Ok, I know! Don’t beat myself up for not getting out and running or walking in 15 degree weather. After all, we’ve only had 30 inches of snow in the past week.

So that’s my excuse. If I lived in Florida or Arizona I would be out there getting my exercise – at least that’s what my brain is telling me.

So, what exactly is my brain telling me? If you really want to know, it’s telling me what I want to hear.  Let’s take a look at this from a different angle.

What kind of a picture do I have in my mind about getting up real early next Thursday morning to go to a 7:00 am business meeting? I actually picture myself getting dressed, eating a quick breakfast, and driving my car to the meeting. You’re wondering now — So what?

Here’s what’s interesting — I picture myself actually doing the driving, actually “doing” the getting dressed. I am very much involved. I am seeing the action through my own eyes.

What kind of a picture do I have when I get up at 6 am and put on some warm exercise clothes and a warm coat and go out for a 2 or 3 mile walk at 6:30 am? In the snow? When it’s 20 degrees out?

You won’t believe this, but I don’t picture myself actually doing any of this!

What?? That’s right. I’m not involved. It’s more like I’m an outsider looking in on a movie of me getting dressed and putting on my cold weather warm-ups. So when the alarm goes off  — I just roll over and get another few minutes of sleep, knowing that since I don’t live in Florida —- blah blah blah blah.

So here’s what I’m going to do. Put myself in the “driver’s seat” when it comes to visualizing myself exercising in the cold weather. How do I do this? I actually picture and FEEL what it’s like to pull on my long wool sox. I push myself to FEEL the biting wind on my face as I round the corner on my walk. I feel the snow underfoot, and I also FEEL the excitement and thrill of victory, because I have beaten my old way of thinking.  I am a winner today.  Tommorrow I can be a winner again.

And that’s all it takes is one day at a time.

I encourage you to spend some soul searching and see what’s going on in your head. You are probably wired much differently than I am, so don’t expect the same pictures to work for you. You have your own movies to watch, and to discover why you don’t have the motivation that you really want – and that you really deserve.

What are your thoughts about getting “unstuck”?  I’d love to hear what’s working for you and any challenges you are facing.

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