MOTIVATE

Motivation can be elusive, friends, so when it visits? USE IT.
This winter I walked out of Widows, the Steve McQueen movie, with a desire to look like Viola Davis in the heist scene. Laugh all you want but let me tell you something: it worked. The next day I walked into my training session with a fresh kind of determination. I said to Nathan, my trainer, "I want to look like Viola Davis in Widows." And did he scoff at me?
Absolutely not.
Did he look at me and think, we've got our work cut out for us?
Probably.
But being the awesome trainer he is, the man did not hesitate.
"Okay," he said with an affirmative nod and I could see the wheels start to turn. Immediately, my sessions started to shift from Hip Management (mentioned in my last post) to Hip plus Operation Baby Guns (OBG), a term I coined for my own journey towards a body capable of pulling off a heist with Cynthia Erivo driving the van.
And now? OBG is in full swing. Not only have my arms started to shape shift but, as is often the case, the results now resonate far below the surface. Sure, my advanced Pilates practice has grown, I'm able to haul things in and out of the car with greater ease, and my stamina is back up, but I also feel a renewed sense of self-sufficiency and power. Not surprisingly, if we look a little deeper at Widows, we see all four of the women in that film tapping into their ultimate physical strength and courage to take hold of their lives - that’s what the film is about. While it’s easy to say, “I want to look like Viola,” the essence of that movie is what got me. That’s the beauty of art and inspiration - it plays on all aspects of our experience as people, the look not mutually exclusive from the message.

I know first hand how people can be motivated by vanity, medical issues, events or jobs, and what always gets me? How IT ALL WORKS. In Los Angeles, I watched a lot of people motivated by vanity end up loving the functional benefits of their workouts. And here in the Bay Area, I've seen so many people shocked by how their self-esteem has grown as pain or weakness has diminished. No one motivator is better than another because, really, what gets you in the door wins. Whatever gives you that initial push, ultimately, is the thing that leads to the highest rewards of greater health, vitality, and confidence. Even something that might seem silly could change your life…if you let it.
So set the sharp axe of judgement aside for a moment and consider the question: What motivates you these days? What person, place, thing, scene, song, or moment has made you want to up your game? Don't judge it or write it off. Instead, focus on it entirely. Give into it. Google it, watch it, read it, reread it, listen to it, cut it out of a magazine and hang it on your bathroom mirror - notice how it makes you feel inside. You'll know you're onto something if there's a feeling of electricity inside you, as though your batteries just turned on, and you want to get up and go.

Now let this motivation guide you to real, actionable steps. For me, it was upping my game with Nathan, for you? Maybe it's recommitting to a morning jog or going to that dance class you walk by that looks fun but could you really do it? Yes! The answer is yes. Decide to do the thing now, put it on your calendar and guard it with your life. If it's a class? Sign up for it now. If it's a sweat date with a friend, call them today and hold them accountable. And when hike or class day rolls around and you feel too tired and want to cancel your plans? Return to your motivation - this means I picture Viola Davis in a tank top and black work pants pulling off a world class heist with a team of bad ass women - and do it anyway. The more you can stay connected to what genuinely makes you feel alive, the easier it will be to show up for yourself.

In honor of International Dance Day earlier this week I've included the "electric" scene from Billy Elliot and Beyoncé's Single Ladies for a 1-2 punch of danspiration. And just in case you have no idea who Cynthia Erivo is and/or why you would let her drive your getaway car? I’ve included her Tony Awards performance from 2016 below. These three get me every time.

More importantly: what gets you?
Now use it.

LOVE,

- P.