Author Topic: How do you reward yourself?  (Read 16122 times)

Credaholic

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How do you reward yourself?
« on: January 05, 2015, 10:48:57 PM »
How do you reward yourself as motivation? I'm trying to give myself some extra incentive for sticking with a workout plan this month, but the MMM in me can't come up with an incentive! I know a lot of people but themselves something they want, or get a manicure or something, but I don't want to do anything that costs money. It's like an anti incentive. So what's an MMM friendly version of reward?

peachfuzz1

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #1 on: January 05, 2015, 10:56:50 PM »
Learn what there is to love in a workout. It might take a while, but eventually it becomes something very exhilarating and something your body will crave.

greaper007

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #2 on: January 05, 2015, 11:07:42 PM »
Why not do the opposite of the workout at the end of the month.   Get a nice bottle of wine and a steak, or eat at McDonald's, eat a bag of starbursts if that's your thing.   You have to eat food, and it wouldn't be that much more to eat something horrible for you for a meal or two.

I did the slow carb diet a few years ago and I really liked the cheat days.     I'd eat a whole pizza, or a bag of gummi bears, drink a few beers, whatever.    It was nice motivation to get through the week.

I've been working out for 3-5 days a week for the last 15 years or so.   I've yet to find anything I like about it beyond wearing the same size pants at 34 as 19.    It does get easier though and just becomes part of your routine.    Sort of like brushing your teeth, which many nights I don't want to do but still do out of a habitual need.
« Last Edit: January 05, 2015, 11:19:04 PM by greaper007 »

The_Crustache

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #3 on: January 06, 2015, 03:45:17 AM »
Maybe it's not about rewarding yourself but "enabling" others to reward you.

Host a BYOB party at your house, or a soup exchange or a potluck party, or a movie night with all your friends.
Call up a love interest to come over and cook dinner or watch a movie or whatever.
Go on a walk at the mall, or around a book store just browsing, or in your downtown area, in an active part of the city, at a park or recreational trail, by a lake or river nearby if there is one. Better yet, bring a friend.
Or just pay it forward, showering people with kind words, compliments, well wishing, or genuinely interested questions about how they're doing. If you wanna take that one step further, use that cheat day that others have recommended to volunteer, or help out a friend with something.

The key here is doing something different than the norm, and trying to spread the joy, and be social, while not losing focus on your goal. Doing "something else" helps to diffuse that restless energy.

It's at your discretion what you want to share about why you're celebrating, though.

EDSMedS

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #4 on: January 06, 2015, 05:33:51 AM »
Take a hike.  Stare at the sky for a stupid long time.  Smell the wet leaves.  Touch a bumpy tree.  Bring a clementine and some almonds!

The world is pretty fucking fantastic.

Rural

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #5 on: January 06, 2015, 05:38:26 AM »
Chocolate. Buy a bag at the beginning of the month, only get to eat a piece after a workout. Likely I would not have to buy a bag every month; YMMV.

deborah

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #6 on: January 06, 2015, 05:40:30 AM »
Write a post in the "share your basassity" section, and get everyone here to congratulate you, and emulate your awesomeness!

vhalros

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #7 on: January 06, 2015, 05:41:54 AM »
What is the reward for the effort of building a house? Its a house. Similarly, my reward for improving my physical fitness is improved physical fitness.

For example, I had a long term goal to squat a certain weight that I finally managed to hit at the end of 2014; that was very rewarding. Squats are barbells may not be your thing, but I would suggest focusing on something you want to do or be, and focusing on your goals. They may be modest; biking to the grocery store with ease, for example. Or maybe there is a trail you would like to hike that you cannot yet tackle.

Of course, a month is not a lot of time to achieve anything stupendous; the reward for building a tenth of a house is not much. You may want to break it up into mile stones.
« Last Edit: January 06, 2015, 05:45:32 AM by vhalros »

Roots&Wings

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #8 on: January 06, 2015, 07:08:12 AM »
Maybe think of your potential reduced health-care costs down the line by investing now in staying healthy? 
Maybe think of being fit and active in your older years instead of taking tons of drugs and being a couch potato?
Maybe try a workout that involves others (e.g. walk with a friend or dog) which can bring other rewards like social interaction/relationships?

Those are the things that motivate me to workout anyway :)

Paul der Krake

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #9 on: January 06, 2015, 07:10:06 AM »
Chipotle, craft beer, and a handful of Rolos.

GuitarStv

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #10 on: January 06, 2015, 07:31:45 AM »
I live an awesome life to reward myself.  This means spending time with people I love, doing things I want to do, and minimizing problems as much as possible by trying to anticipate them ahead of time.

If you need motivation to work out, maybe you're doing the wrong workout for you.  You should be looking forward to each workout not because of a future bribe, but because of how it makes you feel, how much better your performance is, how it helps you reach health goals, etc.
« Last Edit: January 06, 2015, 07:47:43 AM by GuitarStv »

Grog

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #11 on: January 06, 2015, 07:38:04 AM »
It sounds to me (maybe I'm wrong) that you want to work-out because of fitness/health and not because of  muscle/body-building.

If you really only want to stay healthy/lose weight, you don't need to stick to a plan, but instead do physical activities that you like. I rarely work out in a gym (i hate it) but instead I play floor-hockey with work colleagues almost 4 hour a week, I bike everywhere and I hike/trek very often.

I found that playing some game/sport is so funny that I never needs "motivation".


Credaholic

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #12 on: January 06, 2015, 08:58:58 AM »
I did Focus T25 for about a month and then took 2 weeks off over the holidays. I really enjoy doing it (although it is hard as hell!) and my toddler is absolutely hilarious doing it along side me. It's a good time and I feel great after doing it. However, I wasn't able to stick to the schedule (there's a calendar of a different workout every weekday, plus two on Fridays, and then a break on the weekend.) I'd like to see if I can stick with it perfectly this month, which is a big challenge given that I work full time and am basically single momming two kids two and under while my husband builds our house after his full time job, hence the desire to reward myself as more incentive. I have a feeling being extremely organized is going to go further than a reward though...

I'm not the kind who loves working out, I'm just never going to be. I eat healthy and I'm thin, but I'm trying to commit to this workout because after two babies I have 10-15 lbs to lose and some toning to do to get back to some semblance of where I was. Once I achieve that goal, I'll likely go back to just being active the way I was before - walks with the kids, hiking down to the beach by our house, bike rides, chasing after toddlers, etc. I am open to hearing thoughts on that - is a semi active lifestyle enough to ward off health concerns in the future?

Chocolate. Buy a bag at the beginning of the month, only get to eat a piece after a workout. Likely I would not have to buy a bag every month; YMMV.
Chipotle, craft beer, and a handful of Rolos.
I have been thinking lately that a small adjustment in diet could get me to my goals a lot faster along with working out. I do eat pretty healthy balanced meals, but I have a chocolate chip cookie addiction. Would probably be a great motivator to say cookie only after working out. Thanks for that suggestion! I also drink alcohol so rarely that it would be easy to give up. I could then reward myself at the end of the month with a nice IPA. Thanks for the suggestions!


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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #13 on: January 06, 2015, 09:56:48 AM »
I'm a bit lucky in that my city is all gently sloped. My ride home from work is my reward (downhill). It took a bit to get used to it, but between the challenges in the gauntlet section, and some writing to shift my perspective to starting to get stoked about the rides. It became it's own reward. The writing really helped me.

You know how it's supposed to be impossible to stay mad while biting a pen (essentially faking a smile)? I find that writing and cheering can very quickly turn something you aren't stoked about to something you look forward to. At the end of your workout, grab a giant glass of ice water, plaster a smile on your face, and high five someone. Also, if you need additional support, join the strength and fitness challenge in my signature. I've been doing a few of the T25 workouts with my girlfriend after she gets home. I have a lot of options, and we just started those. They are good stuff. You know towards the end where the people start really sweating and kind of cheering? Join them!

Granted, to address the question of whether a semi active lifestyle is good enough, that depends on your diet and your genetics. For me,  so long as I maintain a primal-esque diet (and go easy on the craft beers), I can stay relatively thin (~170lbs). However, even though I looked all right, I didn't have great endurance, strength, or tone. So I try to set specific goals that give me a reason to continue the strength training aspect. Stuff like doing a slackline, trying out for American Ninja Warrior, completing a tough mudder competition, doing a zombie 5K, and the like. So even though a completely non-active life would technically be okay for me, I had to set some goals that got me off my ass. YMMV.

Credaholic

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #14 on: January 06, 2015, 10:28:46 AM »
At the end of your workout, grab a giant glass of ice water, plaster a smile on your face, and high five someone. Also, if you need additional support, join the strength and fitness challenge in my signature. I've been doing a few of the T25 workouts with my girlfriend after she gets home. I have a lot of options, and we just started those. They are good stuff. You know towards the end where the people start really sweating and kind of cheering? Join them!

You know how there are 5 people working out on T25, and Tanya always seems to be the last one to get a high five?? I always pretend I'm high fiving Tanya at the end of the workout lol ;-) My 2 year old yelling "Good job, Mom!" and "Focus!" is also great motivation. And watching him try to do lunges - priceless.

jordanread

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #15 on: January 06, 2015, 10:43:38 AM »
You know how there are 5 people working out on T25, and Tanya always seems to be the last one to get a high five?? I always pretend I'm high fiving Tanya at the end of the workout lol ;-) My 2 year old yelling "Good job, Mom!" and "Focus!" is also great motivation. And watching him try to do lunges - priceless.

Well, there you go! The workout is already a reward, if only for the 2 year old workout partner. Maybe make a habit of taking a picture of the two of you after every workout, or cheering with ice water. Could eventually be turned into a collage or a book or something, plus it would be awesome.

rmendpara

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #16 on: January 06, 2015, 04:08:08 PM »
How do you reward yourself as motivation? I'm trying to give myself some extra incentive for sticking with a workout plan this month, but the MMM in me can't come up with an incentive! I know a lot of people but themselves something they want, or get a manicure or something, but I don't want to do anything that costs money. It's like an anti incentive. So what's an MMM friendly version of reward?

Pick a savings rate that would make you feel successful and that will put your medium/long term financial goals in your path. If you are going way over, say 5%+ (or create your own number), then it's possible you are sacrificing over your own personal threshold.

For me, that amount is roughly 40% savings of total gross income. If I catch myself going over 45%, I'll keep note that it's okay to loosen the purse strings for things that are valuable to me (maybe take the parents/sister out a bit more, a nice gift for a close friend's wedding, a trip home to visit aging grandparents even just for a weekend, etc). That "thing" will be different for each of us, but there is such a thing as giving up too much today for tomorrow, for tomorrow may never come. Don't live in fear, but don't be too conservative either. Life happens.

4alpacas

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #17 on: January 06, 2015, 04:12:28 PM »
How do you reward yourself as motivation? I'm trying to give myself some extra incentive for sticking with a workout plan this month, but the MMM in me can't come up with an incentive! I know a lot of people but themselves something they want, or get a manicure or something, but I don't want to do anything that costs money. It's like an anti incentive. So what's an MMM friendly version of reward?
When I reward myself, I pull out a chocolate croissant from the freezer (purchased in packs of 4 from Trader Joe's) to rise over night.  Hot tea and a hot chocolate croissant.  SO amazing!  SO decadent.

When my DH and I are celebrating something, we'll splurge on a great cut of meat to cook at home.  It's such a treat.  Plus we spend time together in the kitchen prepping the food, which is a rare occurrence. 

jordanread

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #18 on: January 06, 2015, 04:21:04 PM »
[...]
When my DH and I are celebrating something, we'll splurge on a great cut of meat to cook at home.  It's such a treat.  Plus we spend time together in the kitchen prepping the food, which is a rare occurrence.

+1 to a really good cut of meat.

Cassie

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #19 on: January 06, 2015, 05:29:56 PM »
I read that one day a week you should eat more calories then you burn to keep your body confused. Otherwise if you eat say 1600 calories a day consistently then your body will adjust & your metabolism slows down.  So one day I eat more then normal.  This is my reward for exercising daily & counting my calories.  Occasionally if I really don't feel like exercising I skip it but not consistently. 

BlueHouse

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #20 on: January 06, 2015, 05:43:03 PM »
www.coach.me.   It's free.  (also an app for iTunes or Android).    You sign up for a goal and each time you meet that goal, you get a big green check mark on your phone.  It's strangely satisfying. Lots of different goals to sign up for, from "read for 30 minutes each day" to "train for a marathon".  Oh, and other users can praise you when you've done something you said you would. 
There is a pay version as well where you actually get coached, and I may do that at some point if I feel its worth it (it would be a lot less than a personal trainer). 

Bateaux

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #21 on: January 06, 2015, 05:57:44 PM »
Just took a great 7 day cruise from New Orleans to Mexico, Belize and Roatan.   It cost us 1/1000 of our savings or about 1/100 our annual salary. Well worth it, unbelievable deal on the Norwegian Dawn.
We've earned it.

puglogic

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #22 on: January 06, 2015, 09:52:17 PM »
Chipotle, craft beer, and a handful of Rolos.

That. On the way to the free day at the art museum.  With a friend.  Life is so good.

RapmasterD

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #23 on: January 06, 2015, 10:05:03 PM »
I like to fire up an episode of "Matlock" on YouTube.

I watch it while drinking a cold glass of Crystal Light.

Good times.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=044yalW7I7s

lbdance

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #24 on: January 07, 2015, 01:49:41 AM »
Another option is to take some relaxing time out for yourself
Plan it with your husband before hand (great for accountability) then take an hour or two to do something by yourself that you want to do.
Be this, a walk, a bath (with bubbles / candlelight / book), time just to sit and read, write in a journal etc, coffee date with a friend you don't see often enough etc.


GuitarStv

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #25 on: January 07, 2015, 05:30:59 AM »
I read that one day a week you should eat more calories then you burn to keep your body confused. Otherwise if you eat say 1600 calories a day consistently then your body will adjust & your metabolism slows down.  So one day I eat more then normal.  This is my reward for exercising daily & counting my calories.  Occasionally if I really don't feel like exercising I skip it but not consistently.

What you have read is untrue.

Your metabolism speeds up or slows down based on the amount of exercise you get, the amount of fat/lean muscle on your body, and the calories you burn to keep yourself warm.  Eating below your daily caloric requirements doesn't slow down your metabolism (unless your body has gone catabolic and is breaking down your muscle).  Eating above your daily caloric requirement will store additional fat, not speed up metabolism.

arebelspy

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #26 on: January 07, 2015, 08:18:08 AM »
Quote
How do you reward yourself?

I think you may be asking yourself the wrong question.

Try this one:
Quote
How can I design my life such that everything I do is rewarding?

Then there's no need to "reward" yourself, as everything is constantly awesome.
I am a former teacher who accumulated a bunch of real estate, retired at 29, spent some time traveling the world full time and am now settled with three kids.
If you want to know more about me, this Business Insider profile tells the story pretty well.
I (rarely) blog at AdventuringAlong.com. Check out the Now page to see what I'm up to currently.

Cromacster

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #27 on: January 07, 2015, 08:54:39 AM »
We've earned it.

We've had similar discussions on the forum here before, but......You haven't earned anything beyond your compensation for work or returns*.  This is the mentality that gets people stuck under mountains of debt.  The exact mentality that is counter to what mustachianism is about.

*I understand this is semantics, but the idea that you've earned a vacation, or a car, or whatever luxury is a dangerous concept in my opinion.

vhalros

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #28 on: January 07, 2015, 09:09:57 AM »
Quote
Then there's no need to "reward" yourself, as everything is constantly awesome.

More or less what I was trying to get at. Being physically fit is a better state to be in than not being physically fit, and so is its own reward. You can focus on the benefits if this does not feel rewarding enough.

arebelspy

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #29 on: January 07, 2015, 09:21:03 AM »
Quote
Then there's no need to "reward" yourself, as everything is constantly awesome.

More or less what I was trying to get at. Being physically fit is a better state to be in than not being physically fit, and so is its own reward. You can focus on the benefits if this does not feel rewarding enough.

I am a former teacher who accumulated a bunch of real estate, retired at 29, spent some time traveling the world full time and am now settled with three kids.
If you want to know more about me, this Business Insider profile tells the story pretty well.
I (rarely) blog at AdventuringAlong.com. Check out the Now page to see what I'm up to currently.

vhalros

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #30 on: January 07, 2015, 10:05:01 AM »
I'm not trying to moralize. Its a bit less abstract that "virtue is its own reward"; being physically fit lets you do stuff, or at least do stuff better. Chase your kids around with out getting tired, move your furniture with out throwing out your back, whatever you like.

Kris

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #31 on: January 07, 2015, 11:00:24 AM »
I'm just gonna weigh in here to say, that one of the most profound things MMM has helped me to realize, is that this "rewarding yourself for meeting a goal" concept is one more manifestation of equating spending with happiness.  If we are thinking in the mindset "Once I meet goal X, I will reward myself with a treat because I deserve it", we are actually reinforcing in our minds that the ultimate happiness lies in acquiring things.

 Which isn't true at all, is it?


greaper007

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #32 on: January 07, 2015, 11:12:17 AM »
I think perhaps we should replace the word "reward" with "motivate."    Motivation is difficult when making a major lifestyle change and using reinforcements early in the journey does help someone continue on the journey.   12 step programs use chips or baked goods to celebrate a goal.   I think things like cheat meals help with diets.    Keeping a log, taking a regular picture of yourself, or just stripping down and admiring your new muscles in the mirror are all helpful for workouts.    If you want to get really crazy, jerk off or have sex in front of the mirror, just don't tell anyone about it.

For me, "fitness and health as their own rewards" is too nebulous.    I fortunately (or unfortunately) have a body that gets simply gets soft if I don't work out.   I don't really gain weight, even if I eat KFC everyday.   I've also been blessed with excellent health and even the heavy people in my family seem to keep on trucking without major diseases for most of their life.   I can still carry heavy things, run a few miles or swim a long distance after a long absence from working out.   So I like to embrace vanity as my reward.   Yes it's shallow, but I enjoy admiring my body's definition after a workout.    Competing with other people doesn't really motivate me.   But a 6 pack does.    YMMV

sheepstache

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #33 on: January 07, 2015, 11:41:34 AM »
Buy yerself another share of VTSAX.

DeltaBond

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #34 on: January 07, 2015, 02:03:19 PM »
I like to fire up an episode of "Matlock" on YouTube.

I watch it while drinking a cold glass of Crystal Light.

Good times.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=044yalW7I7s

Just to be a punk, I almost reported this to the moderator, LOL.  Seriously, I get accupuncture if I want to reward myself.

Peacefulwarrior

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #35 on: January 10, 2015, 04:21:53 AM »
The obvious reward for working out is looking good and being healthy. I don't see why you would need any other rewards than these.

Credaholic

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #36 on: January 10, 2015, 09:22:59 AM »
The obvious reward for working out is looking good and being healthy. I don't see why you would need any other rewards than these.

Tell that to millions of overweight people and people who don't enjoy working out.

Peacefulwarrior

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #37 on: January 10, 2015, 09:45:36 AM »
The obvious reward for working out is looking good and being healthy. I don't see why you would need any other rewards than these.

Tell that to millions of overweight people and people who don't enjoy working out.

A waste of time, they're sleepwalkers. I figure that the folks in here is quite a bit more aware of how their choices form their lifes.

Credaholic

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #38 on: January 10, 2015, 12:05:58 PM »
There's a big difference between being generally healthy (eating well, being active, having good genes that all but gaurantee you'll see at least your 90th birthday) and working out to lose the vanity weight that stuck around after having two babies and trying to tone up your abs and arms. While I understand that some people love working out, get addicted to it even, or find they're actually unhappy if they can't squeeze their workout for the day in, other people are the opposite. I can be conscientious about my spending and saving without being an exercise aficionado. I'm sure the majority of MMMs fall somewhere in a healthy weight but maybe a little softer in the middle than they'd like range. I want to stick with this exercise plan, and could use a little extra help to do so. I'm finding that motivation from the throw down the gauntlet board is helping, along with keeping my daily to do's very organized. I don't think there's anything wrong with wanting a little extra motivation to keep going with something you wouldn't necessarily do if you were just doing whatever you felt like that day.

Peacefulwarrior

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #39 on: January 10, 2015, 03:02:47 PM »
There's a big difference between being generally healthy (eating well, being active, having good genes that all but gaurantee you'll see at least your 90th birthday) and working out to lose the vanity weight that stuck around after having two babies and trying to tone up your abs and arms. While I understand that some people love working out, get addicted to it even, or find they're actually unhappy if they can't squeeze their workout for the day in, other people are the opposite. I can be conscientious about my spending and saving without being an exercise aficionado. I'm sure the majority of MMMs fall somewhere in a healthy weight but maybe a little softer in the middle than they'd like range. I want to stick with this exercise plan, and could use a little extra help to do so. I'm finding that motivation from the throw down the gauntlet board is helping, along with keeping my daily to do's very organized. I don't think there's anything wrong with wanting a little extra motivation to keep going with something you wouldn't necessarily do if you were just doing whatever you felt like that day.

I think that every time you tell yourself that you need to be rewarded for exercising you're also telling yourself that you don't like to exercise. If you did you wouldn't need a reward. As long as you have this mindset it will be very hard to make it a lasting change. I'm not sure how long you've kept up with this - it will always be hard in the beginning, but if you keep hating it you need to change your plan, because sooner or later you will come off track if you hate it so much. You really need to find a way to live a healthy and active lifestyle that you actually enjoy.

sheepstache

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #40 on: January 10, 2015, 08:13:01 PM »
There's a big difference between being generally healthy (eating well, being active, having good genes that all but gaurantee you'll see at least your 90th birthday) and working out to lose the vanity weight that stuck around after having two babies and trying to tone up your abs and arms. While I understand that some people love working out, get addicted to it even, or find they're actually unhappy if they can't squeeze their workout for the day in, other people are the opposite. I can be conscientious about my spending and saving without being an exercise aficionado. I'm sure the majority of MMMs fall somewhere in a healthy weight but maybe a little softer in the middle than they'd like range. I want to stick with this exercise plan, and could use a little extra help to do so. I'm finding that motivation from the throw down the gauntlet board is helping, along with keeping my daily to do's very organized. I don't think there's anything wrong with wanting a little extra motivation to keep going with something you wouldn't necessarily do if you were just doing whatever you felt like that day.

I think that every time you tell yourself that you need to be rewarded for exercising you're also telling yourself that you don't like to exercise. If you did you wouldn't need a reward. As long as you have this mindset it will be very hard to make it a lasting change. I'm not sure how long you've kept up with this - it will always be hard in the beginning, but if you keep hating it you need to change your plan, because sooner or later you will come off track if you hate it so much. You really need to find a way to live a healthy and active lifestyle that you actually enjoy.

That's why I never reward myself with a treat or a day off after getting root canal done. I figure so long as I don't reward myself, I'll eventually enjoy root canals.

I understand the psychology of external rewards watering down internal rewards, but that doesn't mean it's a blanket solution for every situation. I mean, they also used it in Chinese prison camps (prisoners were given small prizes for winning essay contests praising the Chinese state; larger prizes would have been too obvious a motivation; smaller prizes created a nagging feeling in the men's minds that maybe they believed what they wrote); it's not necessarily some superior spirituality, just one of many ways to manipulate the mind. Different solutions work best for different situations and different people.

Zikoris

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #41 on: January 10, 2015, 11:13:18 PM »
As far as exercise goes, I think it's valuable to just try to find types that you really enjoy, and make it fun. There would be pretty much no limit on how much time I could happily spend in a dance studio. Climbing mountains is fun but has an eventual time limit - after about 5 hours it's less fun, unless the scenery is incredible. Even doing strength exercises at home is fun with some good music and my boyfriend joining in here and there.

Gym? Wouldn't work for me. I'd be miserable. Maybe some sort of group classes could work.

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #42 on: January 11, 2015, 12:36:33 AM »
There's a big difference between being generally healthy (eating well, being active, having good genes that all but gaurantee you'll see at least your 90th birthday) and working out to lose the vanity weight that stuck around after having two babies and trying to tone up your abs and arms. While I understand that some people love working out, get addicted to it even, or find they're actually unhappy if they can't squeeze their workout for the day in, other people are the opposite. I can be conscientious about my spending and saving without being an exercise aficionado. I'm sure the majority of MMMs fall somewhere in a healthy weight but maybe a little softer in the middle than they'd like range. I want to stick with this exercise plan, and could use a little extra help to do so. I'm finding that motivation from the throw down the gauntlet board is helping, along with keeping my daily to do's very organized. I don't think there's anything wrong with wanting a little extra motivation to keep going with something you wouldn't necessarily do if you were just doing whatever you felt like that day.

I think that every time you tell yourself that you need to be rewarded for exercising you're also telling yourself that you don't like to exercise. If you did you wouldn't need a reward. As long as you have this mindset it will be very hard to make it a lasting change. I'm not sure how long you've kept up with this - it will always be hard in the beginning, but if you keep hating it you need to change your plan, because sooner or later you will come off track if you hate it so much. You really need to find a way to live a healthy and active lifestyle that you actually enjoy.

That's why I never reward myself with a treat or a day off after getting root canal done. I figure so long as I don't reward myself, I'll eventually enjoy root canals.


If all kinds of psychical exercise feels as bad to you as a root canal I think you need to go to the doctor. There is something seriously wrong with your body. Exercise is rewarded chemically via neurotransmitters (serotonin and dopamine) and is supposed to make you feel awesome.

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #43 on: January 11, 2015, 11:20:10 AM »
There's a big difference between being generally healthy (eating well, being active, having good genes that all but gaurantee you'll see at least your 90th birthday) and working out to lose the vanity weight that stuck around after having two babies and trying to tone up your abs and arms. While I understand that some people love working out, get addicted to it even, or find they're actually unhappy if they can't squeeze their workout for the day in, other people are the opposite. I can be conscientious about my spending and saving without being an exercise aficionado. I'm sure the majority of MMMs fall somewhere in a healthy weight but maybe a little softer in the middle than they'd like range. I want to stick with this exercise plan, and could use a little extra help to do so. I'm finding that motivation from the throw down the gauntlet board is helping, along with keeping my daily to do's very organized. I don't think there's anything wrong with wanting a little extra motivation to keep going with something you wouldn't necessarily do if you were just doing whatever you felt like that day.

I think that every time you tell yourself that you need to be rewarded for exercising you're also telling yourself that you don't like to exercise. If you did you wouldn't need a reward. As long as you have this mindset it will be very hard to make it a lasting change. I'm not sure how long you've kept up with this - it will always be hard in the beginning, but if you keep hating it you need to change your plan, because sooner or later you will come off track if you hate it so much. You really need to find a way to live a healthy and active lifestyle that you actually enjoy.

That's why I never reward myself with a treat or a day off after getting root canal done. I figure so long as I don't reward myself, I'll eventually enjoy root canals.


If all kinds of psychical exercise feels as bad to you as a root canal I think you need to go to the doctor. There is something seriously wrong with your body. Exercise is rewarded chemically via neurotransmitters (serotonin and dopamine) and is supposed to make you feel awesome.

It was funny. Something about your previous post kind of rubbed me the wrong way, but I couldn't figure out why since I actually agreed with pretty much everything you said. However, sheepstach nailed it regarding the blanket solution. There are a lot of things in this day and age that have totally messed with those neurotransmitters. The more we learn about them, the more products take advantage of that. Sometimes the reward is an intermediate step while retraining your brain. It's not a permanent solution, and once we get more and more healthy, and more and more into the workout, it becomes it's own reward.


Oh, and OP...I still haven't seen those high five pictures!!

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #44 on: January 11, 2015, 06:38:06 PM »
Call me weird, but I think thin women generally look 20 times better post pregnancy.   Toned arms and abs are just not attractive to me.   I love how my wife looks after two kids.   She has a fantastic, big butt and double d's.   

I don't really get modern, Caucasian ideals of feminine beauty.    Give me Joan from Mad Men any day of the week.

I say eat what you want and do some light exercise to stay healthy.   I bet you look super hot right now.

GuitarStv

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #45 on: January 12, 2015, 06:36:50 AM »
I suspect that looking more like this woman:


. . . is likely the goal of vanity oriented exercise for most women.

DeltaBond

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #46 on: January 12, 2015, 08:42:41 AM »
Its interesting how short this thread is, with the excercise semantics argument there aside, but people who live frugally tend to get a lot of rewards in life already... and also, might not be the best at treating themselves.

Sometimes, I'll buy something small for myself from my extremely long amazon wishlist, or eat out, and not feel bad about that.  Or, I'll put off some chore I hate and enjoy the day instead.

JLee

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #47 on: January 12, 2015, 09:02:27 AM »
Its interesting how short this thread is, with the excercise semantics argument there aside, but people who live frugally tend to get a lot of rewards in life already... and also, might not be the best at treating themselves.

Sometimes, I'll buy something small for myself from my extremely long amazon wishlist, or eat out, and not feel bad about that.  Or, I'll put off some chore I hate and enjoy the day instead.
Haha, it's funny- I actually went through my Amazon wish list after re-evaluating my 'stuff' needs and it became drastically shorter. I have a hard time now finding things that I legitimately want to add to it.

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #48 on: January 12, 2015, 11:00:59 AM »
I suspect that looking more like this woman:


. . . is likely the goal of vanity oriented exercise for most women.

Disagree, I would have to gain considerable weight to be Christina Hendricks. My definition of vanity exercise is wanting to be more confident in a bikini again and go from size 6 pants back to size 4. That being said, I love Christina Hendricks and her curves, and Greaper007's comment definitely made me smile. It's an opinion I think a lot of people share (especially small chested women who suddenly need new bras after kids!)

That might be why sticking to a weight loss plan can be hard for someone who doesn't really need to lose weight, and where a little extra reward incentive can come in handy. I was also thinking about how if I needed to lose 50 lbs, good diet and exercise would probably have a quick impact. It's always the last 10 lbs that everyone says is the hardest to lose, and since that's all I've got, my weight loss efforts are likely to be more frustrating than others, and more likely to be abandoned since I'm fine with myself regularly clothed. It's just that little bit extra that your body carries around the mid section after stretching out to house another life for 9 months that could look better in a bikini.

And as hot as she is, Christina Hendricks never wears a two-piece.

Credaholic

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Re: How do you reward yourself?
« Reply #49 on: January 12, 2015, 11:22:23 AM »
Its interesting how short this thread is, with the excercise semantics argument there aside, but people who live frugally tend to get a lot of rewards in life already... and also, might not be the best at treating themselves.

It is interesting, but I'm not surprised that other people would have as hard a time as I was thinking up a "special treat" to reward themselves with. The thing I like to do best is be outside playing and exploring with my kids, and the rest of my wish list is similarly free. Spending money isn't enjoyable to me, it just makes me feel uneasy. My husband will attest that I'm the worst to shop for at Christmas. And the things I do like are hard to consider treats, because they're generally positive things that I'm going to do anyway. I suppose I could do something like buy myself a book that isn't available through my library on Overdrive for free, but that treat carries with it existential guilt that ruins the reward!