putting on your workout clothes. But you do it anyway. Is it seeing the number on the scale go down another tenth of a pound? Is it adding another rep to your bench press? Is it going to the gym for the first time, finishing C25K, or is it just trying to get the attention of that cute girl/guy you've been meaning to talk to? Whatever it is, post it here. When you're having a crappy day, read for inspiration. When you feel like you could press the world or outrun a cheetah, let everyone know. C'mon. Let's do this together. GET INSPIRED Ultimate Transformations Thread: These goons lost a ton of weight, got swole, and generally look amazing and are confident as all hell. Read this thread to see that everyone had to start somewhere. Incremental Improvements Thread: Check this thread to see people taking small steps toward something awesome. Runners, lifters, climbers, and more post their small (and sometimes huge!) success stories KEEP TRACK Fitocracy is a place where you can track your workouts, get points, and follow your friends. Check the SA thread here. Physics Diet is a site where you can track your weight and get a pretty graph. Good for helping you ignore day-to-day fluctuations and concentrate on the long-term goal My Fitness Pal: Track your food! Custom macros, calorie counts and a pretty large pre-existing food database make calorie counting easy. dantheman650 fucked around with this message at Dec 17, 2012 around 03:07 |
| # ? Dec 14, 2012 03:26 |
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| # ? May 26, 2013 00:20 |
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AWESOME PEOPLE Adaz lost over half his 500+ pound weight in the last year. What are you waiting for? Vainglory lost 270 pounds in 100 weeks and is now strong as hell. DefiantSally used to have sticks for arms and now has biceps thicker than most people's thighs. LadyWeapon can outlift most of the guys in TFLC. Girls lifting weights rock. You should too! Zugzwang runs and lifts like a madman. Uziel is one of our very own mods who lost a ton of weight and then got crazy strong. Webcams for Christ has Osteogenesis imperfecta and has shattered multiple bones and underwent surgery. He still figured out how to lose 100 pounds and gain massive quads. DickTrauma is missing one of his quads. No excuses. Dross lost a bunch of weight and is currently leg pressing the world. Panthra, being able to outsquat most everybody, is taking on Oly lifting. Sharks Below has worked through hip problems and tough physiotherapy to lose a ton and lift heavy. Andy Dufresne is running 6 minute miles like it ain't no thang. Boxorocks used to be fat and depressed and is now a happy as hell stud. Frown Town is climbing like a pro and has HUGE guns. Hello Clarice is doing some fantastic work and has some of the happiest progress pictures to prove it. Humanoid Female has stage 4 cancer and still lists like a beast. Again, no excuses. Suggestions welcome for motivating logs to add! dantheman650 fucked around with this message at Dec 21, 2012 around 22:25 |
| # ? Dec 14, 2012 03:26 |
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Good Posts from the Previous Threadpolygon posted:My biggest motivation, though, is that for many years I struggled with disordered eating and other forms of self harm. It's in rebellion against my former life that I embrace the body I'm in and strive to make it stronger and healthier every day. Supersheep posted:What really motivates me, though, is the fact that no matter how many people tell me I look great, or how many girls try to hit on me, I am never going to be good enough in my own eyes. There's always going to be something I can improve, and despite the amazing feeling I get from other people's behaviour, I'm really only doing this for myself. KDB posted:You look better today than you did a month ago. And a month from now, you will look better than even this. Conky posted:To contribute, hearing that an 8 or 9 minute mile is a comfortable pace for some is motivating for me. I cannot wait for a 10 minute mile to be my comfortable pace. Also, being able to head out the door and run 8 miles without stopping is awesome. It might not be a fast 8 miles, but it will be eventually. Getting better is my motivation. Chestered Drawers posted:I was once the guy that felt awkward and out of place in the gym. I was scared shitless, I started off skinny fat, tall and lanky, no strength, first day I failed at 80 lbs on the bench press. I thought my waist was too wide and shoulders were too narrow, I thought my posture was bad. But I came to realize that you can't define yourself by what you do and especially by what you don't do, the more I began to see myself becoming "that fit dude who goes to the gym all the time" the harder and more intense my workouts got. My shoulders and traps popped, my arms grew an inch and became vascular, my posture straightened up, my legs grew like weeds and before I knew it I started getting attention from both sexes. Esmerelda posted:This week is really the first time that I've taken notice of all the changes. When a change is gradual you don't really see it and then one day you just stare at the person in the mirror thinking "gently caress, that's me?" Yes, yes it is. AppleCobbler posted:There is only one "point" in life, and that is to be the biggest, baddest motherfucker on the face of the earth. If you're not trying to become that in at least one facet of life, be it at the gym, at your job, in the sack, etc, then you shouldn't bother. Turn your 60-day program into a 365 day program and do it right. Mr Grinch posted:This is what motivates me: The fact that there is a day in my future that I will no longer be able to walk. It's a day that is coming for all of us. So get off your rear end and go loving run or lift something heavy off the ground, because I guarantee you that there is someone out there right now just wishing they had breathed in every last second of when they had been active, and wondering how anyone could actually choose not to do the same. Tasty and Delicious posted:I feel like I've heard this enough so that whenever I start making excuses myself, I immediately think of my friend who will back out of anything at the drop of a hat. So I motivate myself by flipping her view of "how things should work" on its head. The goal when I exercise is not to be able to finish cleanly without breaking a sweat. The goal is to try harder than I thought I could, and fail a set with maximum effort. The good news is that everyone can do this! Everyone can push themselves until they fail a set. Everyone can run until they're completely out of breath. Ignore your lovely times and lack of stamina, being out of breath is the correct state to be in. PreserveByNeglect posted:Women can't keep their hands off my rear end at the bar or club. Skilleddk posted:This week I've beaten my personal records in squats, deadlift and today I beat my benchpress. Tomorrow is squat day again, and I cannot loving wait to get there and beat it again Lego Stormtrooper posted:Nothing motivates me anymore - and not in the emo sense. lowcrabdiet posted:Every time I feel lethargic/tired and don't feel like going to the gym I remind myself: Dr. Kyle Farnsworth posted:This is what it comes down to, really. Funzo posted:There really is nothing like realizing that a weight you couldn't move a few months prior is now part of your warm-up sets. ShakeyDog posted:When I was younger I was constantly sick and weak. I was miserable. Getting into fitness made me appreciate my life again. More to come! Other Good Quotes Murakami posted:If I used being busy as an exucse not to run, I'd never run again. I have only a few reasons to keep on running, and a truckload of them to quit. Murakami posted:There are three reasons that I failed. Not enough training. Not enough training. And not enough training. dantheman650 fucked around with this message at Dec 17, 2012 around 03:05 |
| # ? Dec 14, 2012 03:30 |
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dantheman650 posted:AWESOME PEOPLE I think Uziel's log needs to be here.
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| # ? Dec 14, 2012 03:38 |
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Here are some motivational videos for dudes who wanna be swole as gently caress Arnold on "Who do you want to be in life?" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vH0nP4NzS9M This is the greatest training movie of all time. I used to watch clips from this daily before going to the gym, simply because thinking of Ronnie screaming "LIGHTWEIGHT BABY" and so on would literally make me press on in a set where I wanted to give up. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0uFIpjQvPx4 Frank Zane posing to Pink Floyd. Frank Zane is a beautiful man, basically. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-7Nsh2knwo MIGHTY PULLOVERS http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQuAzA1ldj8 Defiant Sally fucked around with this message at Dec 17, 2012 around 09:41 |
| # ? Dec 14, 2012 03:48 |
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Thanks for the shout-out in the new OP! I know you didn't want to do this and look like a dick, but personally, I'd have added your log to that list as well.  While we're sharing some good posts from the old thread, I think that Dr. Kyle Farnsworth (whom you did quote, just not this post) had one of the best ones: Dr. Kyle Farnsworth posted:I was doing my running at the park today and I saw this chick and her boyfriend hanging around one of the trees. Apparently, she was trying to do chinups on the branches but wasn't quite tall enough to make it. He was trying to pick her up, but he was a skinny little dude and couldn't quite do it. She was, I dunno, 110-120, not a buttertroll. The Ultimate Training Montage http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v81osfu1K0o "My better is better than your better" Nike commercial http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rHHMaiNyztk "How bad do you want it?" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsSC2vx7zFQ And since I started off this post with a bit about someone being emasculated, I'll end it that way as well. Here's Tirunesh Dibaba winning the Olympic women's 10k race, blowing away the other frontrunners (starting about 45 seconds into the video) and outright lapping a bunch of slower runners in the process: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfmomzkGVyU To be able to do that to such an elite field is incredible. And I love the little victory dance she does. Zugzwang fucked around with this message at Dec 15, 2012 around 15:28 |
| # ? Dec 15, 2012 15:22 |
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If this doesn't motivate you then I just don't even know. Don't even have to be a runner. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70UF82nysIU
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| # ? Dec 15, 2012 19:38 |
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Defiant Sally posted:Here are some motivational videos for dudes who wanna be swole as gently caress  Holy gently caress. Next workout will feature a one-ton deadlift after that video. Thanks, Sally.
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| # ? Dec 15, 2012 19:47 |
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The classic Nike 'No Excuses' advert http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obdd31Q9PqA
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| # ? Dec 15, 2012 23:22 |
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Defiant Sally posted:Arnold on "Who do you want to be in life?" What is that song playing in the video? Defiant Sally posted:Frank Zane posing to Pink Floyd. Frank Zane is a beautiful man, basically. Ah, YouTube delivers. 
enraged_camel fucked around with this message at Dec 16, 2012 around 09:09 |
| # ? Dec 16, 2012 09:04 |
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Mr. Crow posted:If this doesn't motivate you then I just don't even know. Don't even have to be a runner. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t5Peu1GkCg0 The music really enhances the footage. It's worth noting that on this same day, Ellie Greenwood also shattered the thought-unbreakable women's record set by Ann Trason back in '94 - by almost 50 minutes. Breaking any of Ann's (whose name is usually accompanied by "the great") records by that much is loving insane.
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| # ? Dec 16, 2012 16:22 |
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Defiant Sally posted:Here are some motivational videos for dudes who wanna be swole as gently caress One of the best quotes out of this that always sticks in my head is "don't be afraid to fail." Even if you fail, you still gave it a shot, you put effort in, and you can learn from the failure and see what mistakes you made. Correct the mistakes, bust your rear end, and keep trying, because you'll eventually overcome whatever made you fail previously and be a better person for it. The biggest hurdle anyone has to get over is themselves, and their brains saying "you can't do this". The second you doubt yourself, you've already given up - never doubt your abilities, change your mindset from "I can't do this" to "I'm going to try to do this, and if I fail, I'll try harder until I CAN." There's no room anywhere for half-assing or giving up...go in, do your best, put in effort, and get the desired end result you want, because you're the only person that can - nobody else is going to do it for you.
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| # ? Dec 16, 2012 19:13 |
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Zugzwang posted:Wow, nice one. That reminds me of another terrific racing video: Wow. I was a bit nervous about my first 16-miler today. I'm going to get out there and smash it. Thanks for this, truly incredible.
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| # ? Dec 16, 2012 19:44 |
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Another inspirational running video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNSWTwB-_bk
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| # ? Dec 16, 2012 21:13 |
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Every time I think I can't do it, I just think back to that thread where people lifted their couches in GBS, specifically Shine with his massive couch above his head. I wanna be able to do that!
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| # ? Dec 16, 2012 21:32 |
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Zugzwang posted:"How bad do you want it?" Heres the speech from that video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDFC16ptx-0 Not directly related to training or anything but I always get motivation from this one Be Fearless http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SQ79cgdUzs Calvin_exq3 fucked around with this message at Dec 17, 2012 around 09:36 |
| # ? Dec 17, 2012 09:26 |
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I used this as my alarm for a while http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNL_DAI19_I
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| # ? Dec 17, 2012 13:42 |
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We got a lot of chocolates at work, because it's christmas and everyone is sending each other loving chocolates. I have to walk by a massive pile of it every time I go to the printer, toilet, to get coffe or whatever. Today I haven't eaten a single one. Whenever I thought I wanted one, I'd just think "is it really loving worth it", and the answer was no. I even subconciously grabbed one and almost ate it before something in my brain shouted "what the gently caress are you doing". Then I got home, got dressed for gym, listened to some black metal and worked my rear end off even though I had just been very sick. Right now I'm sitting posting this and eating chicken and quark 
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| # ? Dec 17, 2012 19:49 |
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This may be "remedial motivation" for most of you buff folks ( ), but I recently found out about this "Zen Pencils" site, and this one in particular really makes me feel good and hopeful. It's an illustration of a Stephen Fry quote about how to be happy. (Although I do admit I was getting increasingly angry until the "It sounds like 'oh, that's so simple'" panel.)
prefect fucked around with this message at Dec 17, 2012 around 21:50 |
| # ? Dec 17, 2012 21:45 |
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Today I had some lower back pain so I took it easy on my deadlifts. I now define "easy" as multiple sets of 135lbs. Four months ago I could barely deadlift the bar. Feels good
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| # ? Dec 17, 2012 22:30 |
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I just read an article that makes me want to go to the gym right now. http://www.cracked.com/blog/6-harsh...-better-person/
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| # ? Dec 17, 2012 23:00 |
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deathbagel posted:I just read an article that makes me want to go to the gym right now. I read this this morning and have thought about little else than it since then. He makes a fantastic point - you'll take it just like you take the speech from Glengarry Glen Ross - he's either motivating you or you'll find a reason to think he's an rear end in a top hat.
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| # ? Dec 18, 2012 03:43 |
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Malloreon posted:I read this this morning and have thought about little else than it since then. He makes a fantastic point - you'll take it just like you take the speech from Glengarry Glen Ross - he's either motivating you or you'll find a reason to think he's an rear end in a top hat. When I saw that from the first time I thought "man what a jerk" but re-watching it again, Baldwin delivers like a top-class football coach giving you a kick in the nuts to get you going, not to keep you down. Good stuff. Also, that article is probably the best thing I have ever read from Cracked, haha
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| # ? Dec 18, 2012 10:42 |
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deathbagel posted:I just read an article that makes me want to go to the gym right now. To go run some miles, teach myself to draw better pertraits, to get training in the job I have and the job I want. The general message from that article hit me in the face some years ago when I realized I was now 30 and I had hosed up bigtime. I wasted my teens being an ADD teenager who made grades based on the luck of having high intelligence, not on hard work. I wasted my college years by being misirable that I needed to work for grades and I dropped out. I wasted my twenties in toxic relationships where I brought as much venom and acid as was brought to me. Then I turned 30 and I realized that everything that had happened to me was my own doing, my own inability to change and my own stubberness to accept the fact that the world would never change to fit me and this was not unfair. The world we live in, the systems we are part of are as neutral as can be, the systems don't give a poo poo about you or me. Anyway, without completely repeating the article I can say that these truths are harsh but true. If you disagree with them, you are a sore loser who only sees faults with others and none with yourself. But chances are slim you are reading this thread anyway if you are not out to improve yourself let's paste this all over the internet.
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| # ? Dec 18, 2012 13:22 |
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Keetron posted:To go run some miles, teach myself to draw better pertraits, to get training in the job I have and the job I want. I wish this message would have hit me when I was 30, took me until last year when I was 34. Wasted my youth much in the same way as you. I have told everyone I know to read this article because it really is spot, loving, on. I am going to continue my current work towards the physical build that I want to have and I am going to learn how to play the guitar this year. I am also going to expand my hobbies and cut WAY back on mindless entertainment like TV and Video Games. Transmetropolitan posted:When I saw that from the first time I thought "man what a jerk" but re-watching it again, Baldwin delivers like a top-class football coach giving you a kick in the nuts to get you going, not to keep you down. Good stuff. Yea, I was really shocked that this article was on Cracked. I usually go there for a quick chuckle, but this article really was amazing. Anyone who still hasn't read it, go do it, right now!
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| # ? Dec 18, 2012 17:37 |
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deathbagel posted:I am also going to expand my hobbies and cut WAY back on mindless entertainment like TV and Video Games. This has been something I've been working on when I can cram it in between the gym and some other projects as well. The thing I regret most in life is all the time I sank into TV and video games that I could've spent learning some cool stuff. I was never a great guitar player but I could've been much better than if I'd spent that time playing games I don't even remember practicing guitar. I've always wanted to learn to draw and maybe I'd never be an artist, but I'd be a drat sight better than I am now if I'd spent the time I devoted to nerd TV shows working on drawing. So I've been taking baby steps as time and budget allows. Last month I bought some electronics kits and learned to solder and some very basic electronics theory. This month, I'm starting on the drawing thing time permitting. My nerdy friends are aghast I'm not up on whatever they're freaking out about but I feel so much more fulfilled doing this. Biggest thing I read in the past couple of years--and what actually led to all this--was an article about boredom. The thing is, boredom is actually a good thing, because that's when you get motivated to go out and do stuff or to create stuff or work on stuff. Mindless entertainment does alleviate boredom...but it's basically an anesthetic. At the end of it, you're not bored, but you haven't created anything lasting or accomplished anything to be really proud of (and let's be real: beating that game or that really tough raid boss is something pretty much anyone with enough time and a GameFAQs FAQ could do). When I was working on gadgets, I'd be so focused and zoned out, just like when playing games or something, but I'd have a neat little gizmo and some stuff I learned by the end of it. Next year I'm planning to take a welding class at our local community college because apparently for a few hundred bucks you can learn to HARNESS THE RAW POWER OF FIRE TO FORGE METAL and that is WAY loving cooler than Adventure Time. That's not to say I don't play games anymore when I'm taking a day off, downtime is important, but downtime shouldn't be all the time. Dr. Kyle Farnsworth fucked around with this message at Dec 18, 2012 around 19:51 |
| # ? Dec 18, 2012 19:40 |
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Dr. Kyle Farnsworth posted:I've always wanted to learn to draw and maybe I'd never be an artist, but I'd be a drat sight better than I am now if I'd spent the time I devoted to nerd TV shows working on drawing. Looking forward to see your stuff in the daily drawing thread!
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| # ? Dec 18, 2012 22:53 |
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deathbagel posted:Yea, I was really shocked that this article was on Cracked. David Wong is all about leveraging his position as a poopy-butts list-humor mogul into shocking sad sacks and nice guys into new levels of self awareness, empathy, and achievement. He's an internet bodhisattva.
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| # ? Dec 19, 2012 02:11 |
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Keetron posted:Looking forward to see your stuff in the daily drawing thread! Gotta get through Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain first, but I hope to join you guys soon. 
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| # ? Dec 19, 2012 21:41 |
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Dr. Kyle Farnsworth posted:Gotta get through Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain first, but I hope to join you guys soon. The word "soon" was not there but the sooner you show stuff to the world, the less it hurts when people point out the flaws. Besides, I love to see people improve when they just start. You post when you feel ready and I hope you feel ready soontm.
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| # ? Dec 20, 2012 08:37 |
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I was working out yesterday and for some reason got to thinking about high school, and how I started working out my junior year. I had a few buddies in the same class and it was just a basic weightlifting/general health type class, where we learned proper form, different exercises and routines, diet, and so on. About halfway into the year I remember one of my buddies saying something to me that stuck with me ever since, in regard to getting the most out of a workout and pushing yourself: "I like when we pair up and work out, because you don't let me give up. You keep an eye on me but end up making me push myself harder." It's something I've always done with myself, I always push as hard as I can (while being safe) and try to get the most of a workout. When I spot people, I don't lift the weight for them, I try to help guide it more and try not to forcibly lift it unless they absolutely can't lift it themselves. I'm usually the spotter telling people "come on, one more rep, you got this" and giving some sort of encouragement. The harder you try, the better your results will be later, and the better you'll feel about working out, regardless of how sore or tired you might be.
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| # ? Dec 20, 2012 16:29 |
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Rhaka posted:A new gym opened up recently. I don't go there, but I pass it on my way home from my various martial arts classes. So I'm completely exhausted, chilling in the bus, when this giant neon sign appears in the darkness: From the old thread. Someone requested a picture, and I finally had a camera with me and a reason to get off at that stop at night. So here. 
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| # ? Dec 20, 2012 18:14 |
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My primary motivations come from a few things: 1) seeing improvements, no matter how minor. I try not to obsess on how I look or how much more I'm lifting, but when I notice with a fleeting glance how I can actually see muscle under the skin instead of a pasty sack of flesh, or when my warm-ups are more than I could lift in previous 1RMs, my confidence and urge to workout skyrocket. 2) Anymore, if I'm at work or the store and I see some sugar-laden monstrosity all but pleading to be eaten, I get an even bigger rush when I consciously choose not to eat it than if I were to stuff my face. 3) My kids; both are under five, and I know that I wouldn't be able to play with them nearly as much or as actively if I were still Jabba the Hutt. If I ever start thinking, "I don't want to workout because I'm tired/busy/other lame excuse, any of those three completely kill the negative thoughts and get me pumped (pardon the pun) to hit the gym
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| # ? Dec 20, 2012 19:43 |
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Rhaka posted:From the old thread. Someone requested a picture, and I finally had a camera with me and a reason to get off at that stop at night. So here. I'd already wussed out on going to the gym today to run. I'm tired, it's raining, my bike tire was flat. When I saw this picture I knew I had to go. Ended up spending an extra twenty minutes there.  I was just looking through my bookmarks and found this follow up to the "How Bad Do You Want It?" posted earlier. http://vimeo.com/42938576
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| # ? Dec 21, 2012 00:23 |
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I am at home for the winter and I'm having a hard time mustering up the willpower to resist snacking and over eating. This thread, my TFLC log and my support system has kept me in the gym consistently and pushing hard. My parents love to bake delicious cookies during the holiday season and there is always a massive jar in the kitchen next to the bowl of fruit. I've just been trying to keep my weight in mind and try to think of the regret I will feel if I eat them which has helped. What do you do to help you resist the temptations of excessive calories?
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| # ? Dec 21, 2012 02:49 |
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Vigilantly Vigorous posted:What do you do to help you resist the temptations of excessive calories? Go and masturbate while staring at my arm definition and think "soon I will have someone else to do this." Today was the first really lovely snowstorm of the year. So I biked there and destroyed bench press.
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| # ? Dec 21, 2012 03:42 |
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I know everyone hates this guy but this video still gets me pumped. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGQfTgqQBok
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| # ? Dec 21, 2012 13:29 |
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Tastic posted:Go and masturbate while staring at my arm definition and think "soon I will have someone else to do this." Jerking off to yourself jerking off, the ultimate display of narcissism.
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| # ? Dec 21, 2012 13:56 |
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Vigilantly Vigorous posted:I am at home for the winter and I'm having a hard time mustering up the willpower to resist snacking and over eating. This thread, my TFLC log and my support system has kept me in the gym consistently and pushing hard. My parents love to bake delicious cookies during the holiday season and there is always a massive jar in the kitchen next to the bowl of fruit. I've just been trying to keep my weight in mind and try to think of the regret I will feel if I eat them which has helped. I think of how lovely it'll make me feel to eat that terrible food, and how much extra work it'll take to burn it off. Especially anything overly sugary, or fast food/greasy food - any time I ate it in the past, it felt like it sat in my stomach forever and sapped any energy I had. Eating something healthier that's got some sweetness (fruits especially) makes me feel good not only for avoiding the bad stuff, but knowing it's more beneficial and won't make me feel like utter garbage later.
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| # ? Dec 21, 2012 15:18 |
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| # ? May 26, 2013 00:20 |
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Vigilantly Vigorous posted:What do you do to help you resist the temptations of excessive calories? Having one no holds barred massive eat whatever I want cheat meal a week, right after my hardest session in the gym. But only if I stay exactly with my nutritional guidelines the rest of the week.
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| # ? Dec 21, 2012 15:23 |
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