8 Easy Tricks to Get Motivated

You should. But you just. don’t. want to.

We have literally ALL been there.

You planned on going for a run. You wrote it on your calendar. You have your Nikes in your gym bag, which is in your car, with your headphones (charged), and

But damn it, it was a loooooong day, it’s humid out and your wine is chilling in your fridge.

Still…

Here’s how I motivate myself in moments like this, and I think it will work for you too.

1…Make a playlist that ALWAYS  gives you a lift. When I go for a long run, I want to know that if I switch from listening to a podcast to my playlist, whatever is playing is going to pump me up. The best playlists I’ve come up with are saved on Spotify and I’m constantly updating them with a song that I find myself singing to or dancing to at the gym or in the car.

2…Find a new route/workout. Mental burnout is real. When I find myself not wanting to work out or go for a run, I check myself to see if I don’t want to in general or if I really just don’t want to do THAT workout. You might realize that what’s really holding you back is that you don’t want to run your same old loop, or you don’t want to do leg day.

Change is good. Take a new class. Substitute yoga and put off leg day till tomorrow. Use a free mapping app to find a new route to run.

3…Tell someone else about your plan. Tell someone that you are working out after work. Simply saying the words out loud is sometimes enough to convince yourself that yes, in fact you ARE working out after work.

Even better, tell someone that you KNOW will check in to see how it went. If I tell my dad that I’m going for an 8-mile run, I KNOW that he will text me to ask me about it. And so I do it so I don’t have to sheepishly come up with an excuse beyond “I didn’t wanna”.

4…Sit still for a moment and make a conscious list of the reasons you ought to run/workout. Are you training for a race? Do you always feel better after you move? Are you trying to lose weight and get healthier? Are you recovering from an injury?

These are all really meaningful reasons to get your butt in gear. Sometimes it takes consciously reminding yourself of your WHYs. (I wrote this article about the power of knowing your why, and how you can find yours if you want to dig deeper).

5…Remember a day that you had an amazing run or workout. Remember that high you felt after you were done, how strong you felt while you were in it. Remember that energy. Channel it.

6…Remind yourself that once you’ve done it, it’s done. Once you’ve worked out, not-working-out won’t weigh heavily on your mind (pun intended, ha). What’s a 30 minute run, a 45 minute workout, shoot a 15 minute workout, in the grand scheme of things. Believe me, you have time and energy for a 15 minute workout.

7…Promise yourself a reward at the finish line. An iced coffee with a friend, a snack at your favorite lunch spot, that glass of wine chilling in your fridge (believe me, wine always tastes better when you’ve earned it!).

8…Finally, just start moving. Put one foot in front of the other. Tell yourself you’re doing it and move. I can pretty much guarantee you that the hardest step is the first one and you will not regret starting once you’ve finished.