Screen Shot 2016-01-11 at 20.53.27Throwing back to that time I just couldn’t be arsed (cba) to train. The motivation was not there.

Yesterday (Saturday) I categorically did NOT want to do my gym session (that I should have done Friday). It took me until 6:30 pm in the evening to get my ass to the gym. I had loads of excuses… Pure Gym doesn’t have what I need for my session, I’ll do it tomorrow because I won’t be able to sprint, I need to eat first, it’s snowing (!!!?) blah blah blah.

Once there…

Even once I was in the gym I had zero motivation. My first exercise went pretty well; single leg leg press because Pure Gym actually has a better leg press than my usual gym. But then came ‘Bulgarians’. If you don’t know (and if you don’t I am jealous of you), Bulgarians are a type of single leg squat where your back foot is up on a bench. It’s a good exercise for the glutes and they are without fail always somewhere in my programme (if our coach is feeling particularly mean they’ll be front loaded). Great gains aside; they hurt and burn and are quite frankly awkward at times. I lift between 50-60 kg usually for this exercise and I always dread them; yesterday I didn’t have more than 50 kg to give.

Don’t get me wrong, I usually love the gym. It is what I know and I can excel in there compared to sliding which is can be  fraught with mistakes. I also know I am in a privileged position to be a full-time athlete who does have the flexibility to move sessions and even have time to train the amount that I do. But I just wanted to make the point that athletes are still human and still suffer the same ‘but I can’t be bothered today’ feelings that ‘normal’ people do. I guess this is particularly pertinent at the moment what with the ‘New year new me’ mantra going strong as it is January. I bet some of you are starting to wane.

Does this sound like you?

If yes, then that is totally OKAY! This blog is supposed to be an example that even those of us who have been in the habit of training (exercising) for years and years (17 in my case) wobble on the occasional day! I didn’t actually make a sport related NY resolution because in terms of frequency of training I already do what I am supposed to and I am not in control of the content either. My resolutions were more around being self-motivated to get enough sponsorship/work to continue on this skeleton journey. But keeping to a resolution can be done! You just have to not lose sight of the WHY!

Here’s what got me to the gym yesterday…

  1. I had a training partner. When you’ve got someone else willing to buddy you it seems a lot more bearable. You can at least whinge together.
  2. My training plan is written down and I record what I do for every rep, set and session. When given free reign it is easy to become lazy; however, I hate not getting things done that are planned in advance. I got that session done and wrote it down as proof!
  3. Good old fashioned guilt. This is linked to the above two but also more. There are a lot of people counting on or expecting me to honour my training programme. 73 people offered me financial support so that I could train full-time. And The BBSA and UK Sport fund the Talent programme and invest in me. I don’t want to let people down.
  4. The big picture. The end goal. The dream. WINTER OLYMPICS baby! Every day will contribute; probably only a tiny percentage but it will. And I never want to ask ‘what if’. I’d rather spend a begrudging hour and a half lifting weights than wonder in 7 years time, did I give it 110%? Find what motivates you!

So that’s my advice (if you were looking for any). Grab a pal, commit to a goal, write it down and keep track of it. And remember if you do miss a day/have a glass of vino/eat a Maccy D’s it doesn’t mean it is over – you are not a recovering addict. Sort yourself out and try again the next day!