In a perfect world, reaching our fitness/health/personal goals is as simple as figuring out where you want to be, research steps to get there, do said steps, and bingo! You’re there!
But, as we all know, this is not a perfect world and we are human. That pesky human part often throws a wrench in the wheel as we are prone to veer of course, procrastinate, make excuses, give into temptation, and decided that a night of binge-watching Doctor Who with a pint of Americone Dream and a bottle of wine is more fun than getting up at the crack of dawn to get in 3 miles. (or maybe that’s just me.)
Nevertheless, we all know where we want to go, but it is often a long and winding road to get there.
I’m speaking from a place where I am in the middle of that right now. Stalled.
I know I need to go run, I even kind of want to go run (which is still such a strange phrase to come out of my head) but I haven’t. It’s been a couple of weeks of life getting into the way big time. Not time-wise, but mentally. As a result, I have not been training as I should, nor have I been on track with my nutrition and eating.
It happens to us all.
The key is, and what I am trying to work through personally, is to not let it derail how far you’ve come so far. After so much work to get to where you are in your journey, it would be heartbreaking to slide back into your old ways and lose all that training and progress.
So how do we humans overcome these phases?
It’s not always easy. It takes determination and dedication.
Motivation is fleeting.
Stick with the stronger motivators.
• Make your activity/behavior a habit. If it becomes part of your daily routine, it will become a more ingrained behavior and harder to blow off. Literally enter the time into your calendar and treat it like you would any important meeting or activity.
• Find rewards for reaching weekly goals. Run for all three days you intended to? Treat yourself to a fun movie on the weekend. Stick with your eating plan all week? Go get a mani/pedi.
• Ask someone to encourage/nag you. If you have a supportive friend or family member, ask them to give you a nudge.
• Change things up a bit. Go to your local running store and find out about group runs – many have some that are welcoming to beginners. Not only will it be a new experience for you, but you might also meet some new running friends!
Most importantly, don’t beat yourself up about it. We all have our setbacks, the important thing is to not let it completely blow you off track.
That being said, I guess I had better use my own advice and go run, eh? How do you get out of a rut or re-energize yourself?
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