Lack motivation? Set yourself a goal.
Some thoughts straight out of my running shoes.
I’ve been running for around 20 years and it is something that teaches me a lot about myself. Part of it is the relaxed state of mind it gets me into. Today I want to share a couple of thoughts that relate to running, but surely not solely:
Motivation in running tends to be often a good plan. And I am damn good at making plans. For myself and for anyone else. Optimising my day and getting things done. A training plan, for example, would get me out of bed. 5:45 am out of bed and out of the house by 6 am isn’t a problem when there is a goal and a plan in place. Discipline here is clearly the driving force, but a goal you really want is key.
Leave your clothing outside the bedroom to be as quiet as possible. Don’t snooze, but sneak out into the cold living room to get dressed. Put your running shoes on and move your half-asleep body down the stairs before it can even realise what’s the plan. Breathe in the cold, misty air whilst it’s pitch black around you. Even too early for the kid that delivers local newspapers. He passes by at 6:35 am… sometimes I meet him on the way to a Yoga studio, but that’s a different day and a different story. It’s too cold to do much warm-up, a short set of mobility will do. Running the first 10 minutes slow to warm the body up. Why so early many ask? Well, if you really want something, you have to put the work in. Ran a few Ultramarathons and once I signed up, the goal is clear and so is my motivation.
So here it is: doing something I generally love (running), getting out of bed for something I love (running early mornings), but mainly with a clear goal (race coming up).
I will do these sessions if I feel like it or not. However, the hard sessions only happen with a clear goal in mind. Even the most passionate runners I know tend to need a training goal. Something that makes us accountable. Not that I would not run at all without it, the difference is: I would not run that much, or not be as disciplined and maybe only do the session I am enjoying and skipping some of the hard work.
Having a bigger goal in mind does the trick for motivation.
It puts everything into perspective. It makes harder steps on the way more doable, as they serve a bigger purpose.
Imagine you apply this to your next personal goal. Let’s think for a moment ‘non-running’. Imagine something really enjoyable, a big dream. This could be a trip you always wanted to take. You could quite literally apply the same:
Pick the goal (your big goal that gets you on track), figure out what you need to get there (financially, but also planning/preparations), get your timeline (how much time do you have until your departure? In the running world this would be your training plan).
A friend gave me a 13 weeks ‘Self journal’. You set between 1–3 goals and write in it weekly and daily for 13 weeks. Let's see where this journey will take me. I am in the phase where I picked the goals and identified some of the major steps I need to get there. But I am nowhere close to seeing the weekly work that needs to be done. I will go for a run to figure out how to do this and I’ll keep you posted.
Thanks for reading. For more on running & motivation:
