How to Find Inspiration and Run With it Regardless of Your Hurdle

A previous post here on Virtual Racing UK introduced this analogy:

How do you eat an elephant?

One bite at a time.

What it means, simply, is that you should not look at a challenge as a whole. Instead, you ought to set smaller goals that will eventually help you complete your objective. The same principle holds true for anyone who has ever had a fitness goal, such as running 1,200 miles a year or getting into the best shape of their life. It should be a process, taken step by step, little by little until the ultimate goal is finally attained. 

But often, the hardest part is how to even start the process, especially given the many hurdles you will encounter along the way. The lack of motivation is one such hurdle, and it can be very formidable. Another obstacle is time, or the lack of it. Fear of failure is a big problem, with people hesitating simply because they don’t want to fall short of their target. For some, the mere thought of committing a substantial portion of their time and effort to the pursuit of a goal is a hurdle in itself. 

Ultimately, the most important thing is that you get up and start moving. To be able to do just that you can motivate yourself by doing the following:

1. Bribe yourself. Yes, The Guardian advises you to bribe yourself! As Dr. Costas Karageorghis points out, "Token reward systems work well.” The way this works is simple: Set goals, and as you attain each one, reward yourself accordingly. 

2. Visualise! Imagine yourself attaining your fitness goals to inspired yourself to actually pursue them. That is the innate and undeniable power of visualisation, although exercise coach Amelia Watts, in the same Guardian article, is quick to note that you ought to avoid visualising negative stuff. Instead, she wants you to “visualise yourself exercising and feeling good.” 

3. Set SMART goals. As mentioned earlier, take things one-step at a time, and in this regard, you will have to set SMART — specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time-bound — goals. This way, you will not find yourself overwhelmed by your ultimate target, as you will instead be focused on meeting smaller objectives. 

4. Be inspired by others. Find inspiration in the success stories of others. If you want to run a mile or two daily, for instance, you may get motivation from sporting heroes like Kelly Holmes, whom is listed by Coral as one of the most iconic British sportswomen since 2000. In 2004, she won gold in both the 800m and 1,500m track events, a rare golden double that only she and two others have accomplished in Olympic history. What makes Holmes an even bigger inspiration is that in 2016, at the age of 46, she resolved to run the London Marathon for the first time. She worked hard to get in tip-top shape, even at the risk of aggravating past injuries. All her sacrifices paid off and she was able to finish her first ever marathon.  

Once you’ve established good fitness habits, like working out after work or having an early morning run, you then need to keep your body on its toes, as advised by The Independent. You can do so by changing your routines from time to time or by trying out new exercises or jogging routes. Such variety will keep you engaged and improve your overall fitness even more. 

Featured written exclusively for virtualracinguk.co.uk

By: Olivia Dixon