Tip: Do the Opposite

You need to establish a context outside of your workouts to assess the value of your training, like you're training to improve your health, well-being, or athletic performance. Or, just for the sake of challenging yourself. When you train for performance, aesthetics will always improve. The opposite isn't usually true, however.

Look, you know what I'm talking about. When you're feeling sore after a workout, you have a constant and gratifying reminder that you've actually accomplished something. But it's better to use your performance as a gauge of what you've accomplished than how much you hurt the next day.

Numbers don't lie. If your numbers are going up, so is your progress. The reverse is not true however. I trashed my back once doing something really stupid. The fact that I couldn't tie my shoes wasn't a sign of progress.

Once you've accepted that performance is a better measure of progress than pain, make sure the underlying purpose is rational and healthy.

Is your incessant desire for a 500-pound bench press tied to any worthy context outside of just having a huge bench? If you're a competitive powerlifter, and powerlifting adds purpose to your life, your answer is yes. But for the rest of you, maybe not. Only you can answer this question, and it's probably worth some exploration.