Finding your why is fundamental to understanding what you want from life. Whether that’s physical, mental, or emotional, the question why is powerful when it comes to creating habits, good and bad.

Before setting yourself a new goal, ask yourself, why do I want to achieve it? If you’re currently going to the gym to lose weight for example, and you can’t give a specific reason as to why you want to lose weight then the chances of you succeeding are less likely than if you gave a reason such as “I want to lose weight so I can play football with my kids”. Now the goal is not about weight loss, it’s about your kids and that why is way more powerful than “I want to lose weight”.

Finding a powerful why will help motivate you and will help to install discipline when it comes to exercising, eating healthy, drinking plenty of water, and getting adequate sleep, all of which will help you go further on your fitness journey.

There are a number of ways of keeping your goal in your mind daily. Here’s a list of ideas that can help keep you consistent in achieving it:

  • Have goals written down in a place that you will see daily e.g. Write your goal on a sticky note and put it on the fridge.
  • If you want to fit into a piece of clothing, have that clothing hanging up in the bedroom where you can see it, use it as a reminder of what you want to achieve.
  • Book an event and travel plans to get there, whether it’s running a 10k, cycling a sportive, or competing in a CrossFit competition. Doing so, will help you to focus on achieving your goal that is essential to completing your chosen event.
  • Create a plan or hire a personal trainer to help with this if you’re unsure. Writing down your long term goal(s) and structuring your sessions to create a clear path to reaching that goal is way more effective than winging it.

As time goes by, your why may change and that’s fine. But having one will always help you in achieving greater results.

Life changes and with that so do our reasons. If you wanted to lose weight so you could play football with your kids and you achieve that goal, that’s amazing! But don’t settle for it, find a new why, a why just as powerful as the one before and push yourself to get better each time.

So, start now. Ask yourself, what is your why?

Words: Ross Taylor