Hello all! It’s not a typical day for me, I’m on my way to my best friend’s house to get last minute things ironed out for her wedding this weekend. So, in my place I have a fabulous guest post from one of my favorite bloggers. I hope you enjoy it … I definitely did.

Thanks girl!

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Hey there! I’m Heidi from over at Idlehide. I am a big fan of Yellow Haired Girl’s blog and am a faithful reader. I was so excited when she asked me to do a guest post for her.

I figured since YHG recently started running and I enjoy running, that I should talk about it. I don’t know about you, but sometimes I find it hard to “just get out there and run”. Sometimes “getting out there and running” is easier said than done. I think it is human nature to sometimes not want to get out of your warm, cozy bed and hit the pavement for  __km’s or miles.

Motivation is where it’s at. There are certain things that really help me to get off my butt and run, or head to the gym…

Planning ahead. This helps me out SO much. I have to mentally prepare myself to do a long run. Usually a few days before I have a long run planned I start preparing myself for it. It’s my little way of motivating myself and it really works. It almost gets me excited for it to be over. By planning ahead I think about the mileage I am going to cover and gives me a chance to prepare for it by drinking lots of water and eating lots of protein. (I find carb-loading weighs me down and makes me feel groggy so protein works a little better for me) I do eat carbs the morning of a long run/race, but I don’t eat a ton of them leading up to it.

Getting your gear ready the night before. Your alarm goes off and your little running pile is all ready for you to put on. It sure beats digging through your workout clothes while you’re half asleep. I usually put my shorts, sports bra, running shirt, headband, socks, sneakers and Garmin all in a pile in my closet. I put it on before I realize what I’m doing and ta-da… I’m ready for my workout.

Just do it! I am stealing Nike’s motto, but it’s so true. Just step outside or just go to the gym. The hardest part is getting there (for the gym) or the first step out the door (for running). I find after 1 km I am feeling warmed up and already feeling better about myself for going for this run. After I walk in the gym and see other people working out I am instantly motivated and ready to just work out!

Remember why you run/workout. This often helps me out. I remember just why I workout. I workout and exercise to be healthy, to maintain my weight, to be able to enjoy eating food, and to feel good about myself. Oh yeah, and I want good legs and abs

The post-workout feeling. Yep. You know what I’m talking about. Have you ever had a workout where you regretted it? Probably not. 99% of the time I feel awesome after my workout and am so happy that I worked through it.

Pinterest. I had to include this one! If I ever am having a really hard time getting motivated I just go on Pinterest and go under the Health and Fitness section. Nine times out of ten that does it for me. My favorite one is” You can either feel sore tomorrow or you can feel sorry tomorrow.” I would much rather feel that good sore muscle feeling than feeling guilty that I didn’t work out.

Now, all that being said. I strongly think that you should listen to your body. If you’re feeling sore, really tired, sick or anything else and you really feel like you need a rest day, please listen to your body. You know your body more than anyone else so don’t go beyond what you think you should. On the flip side though, don’t be a slacker;)

I hope some of these methods will help you next time you’re not really feeling your workout. Just remember why you workout/run/cycle/swim!

 Questions:

What is your biggest motivator?

Do you have a favorite motivational quote from Pinterest?