Susanna Sullivan knows resiliency.

As a middle school teacher, she teaches pre-algebra to over 100 students. And surprise, surprise this age group is not always the most cooperative. Often when the last bell rings, she is wiped out but doesn’t have the luxury to go home, plop on the couch and catch her breath.

That’s because she’s training for the World Championships in the marathon.

Rain or shine.

Ready or not.

Tired or not.

Her training keeps chugging along.

It’s funny because traditional high-performance advice is to avoid mental fatigue. And if you do have it to delay a harder workout for a more ‘ideal day’. But Susanna doesn’t have that choice – each day brings unexpected challenges so she has to find an alternative route to recharge after a long day.

Whether you are training for a marathon or not, this is a common challenge that stops people from following through on their workout routine.

So what do you do?

Susanna shared with Runners World that her ‘secret weapon’ is her own motivational self-talk.

Studies have found that when subjects are mentally fatigued their endurance drops by roughly 19%. But when mentally fatigued participants are given motivational self-talk (and taught to use motivational phrases such as “You can do it!” and “Let’s go!” when negative thoughts creep up) they maintain their endurance.

In fact, they perform at a similar level to those who are mentally fresh. 

And this is exactly what Susanna deploys on those days where she is beat and the last thing she wants to do is lace up for a long run.

For Susanna, she tells herself things such as “Just make it up this hill” or “You only have to run for two more minutes”. She finds these milestones are a heck of lot easier than dealing with 100 6th graders.

Motivational self-talk is one of the most powerful skills in fitness – yet it’s rarely talked about. Elite athletes know the importance but the general population struggles to grasp it’s value. And it comes in two ways:

#1: Recognize the Negative Thoughts That Bog You Down
#2: Use the Motivational Phrases That Power You

It takes both to make this work.

And in my experience #1 is more important because sometimes we say things over and over again that weaken us and make it 100x harder to follow through. Years ago, I knew someone who voiced I hate exercise all the time. They were strong and a hard worker but this dragged them down. And while they can have that opinion, you have to ask:

“Is this supporting me?”
“Is this really helping anything?”

If not, it might be useful to let it go and upgrade your self-talk to something that empowers you and supports you to getting to the next level of health and fitness.

Kelan Ern

​P.S. Another strategy for greater follow through and motivation is fitness rhythm.
Inspired by one of the greatest commodity traders and entrepreneurs on the planet – it can help you breathe new life into your vision for fitness and help you find a relationship with exercise that aligns with you. This is what I covered in the June 2023 Mind-Body Breakthroughs.

​If you haven’t already – check out it out free while you still can. 

​Recently someone shared their ‘workout curse’.

Over the years, they tried all sorts of workout routines but like clockwork around the 3-4 week mark they got derailed. Either life got in the way…their routine got stale... or they simply got bored with it.

They wondered if the problem was…

1. Laziness
2. Lack of discipline
3. Poor workout program
4. Voodoo curse

It’s possible… but I’d argue they didn’t find their rhythm.

Meaning: They didn’t find a relationship with health and fitness that allowed them to stick with it… progress with it… and find meaning from it.

And guess what?

They aren’t alone.

Most of the population struggles with this. They have bouts of regular workouts but then can’t find a cadence that makes sense for them. Because of that they start and stop constantly and struggle to stick with it long enough to make lasting changes.
 
If that’s been your pattern, June’s Mind-Body Breakthroughs may help you not only stick to a routine but find greater focus and fulfillment from it as well.

Here’s what’s inside:

• Slot machine psychology.  The same jackpot mentality that keeps gamblers playing the slot machines for hours takes hold for fitness enthusiasts looking to change their lives. Here’s the lurking danger and what to do about it. Page 1.
• 3 fitness rhythms. Here are three ways to shift your thinking on fitness and transform it into something much bigger (and more satisfying). People who take on even just 1 of these routinely shock themselves with their transformation (inside and out). Page 4.
• The amateur league where 90% lose weight. This is one of the most incredible examples of how people can come together, share their struggles, and have the time of their life while getting in shape. Page 4.
• 4 seasons of fitness.  This ingenious strategy helped this guy stay in incredible shape… maintain high levels of motivation… and keep his body in balance. Use it to find greater stick-to-it-ness and fulfillment in your fitness routine. Page 9

For more on upcoming issues of Mind-Body Breakthroughs join here

​Kelan Ern