Don’t Bargain With Yourself

We’ve all been there before. The 5:00 AM alarm goes off, you pop out of bed to turn it off, and as soon as you get up, you hear a little voice that says “10 more minutes won’t hurt”. Then, 10 minutes turns into 20 because, well, it’s just so darn warm under those blankets. The next thing you know, it’s been 45 minutes since you first decided to get up and get your workout in, and now you’re crunched for time. As you lay there you begin to rationalize with yourself that it’s OK, you’ll get your workout in later. But wait…didn’t you have your after work meetup with an old friend? Or, was today your daughter’s soccer game? Now you’re realizing that you’ll never get in your planned workout. But hey, what does it matter, it’s just one day…right?

Fighting that voice in your head is arguably the most challenging part of staying on a plan. You could have the best of intentions the day before. You set out your clothes, set your alarm early (if you’re a morning person), know exactly what route you’ll be doing or splits you need to hit, then along comes that little voice that tells you it’s too cold, you’re sore, you deserve a rest day (even though it’s your third one this week). It goes on and on. The moment that you begin to bargain with the voice in your head, is the moment that you’ve lost. If you listen to Jocko Willink, you’ve probably heard this a lot. But in reality, you need to hear it over and over again.

That’s why it’s so important to know why you’re doing it. You need to remember why you’re setting aside time to get in that Sunday long run, your tempo intervals, those mile repeats. Whether it’s for self-improvement, to be a role model for your family, improve your competitive rank in your sport, you need to constantly remind yourself why.

The why is what will keep you going.