[Closed] How do you motivate yourself

Just keep doing it. It takes a while to get into the habit of doing something (6 - 8 weeks is what I heard) and it quick to fall off that train, so if you are going to go to a gym, or go running, you have to keep doing it.

I got into running that way, then the gym, although I will happily admit that being in a shit relationship and hating being out of shape (and I mean really hating) had a large hand in keeping at it. Then it became a part time job, so I had even more reason to keep going.

In all seriousness though, find a gym or something that has people that inspire you to go. I made a lot fo friends and working out in that kind of atmosphere worked for me.

Also, good luck tomorrow. Get well soon and get yourself fit!

Can't really help with the motivation aspect as I don't struggle at all with that, if anything I struggle to not go out n get stuff done and can get quite obsessive about making sure I stay active, so much so that during diagnoses despite being in constant pain and bleeding I was still on the turbo and crying while trying to pedal! But as someone who was diagnosed a smidge over 12 months ago I just wanted to wish you well and maybe for now you should just focus on

'it's important to note that this can be a lifesaving surgery for some people with IBD and will vastly improve the quality of life for many others.'

One thing I do find good for motivation is lists, todo lists and goals. It's extremely satisfying and cathartic to physically write a list and then be able to go back later and 'tick' it off.

Try and join a club or a group of mates for a ride, then it is not just a bike ride but a social meeting as well, good for both the physical exercise and the mental benefits of being with mates, plus when it is dark or raining, it motivates you to get out when others are gonig too.

But start slow and enjoy it.

It's not easy to motivate yourself when you have a long history of depression, but goals have certainly helped me over the last ~3 years to lose a load of weight and re-gain fitness I've not had in years.

Sometimes even "micro-goals" can help during a ride, yesterday afternoon was a classic example. I started the RGTcycling's Mont Ventoux turbo trainer ride and after ~45mins, I came close to calling it a day, but then pushed myself to get past 60mins to see if I could get anywhere near my best real world "hour of power" from last summer (surprisingly, I got within 1W). After reaching 60mins, I worked out if I a decent chance of completing the route in ~1hr30mins, so I kept plodding away... The last 10-15mins of climbing were brutal, my legs were wrecked and I had to resort to my easiest gear an awful lot, seeing someone fly by me and two I had almost caught up with then disappear into the distance was a bit disheartening.
But I got there and the power figures stacked up well against my efforts over the last ~15 months of having a power meter, even with still recovering from ~3 weeks of mild lurgy, where I've had to back off from hard training rides and chasing PBs. There may be hope for this summer's riding yet, despite losing ~7 weeks of intense power training this year.

Have you tried seeing anyone for depession eg CBT therapist? I guess that the depression / malaise and lack of motivation are two sides of the same coin...

My tuppence worth, if it’s any use, is this:

Go talk to someone, professionally. Have a really good look at what you are, how you’ve got here and what you want.

Only keep the stuff that makes you feel alive and fulfilled. Then draw a mental ring around that stuff. That’s yours to nurture, essentially that’s the only stuff that matters in your life. The rest of it, and that may include personal or social relationships, jobs, habits etc need to be binned.

Then ensure that you create the conditions for all the good stuff to flourish. That might be bike riding, book reading, yoga, cheese rolling or volunteering for something. Or all of them. Make proper time for them to happen. Book em in like a work meeting you cannot miss and do not budge for anyone who wants you to miss them.

Then do it all without fear. Persistently. It gets easier because it’s the stuff you love, that makes you who you are. How can you possibly fail? 😀

While convalescing (good luck) have a read or listen to 'The Chimp Paradox' by Dr Steve Peters - it certainly helped me to understand and start to tackle my frustrations with myself when it comes to motivation ad getting stuff done.

Once you have the proctectomy then that should be the end to your illness. You might tell the surgeon that you ride bikes - they can do a close dissection that minimises disruption to your pelvic floor. As its UC you will probably get this as standard but worth checking. When you are all healed up then the world is your oyster. Definitely consider joining some sort of group then at least you will have some peer pressure to get out. Hope all goes well.

keep on keeping on mate.
keep planning stuff for once you are sorted.
you may not get back to 100% but a hell of a lot dont take 100% to be fun.
i cycle round at 10mph nowadays. 10 years and 3 operations have slowed me down, but i still love riding everyday.

and when the day comes, i hope i go whilst still trying, rather than someone who has given up.

Other people.

I'm not a motivated individual - when I have others with me, I come alive.

I train pretty much every day and pretty much every day I can't be arsed, but I've made a commitment to turn up; 5 or 10 minutes in and I'm well into it.