Your tribe is your identity

How do you see yourself?

If you are trying to establish (or maintain) the habit of exercise, it’s important that you see yourself as an exerciser. As I prepare for the launch of my Motivational Book Club the books I am reading are emphasising the fact that most women struggle to exercise, because they simply don’t see themselves as exercisers (there’s a whole host of reasons for this!).

This is why our community at Curves is so important. James Clear wrote in Atomic Habits “Nothing sustains motivation better than belonging to the tribe”. I’ve mentioned in the past that if you are struggling to find motivation, it’s right here, in the circuit.

Belonging to the tribe is vital because the shared identity reinforces your personal one. We are all exercisers at Curves, therefor, you must be one too.

Staying with your tribe is a vital part of maintaining your habits even after you’ve reached your initial goal. We have an insidious message in our society dominated by diet culture that exercise is about weight loss, and therefor once you have achieved your goal you no longer need to do it. 

Exercise is about fun, moving your body is a coping mechanism for stress and trauma, it heals, and it Strengthens you. Once you experience that, it’s a whole lot easier to keep going. It’s something everyone should do, always. 

Once you are a part of this tribe, and you know you are an exerciser too, you can always be one. All you must do, is show up.

Woooohooooo - Joan reaches her 1000th workout and celebrates with her tribe! (Not bad for someone who definitely didn’t want to join!)