So what is the secret to motivation? Why is it that when we have every good intention of starting a new habit, we don’t follow through or we lose the motivation? We make a plan and in the moment it seems like everything will work out and then the first bump in the road or a road block comes along and we find ourselves falling back on those same old habits and next thing you know, you’ve lost all of your motivation.

The truth is….there is no secret or magic trick to staying motivated. Motivation will always come and go. We can’t rely solely on motivation to change or start new habits/behaviors because it won’t always be there, and when the motivation goes away your left in the same place that you started. Having a system in place that is there to back you up in the moments when your motivation is lacking or missing will set you up for success. Below are some suggestions for setting yourself up for success for your new habit or behavior that can help get you through those times when motivation just isn’t enough.

Start Small

The biggest mistake that is made when starting a new habit or changing a behavior is making the change too drastic. For example, if someone wants to begin an exercise program, they’ll say I’m going to exercise for an hour 5 days a week. While that could potentially be a great long term goal, in the short term, when you miss a day or two now you’re feeling discouraged and that motivation you had starts to dwindle. What starts with just missing a day in week 1 turns into missing 3 days and eventually into stopping entirely. Sound familiar? So instead I would encourage you to start with a small step that will step you up for success towards the long term goal. So lets take that original goal of “I’m going to start exercising 5 days a week” and change it to “I’m going to exercise for 30 minutes twice a week for a month”. These small stepping stones towards the larger goal are more achievable and after 1 month, when you’ve accomplished this goal, you will feel empowered rather than discouraged. After the month is over you can re-evaluate and see if you feel ready to add in more workouts or if further changes or adjustments need to be made to set yourself up for success.

Make a Plan

Many of us have more time than we realize. A lot of time can be wasted by sitting in front of the TV, scrolling through social media, and browsing the internet. I suggest investing in a planner or calendar that lets you plan out your day, my favorite planner is Passion Planner. Use this planner to block out chunks of time where you have commitments and see where you have room in your day. After you decide which days and times are available to you, schedule in your workouts (or your new goal/behavior) for the week just like you would an appointment. You could also put an alert or alarm in your phone to help remind you. This way if you don’t “feel” like working out you know you have appointment with yourself to keep that day. It also will help prevent you from missing your workout due to losing track of time either from work or home life. Something that works well for me when I don’t “feel” like working out is at least trying the warm-up. Usually if I start my warm-up I feel better by the time the warm-up is done and I’m looking forward to the rest of my workout. This system can also can be helpful for meal planning. Whether you enjoying your meals each day or you prefer to meal prep, having a plan can help you stick to your intentions and make skipping your meal and getting take-out less tempting. Use your planner to schedule when you will do you meal prep or on which days you would like to eat which meals.

Find Support From a Group, Family Member, or Friend

The buddy system is a powerful tool. When things really start to fall apart or your having trouble sticking to your plan, having a friend or someone you can rely on or confide in can help keep you on your path. For example, maybe your buddy also wants to start working out. Make it a point to text/FaceTime/call each other after each workout or at the end of the week to check in with each other and hold yourself accountable. An example for myself is having a running buddy that keeps me committed to completing my trail runs each week.

Hire a Professional or Coach

Hiring a professional or coach to help you reach goals is another great way to keep you on your path when motivation is lacking. With the example of working out, committing to training sessions with a personal trainer or coach, joining a small group, or purchasing a program can help to hold you accountable to your workouts each week. Likewise, hiring a registered dietitian or nutrition coach can help take the guess work out of your meal plans each week. Knowing what foods to eat can save you time planning out your meals and recipes and also will save time grocery shopping. As always, before hiring any coach or professional make sure you do research and find a coach that is good fit for you (please no cookie cutter programs, skinny teas, detoxes, cleanses, or other “fast” fixes).

Remember that nobody is motivated 100% of time. Relying solely on motivation to get you to your goal is not the best way to set yourself up for success, because at some point we will all lose motivation. Implementing some of the techniques mentioned above will give you a support system to fallback on when motivation lacks. While I used the example of exercise or nutrition, these techniques can be used to help support any new habit or behavior change. Leave a comment below and let me know what your own experience with motivation has been.