Exercising is hard, everyone knows that. The weights are heavy, the hills are steep but the hardest thing about exercising, at least for me, is finding the motivation to get off your butt and do it. During the Spring-Fall I can schedule a race every month to keep me motivated but I'm now looking at a few months with nothing planned and I am not a focused as I have been which lead me to think about whats getting in the way of my motivation.
One of the biggest motivations I have found is new toys. A new pair of shoes makes you want to get out and run. The new, cool accessory for the bike makes you pile on the miles. But what if one of those cool toys was actually holding you back? Being able to constantly evaluate your self and honestly see where you stand is a very valuable skill to have and one that I think makes things easier. As I was looking back at the training I have been doing I noticed that I'm not riding the miles on the bike that I should and was shocked at the reason why.
A short while ago I installed clip-less pedals on my bike because that is the mark of a dedicated cyclist and one of the biggest performance enhancers you can get for a bike. I was very excited to get out there and try them out but I realized that the anxiety of having to remember to un-clip at every stop made me only want to ride at very select times when stopping would be kept to a minimum. As I was thinking about this I also came to the realization that I am not at a point, technique wise, where those pedals are going to make a drastic difference. Do I want to look cool and fit in with all the other cyclist out there? Yes! But if its going to limit the times I go out and prevent me from enjoying it as much then they have to go! So now my fancy pedals and shoes are back in their box and my normal, boring pedals are on and I'm looking forward to going out for a ride this afternoon. I'm sure I will install them again sometime in the future but they aren't what I need right now and I'm not doing this to look cool in the eyes of people around me. I'm doing this for me.
If you are thinking of starting to get into better shape, or if you are having a hard time continuing on your own journey, look at whats holding you back and try to remove it. If you need someone to help push you, ask a friend to join you or talk about what motivates them. I know I'm always looking for people who want to tag along on a run or a ride. Write down some goals and post it where you can see it everyday and check them off as you go. Do what ever it takes to get out there and get it done and don't let anyone or anything stop you from achieving what ever it is you are working for!
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