Just when I thought I had my morning exercise routine set to NOT NEGOTIABLE on the “To Do’ dial…along came winter…it became harder and harder. I started to make excuses; it was too cold; it was raining; I was too tired from working long hours; I needed to rest; BLAH….BLAH….BLAH WENT THE VOICES IN MY HEAD.

The excuses were coming in thick & fast.

At first I was annoyed, frustrated and even angry with myself because I was breaking the agreements that I had made with myself. Once I had broken these agreements the first few times – it became easier and easier to take the path of least resistance and press that snooze button again and again.

I began to feel lethargic & frumpy.

Sound familiar?

When I found myself not being able to wear my favourite jeans any longer, I DECIDED that enough is enough!

DECIDE vs. HOPE

I could HOPE that I was going to have the strength to get out of my toasty warm bed but HOPING was not enough!

I DECIDED that I wanted to feel energised again and I knew that this time I couldn’t rely on my own internal resources to get me there.

I needed HELP!

Solution #1 – I joined a 12 week fitness challenge where I would be weighed on a weekly basis to keep me accountable. The challenge came & went and even though I lost a couple of kilos during the last few weeks to save me from humiliation, the fact was that my exercise routine was not re-established – FAIL.

One thing that I have learnt over the years is that no matter what…I KEEP GOING…I PICK MYSELF UP and try something NEW.

Solution #2 – I made an arrangement with my personal trainer where I would text her every time I went for a morning run to keep me accountable. Eventually, I stopped texting and she stopped asking – EPIC FAIL.

I knew that this was serious business now. I had to do something that was FAILURE PROOF.

An acquaintance from my Boxing Club, Maria, was telling me that she had started going to a Running Group which sounded like a great idea but I knew that with my current state of mind, waking up on a cold rainy morning & turning up at a dark oval to train was still a BIG FAT EXCUSE WAITING TO HAPPEN.

Solution #3 – I asked her if I could pick her up and drive her there for every session. BINGO! FAILURE PROOF ACCOUNTABILITY! There was no way I could leave her waiting for me in the cold at 5:45 in the morning. I was LOCKED IN & OBLIGATED – SUCCESS.

Training with the Running Group became a SURE THING. Yes it was still cold, wet, way too early & bloody hard but as I felt myself get stronger & stronger it was so WORTH it!

Maria was just someone that I knew when I first began this arrangement. So DOUBLE WHAMMY! I have now gained a wonderful friend as well as a wonderful feeling of strength & vitality.

3 TIPS (…MAKE THAT 4) TO GET YOUR LAZY ARSE OUTTA BED

DECIDE don’t HOPE!
Do something different. Don’t keep doing the same thing over and over & expect different results! That’s called insanity!
Find someone who can exercise with – ANYONE! BECOME ACCOUNTABLE!
If that doesn’t work, keep thinking of new ways!!