The Only Motivation Hack* You Need

*Which is not a hack at all, but a simple, easy-to-remember tool.

Kipchoge goes through it. So do Noah Lyles and Sha'Carri Richardson. Dauwalter and Walmsley? They experience it many times during a hundred-miler.

Every runner, from Pheidippides to Pre, has battled the blahs. Even your favorite Instagram influencer (despite the put-together vibes and always-impossibly-white shoes) occasionally feels lethargic.

“No Spark” is the chapter left out of biographies and biopics. When it is written, the protagonist usually overcomes stuck-ness through divine intervention or feats of heroic willpower. But in the real world, the gods have bigger problems, and we’re saving our heroics for work and raising teenagers.

Luckily, there is a simple practice that can help any runner work through dips in motivation. Ready? This is gonna be a short article. Here it is:

Notice how you feel after you run.

We all struggle to start sometimes. By noticing how you feel after you run, you shift the focus from resistance to reward. You rewire your brain to associate running not with discomfort or inconvenience, but with mood boosts, mental clarity, and a sense of accomplishment.

Here’s a simple way to train the noticing muscle. After every run, jot down in a (soon-to-be-sweat-drenched) notebook quick responses to three questions:

1. How do I feel right now compared to before I ran?

2. Would I have regretted skipping this?

3. What can I remember about this feeling for next time?

Yesterday, I was having a hard time finding motivation to run. My tank was empty after work, the weather was ick, on and on. But, I brought my own advice to mind and got out the door. Here’s how I answered the three questions afterward:

1. I feel lighter now

2. I would have regretted not running

3. Next time, remember that the worries will fade

I wasn’t magically “light,” but in a heavy world, “lighter” is a win, right? By finding an hour for myself, I lifted my mood, made progress toward running goals, and forgot the worries that had been weighing me down (if only for that hour).

We can apply this mindset to anything that is difficult to start, but rewarding to complete. Speaking of which, I’ve got a project due to my boss in an hour.

Run lightly,
-mike

Thank you.

Running Lightly turns one this month! I want to thank you, the nearly 600 subscribers who encourage me to keep going. This is a labor of love. I’m grateful for the feeling of accomplishment every time I hit “publish,” and for the possibility that I might be helping uplift your running life. ✌️