"Viewing exercise as a tool for living the life you want is far more motivating than thinking of it as a means to an end." ~ Coach Nicole

If you look at my SparkPage, it is filled with quotes--quotes that I find motivating and inspiring, especially when life can be a tad too overwhelming for me to find the inspiration within myself to get up and move. These wise words allow me to connect with where I am right now in my life and apply them to where I hope to be in the future.

Having just celebrated my 7th anniversary of reclaiming a life of health and fitness, I must confess that after all these years of working out consistently at least five days a week, I still struggle with motivating myself to get up and out the door, whether that is for a run or going to the gym.

Don't get me wrong there are those days I am eager to don my running attire to head outside or to go to the gym, but when my motivation begins to wane, breaking that barrier of resistance is TOUGH. I have to remind myself that this journey is one I will need to be on for the rest of my life. Just ten minutes is all it takes--10 minutes or 600 seconds--to keep me moving in the right direction.  

A few weeks ago when I was scheduled to go out for long run of 9 miles, I was doing everything in my power to find something to keep my mind occupied and away from running. I did not feel like running, but I knew if I did not get out that day, I was going to have to run the next day when I had a lot more on my plate. I really had no excuse. It was a nice sunny Saturday afternoon with unseasonably warm temps for January. There really was no excuse I could come up with not to go, but I first had to convince my brain otherwise.

To give you a little background as to why I needed to go on this run, on December 31st I received notice  that I had made the cut to run in the New York Road Runners New York City Half-Marathon on March 18th. In my six years of running, it has always been a dream of mine to run Central Park as well as the streets of Manhattan. How many people can say they ran the streets of New York without being run over by cars and cabs, not to mention being cheered on by thousands of New Yorkers?

But the one question I have to answer is--how can I fulfill my dream if I'm not prepared to do the work to get me there?

I went to my computer and read through my quotes and came across the following one:

"I have never regretted going out for a run, but I have always regretted the time when I could have run but I didn't"~Anonymous

When I read that quote I laced up my shoes and hit the ground running. I wish I could say that after all these years of running the first mile was never a problem for me, but I have accepted the fact that it truly can be one of the most difficult one to get through. But this is where you must dig in your heels and find the courage to 'JUST DO IT'.

Nine miles and 95 minutes later I was glad I did not succumb to sitting on the couch watching yet another re-run of the Real Housewives (one of my guilty pleasures) or in front of the computer catching up with all the coming and goings of my friends on Facebook. There is some sense of overcoming that first ten minutes!

I have to remind myself that I don't have to break into a sweat every day to meet my goal. Going for a nice evening walk with my hubby or neighbor can do just as much for my mental well-being as it does for my physical being.  I just have to do it. So when my motivation is less than stellar, I always tell myself, "just 10 minutes and if you no longer want to continue on, then you can quit."

Do you struggle with the first ten minutes? What are some things you do to keep you motivated to get up and moving?