{MIMM #2} Motivation Monday [Guest Post]

I am so grateful to have some awesome blogging friends to cry out to when I am in need of help in the blogging department.

Finals are this week, so I really really need to focus on them.  Then I’m all yours and will dazzle you with workouts, yummy recipes, a giveaway and hopefully some new running stories! Enjoy this post from Calee all about motivation!

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Hi there! I’m Calee (not Cay-lee) from life+running. 

I met Amanda at Blend Retreat in May, and we’ve managed to hang out a bit since then
(could be a bit more, but everybody is busy — especially Amanda with
finals week this week). We ran a 5K together in September. Both of us
had planned to run the 10 mile race that day, but I sprained my ankle,
so Amanda kindly decided to run the 5K with me. I coerced my other
friend into running her first 5K and we all had a great time.

So what do you do on days that you’ve lost your motivation? Here are
some tips for you.

1. Get some new tunes.

I don’t know about you, but music is a pretty big part of my workout
regime. The wrong music can make me tank really fast, and the right
stuff can get me moving in ways I wouldn’t have imagined. When I’m
prepping for a big workout, or when I’ve run out of gas, I get some
new music. I used to buy a new album on emusic.com about once a month
to keep me motivated, but I’ve since decided to get spotify premium —
$10 a month, and access to pretty much everything ever. So now I’ll
make a new playlist or seek out a new artist or a new album, and sync
it so it’s available offline on all my devices.

Here are a couple playlists for you Spotify users to try.

2. Snag some new gear.

Though this can get to be an expensive habit, I sometimes find working
out with new gear skyrockets my motivation. Last week I hit it hard
for all my planned workouts because I’d picked up a new Lululemon No Limits tank (on the cheap through a
trader group on Facebook, thank you very much).

It’s silly and stupid, but it works for me. Maybe you’re in need of a
new pair of running shoes (350+ miles = you need a new pair) … or
you want a fancy cool sparkly headband. Whatever trips your trigger.
Just work it into your budget and don’t go overboard with it or
motivation won’t be your only problem. 🙂

3. Shake it up.

Planned to go for a run and just aren’t feeling it? Don’t feel like
you ever HAVE to do your planned workout. Yes, do exercise (assuming
you don’t have any injuries or aren’t sick — that’s another post for
another day), but find something else that interests you. Maybe
there’s a class at your gym you’d like to try. Or a workout DVD that
you bought forever ago that still has the plastic wrap on it. Whatever
it is, find it, and do it.

4. Enlist a friend … or a bunch of them.

Yeah. I’m one of those people that posts about my workouts on my
social media outlets. However, I post before my workout on twitter so
I’m accountable, and I’ve been kind to my Facebook friends and moved
all my workout posts to my life+running blog page. I’ve found this tactic
elicits motivation from friends and helps me push through on rough
days.

But my favorite tactic is to have a friend drop you off for your
workout. You could have your friend drop you at the gym and pick you
up later, or have that person drop you off in the middle of nowhere
and you run home. I’ve used this when race training to help me get
runs in on days that I wanted to do anything else but run.

5. When all else fails, caffeinate.

Caffeine is a valuable tool — when it’s used right. Don’t use it every
day, or you’ll build a tolerance to it. An ideal form of caffeine for
an energy boost for working out is green tea and/or yerba mate. These
forms focus your attention and give you energy. Coffee just gives you
a lot energy, and for some people it can give them stomach cramps
while working out. To find the ideal amount of caffeine in mg for you,
divide your weight in half. Then multiply this number by 5. You
shouldn’t consume more than that large number, but anywhere between
the other two numbers will give you the jolt you need. Consume your
caffeine 20-30 minutes before your workout.

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How do you get motivated for a workout?
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Calee Himes \\
www.lifeplusrunning.com | www.chimes.etsy.com

DESIGN \\ EAT \\ SWEAT \\ GEEK \\ CRAFT \\ ROCK \\ RANT \\ REPEAT
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I could definitely use some motivation these days since I’m done with my aerobics and weight training classes at school.  I need to remember what the heck I did before I was required to workout three days a week!!

Leave Calee some love below!!  Have a great week friends!!

Amanda aka Semi-Health Nut

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