General Know How...

Some time ago I strolled over to my old school-gym with a friend (I'd left the school that time). I had no real purpose there and was just looking for some known faces while chatting with the incharge when someone told us that some nice girls from the girls-hostel workout there! My friend there, who had absolutely no intention or reason to join that gym and was actually ridiculing the poor ventilation etc some how got excited about the prospects of working out with some slim n attractive girls and joined it right away(and is still there). I don't see much improvement in his delts but he certainly got a date there! Infact, one of the gym nearby has got popular just because some of the good-looking girls in my locality workout there.

I hope you go to your gym with a different purpose. Still you need to consider things like :

• Why am I doing all that HARDwork anyway?
  
  Well, getting your muscles sour by lifting those weights is not something you will be willing to do out of the gym! I mean jumping like a kangaroo for 20 minutes, stretching far beyond your muscle will ever allow, lifting weights an average man will never think of, getting as wet as you'd be after a bath (in sweat), expecting your muscles to ache for two days, punching at the sandbag until your knuckles are painful and actually paying for all that hard work(!!) are not things you or your your body will like to do naturally.          
  
  So, what makes you do all that stuff? Its MOTIVATION, ie, You expect something in return. Just be clear about that "thing". That is the source of your motivation. It can be becoming more strong and hard, impressing your gf, getting an attractive body to show off to your friends, reducing flab or anything else. Just remember that the size and definiion of your muscles will depend upon that ONLY. If you are clear about it, you will be amaazed at the results. But if its vague then ofcourse your muscles will be "vague" too!!
  
  Now, I won't go much into "how to be inspired" part but what works for most of the people and is the most logical and effective technique is to think/visualize of what you will gain when you've got your dream body. Imagine that you have finally developed those fancy pecs and delts and think about how your friends will feel jealous or how gals will admire your cuts (basically imagine the thing you are working for). Imagine this clearly and vividly, actually SEE yourself with that muscular and chiselled body in your mind and the effects it will bring to other people, and you will be amazed at how speedily all that laziness will melt away and the zeal with which you workout.
  
  
• What is my goal?
  
  What do you think boosts confidence and keeps yourself regular? You want to do ONLY those things, in which you get some success. This is human nature. If you can't succeed in something in the first two or three attempts, then its unlikely that you will try it the fourth time. But if you do succeed, then you will automatically start enjoying it and you will try to do more of it. This is the secret behind all those top rankers in any field.
  
  I consider it the most important stage. People start it with all the zeal, they are very clear about the "why exercise" part, but still they drop it midway complaining that they're not making any progress! Why? Because they don't know what they are going for! They work out with aims like getting delts like Hrithik Roshan or pecs like Salman Khan. But they don't gain much with this approach. Simply because it takes months or even years before one can develope those fancy bodies and with all the patience in the world a normal person is in can't continue exercising for that long.
  
  So, it is of prime importance to be clear about the measurements and keep on noting your improvements regularly. Make short term and realistic goals like increasing your 1rm by x pounds or reducing your waist or bf% by y units in 3-4 weeks etc.It really boosts the confidence when you workout really hard for one month and see some increase in the measurements at the end of it. And the interesting part is you can very easily get awesome gains in the first two months if you follow your diet & exercise routines strictly. From my general experience I can say that those who workout that way in their first few months survive and emerge with the bodies they dreamt of. So, Get a tape now and measure ALL the body parts. Set a simple goal that you/your trainer thinks can be achieved in 2-3 weeks. Work hard and notice the increase at the end of the period. You'll be amazed and will work with more enthusiasm for the next goal.
  
  
• What if you don't achieve your goal?
  
  This is the point where the weak ones usually leave the gym. But you need not do anything like that. Just think of all the countless people who worked and got their dream body. All these people at some point felt the way you might be feeling. They just stayed there instead of running off the battle. They got over the difficulties, then why not you? If you didn't achieve your goal its just because you did something wrong. Think is all over, get help from your coach and fight back. Thats it.