All of a sudden everything became very, very quiet. I was totally alone. The house was suddenly huge… and quiet.
Yesterday the rest of the family went on a mini holiday to good friends in Dalarna County. So here I sit and I have all the time in the world to do whatever it is I’m going to do.
The plan was to workout hard – to do a marathon of a training session. The plan was to start with a few hours of kayaking and then to cycle for a bit to wrap it all up with a short jog (Janne-style – slowly and carefully). It looked great – on paper that was. :-/
It’s strange how I seem to do more and be more motivated when I have less time, as compared to when I have all the time in the world. The kayaking was exchanged for an hour’s rest on the couch. That’s soo nice … What the hell – this was not at all what I should do.
Whew, it’s windy outside (it really was). I need to re-thing my kayaking. Said and done. Remained cycling and jogging. Though later, I can do that later. I just need to…
Motivation is a tricky thing.
I, who hate to go shopping, managed to convince myself that I had to go and buy fabric softener – precisely today. Today, indeed things needed to be washed. Some paint also – need to scrape and repaint the window – that’s very important. Everyone knows how fast a window can disintegrate completely. Watering the hedge – a must-do this incredibly hot summer day.
But then, in the middle of the watering said hedge (Yes, I had, of course, managed to postpone the workout for another few more hours by now) I just put down the hose, changed into training clothes and did what I set out to do – I began my training session. At Last!
I have no universal strategy to motivate myself. It’s is sometimes simply put, about blood, sweat and tears (mostly figuratively) – But there are some motivators that I use, that I can share with you. 
1) to set a goal. In my case, it may be weight related, strength related, it could be that I’m going to run a race or my present overall goal to take on an 8,000-meter peak. No goals – very little purpose.
2) to take the opportunity that very split second when inspiration/motivation presents itself – because it will, albeit in microscopic moments. As for instance when you are watering the hedge. I cannot finish watering – because then the feeling for sure will be gone – instead I need to put away the hose and go and change immediately.
3) then try to enjoy and to remember the feeling you have when you, despite all the setbacks, actually have done your training. That’s also a good motivator. Few things beat that feeling. Try to go back to that before your next session.
4) Use a calendar. Decide in advance when you are going to work out and follow up on your training. It is surprising how conscientious you feel towards a calendar note. It is also actually quite fun to calendar your completed training and follow up on your progress.
Last but not least – NOW is the time to start – later, well that’s the wrong word. It’s like Yoda said: ”Do. Or do not. There is no try!”
