What Pokemon Go can teach us about self-motivation!
It’s hard to escape the recent trend of Pokemon Go and I have to say with twin boys who are nearly eight, I’m right in the middle of it!
I’ve got to admit, I wasn’t keen when I first heard about it, but in the last 72 hours, I’ve seen my boys do more walking than they have all month!
The definition of self-motivation is “a reason or reasons for acting or behaving in a particular way.”
And what we’re seeing all over the world is children (and adults!) getting off their backsides, out of their homes into the fresh air and actually talking to one another in local parks, streets, beaches, wherever you can find the damn things!I have a client who has teenage boys who’ve spent more time outside in one week as they have in the last twelve months. Teenagers that don’t want to go out on family walks or trips out to the beach are suddenly ASKING their parents to take them out!
This morning, no word of a lie, we were in our local park at 730am looking for Pokemons with my 4 month old daughter in the pram. An hour outside on a virtual, but real treasure hunt and they walked over two kilometres, it was amazing!
In New York over the weekend, there was a stampede (no one was hurt!) of teenagers and adults heading into Central Park to find a rare Pokemon. This game has taken people out of their rooms where they spend hours online and talking to no-one, out into the fresh air, moving and talking to one another, I LOVE THIS!
A sky news reporter over the weekend was in a park in London and Pokemon Go players were walking around, chatting to each other, going on extended walks on the way into work and all sorts. They wouldn’t be doing this without Pokemon Go that’s for sure!
These are classic examples of how finding something that makes us do is the core of self-motivation.
Whatever you think of the game (it’s been criticized as people have fallen off a cliff trying to find a Pokemon, there have been car accidents and perhaps arguably it would be better to get the kids out and about without being fixed to a phone), this is the essence of finding something you love, ESPECIALLY with exercise, that makes you do. And let me say this, seeing my children in the ultimate childhood magic as they scurry around and find them (using a compass and getting a lesson in direction at the same time I might add!) has been utterly enjoyable.
I saw this quote last week (before I discovered POkemon Go and perhaps this quote image needs updated now!) and I shared it with my July clients doing my online bootcamps… because it doesn’t matter what it is, it’s about finding something that makes you want to exercise.
The downsides of Pokemon could be that it becomes addictive and I certainly could have done without the 3am wake up call from my twins asking me if it was time to get up and play Pokemon Go! BUT…. I think people will start to have a secondary gain from Pokemon Go, which is that they’ll start to see the benefits of exercise, get a high from the endorphins of moving as well as catching a Pidgeot!
I want everyone to commit to being fit for life, if teenage boys are suddenly walking 30 kilometres + a week and being outside, this can only be a good thing. My boys are already asking what adventures we can have this week to find Pokemons. And I think we can learn a lot from this!
Pokemons aside, one of the things that has made my online bootcamps so much more successful recently is having the secret facebook group. As humans, we are becoming more virtual, we can’t fight this and we’re all so influenced by images nowadays. So being part of a group that shares positive messages, that supports each other with ‘you can do this’ and giving each other a pat on the back when we’ve done it, is proving invaluable for everyone. Again, this is a classic example of how we can use online tools, technology and support to MAKE US DO!
If you want to join me on my next round of online bootcamps, come and join us starting on 1st August (full details HERE). They are perfect for those who might find themselves at a loss in their local park as their kids go in search of Pokemons! Or women who like me, who are reliant on online fitness that they can fit around their kids / work / train at a time that suits them AND be part of an online community than enhances your real life!
Pokemon Go, well done, here’s to an extra active summer for many formerly sedentary people!
Janey 🙂
