Exercise: Always Look On The Bright Side

I know it's not always easy to get up, get out and get exercising.

I feel it too.  Today my alarm went off at 0530 and I really had to drag myself out of bed.  I thought I'd struggle to get to the front door let alone have a productive exercise session.

But when I got to the park I was greeted by today's picture.  And suddenly I felt motivated.  I knew right away it had been the right thing to get up and I was ready to get going.  Unbelievable as it had seemed when I woke up, I actually ran faster, further and up more hills than I had in my training schedule for today.

It reminded me of something I used to do when I was training very early more regularly, particularly in the winter.  A fail-safe strategy for getting out of bed, even in the depths of winter.

It's a 4-step plan:

1. Once you've scheduled an early morning workout, it should become non-negotiable.  Do not give yourself room to talk yourself out of it at any stage.  Once it's in the diary, you will complete it.

2. Lay out all your kit the night before so that in the morning all you need to do is get up, get dressed, get going.

3. Plan your finish time and plan a desirable but healthy breakfast.  My first choice is water, coffee, toast, nut butter and a banana.  Make sure you have what you need in the house or office for when your exercise is done.

4. Create a catalogue of images in your mind like the one above.  Even if this doesn't match the weather outside, it's what's in your head that matters.  And if you keep exercising when the weather isn't great, you'll be in fantastic shape to enjoy days like this when they come around.

Enjoy!