Workout Motivation

I've always gawked in awe like a brain-damaged simpleton at people who are able to regularly exercise. I admired and respected them, and still do. There is just one reason for this; I can't do it -- and I'm great. So if you're able to do something I can't, you deserve a trophy, a medal and a certificate all melded via crude means into a questionably toxic work of 'modern art'.
The point of this is I'm sure that there are others out there who are unable to maintain working out, running or any other activity which fits the profile as a practice. At the same time, you've got the people who are regular. There's a lot we can learn from them, as well as draw motivation from other sources and learn how to stay motivated.
Almost everybody, old and young, has made plans for fitness at one point in their lives. Resolutions like “I'll run half an hour every morning”, “I'll do x push-ups and y sit-ups after every meal” or “I'm going to work out every day from now on” are common and regrettably feeble. Most people don't follow through with their workout plans because they lose the motivation. It's bound to happen. However, worry not for after having reached your physical peak you'll realise that it is much easier staying in shape than getting in shape. To reach the peak, you'll need the right tools.
Get a partner for your workouts. Say if you're working on your back muscles and it doesn't feel right, you can check with your partner and see how they're doing it, what their routine is and if it feels effective. Then you can change your motions to match theirs. They will drag your behind to the gym (or park for running) whenever you're feeling lazy and it's your duty to not let them miss a day. Partners encourage you to push past your limits and it's in the last few reps that the change happens. There's also a buddy workout routine which I find to be particularly effective and motivating. This is where your partner rests while you work through your set and vice versa. That way, none of you waste time talking, limit your resting periods and keep your blood pumping. Also, if you see them doing the same exercise, it'll encourage you to do it better. Using this method, I went for five times as many sets as I would have normally.

“You take a picture of yourself on day one [and] you put it on the mirror. That's who I'll never be again; that's day one, say goodbye to him.” -- Greg Plitt. Keep a log of which workouts you did on what date and how it made you feel, like if you thought it was too easy or if you thought it was effective and it made you feel energetic. Keep measurements or a record of your running time. Write down your weight along with body fat. There are online calculators used to estimate body fat. On a particularly bad day, one of those days when everything's going wrong and you want to give up, reflect on day one. Iftek says, “Whenever I'm having a bad day, I look back to my before and after photos to see how far I've come. If I stop now, it will all have been for nothing.”
Mark a future event as a deadline by which you want to reach your desired state. It could be something like a batch reunion, a wedding or a marathon run. In Bangladesh, all you need to be prepared for is wedding season; you know you'll meet your relatives then. A girlfriend (friend who is a girl) buys clothes that are a size or two too small for her. This is smart. By doing that she sets a goal for herself. Buy new equipment and invest financially into your health as well. For example, when you buy new running shoes you will want to run wearing them.
'The Plateau' is a stage everybody reaches when working out where they will feel no change. When that happens to you, you'll have to switch up your routine completely. To clarify, this does not happen to beginners; beginners just feel lazy, try everything then give up. Beginners will go through physical change and progress before they hit the plateau.
“The Warrior”, which is a movie, encouraged me to start exercising and though I haven't been as regular as I would have liked to, it got the ball rolling. There are other movies as well which inspire us. I believe Will Smith's “Pursuit of Happiness” is one such film. “Exit Through The Giftshop” is another, though it is actually closer to a documentary than a movie. So, to poorly conclude a cluttered article… uh, work out. Yeah.
Source: YouTube videos