Even When You Don't Want To...

You just should. Workout, I mean.

I tell you, I have so many days where I am just not mentally into getting my workout done. I feel like that's the hardest fight for me; not the physical battle. If I am not mentally in the kick-my-own-ass mode, it is a struggle to get my workout on.

I had a mental battle like this just yesterday afternoon. I was due to run 5-6 miles per my half marathon training schedule. I was all gung-ho in the morning...I got my workout wear, running shoes, etc. in a bag and stuck it in my car for a quick change after work so I could run on Daniel Island, an island near my home. {It is just such a better scenic run than my neighborhood.} But all day at work I was fighting allergies, a crampy tummy and just an overall feeling of crappiness. But deep down, I knew I had to make myself do this run.

So I got ready for my workout, parked my car on a random street and started running the route I had planned out on MapMyRun. Immediately my insides clenched with crampiness and I thought, "There's no way I'm going to be able to finish this run." I also was angry with my body for performing so poorly. I found it harder to breathe than normal...I felt less energized than normal. I won't lie, I even walked some of it.

I think I like running in this particular place because I know that if I park my car and start heading off far to the other side of the island, it's inevitable that I will have to make my way back, which means I have no choice but to do the miles. So in the end, here is what my RunKeeper app on my iPhone recorded:

So it wasn't my best time per mile {12:15} obviously since I walked a little bit, but I think I averaged about the same time per mile as when I did my first 10K in April...so I don't feel I was too shabby considering the distance for me was a good bit further than normal.

Overall, I'm just proud that I won my mental battle with myself. I know that I need to fight the urge to quit...that urge might always sneak up on me...but I know that I can shut that voice up.

How do you break through your mental battles with working out?