How to trick yourself into doing something difficult and loving it

Today I woke up with this feeling that I wanted to run hills today, and I wanted it to be a long run. I visualized what that would look like: What trail would I be happy on? What would that journey look like? And then I went out, knowing I was going to hammer out a minimum of 8km, but with a goal of 10km, starting at the end that has the greatest rises and falls in elevation. How did it go?

I did it. Of course I knew I would because I've play this same psychological game with myself every single run. The game is:

How to trick myself into doing something difficult and love it. 

Step 1: Figure out what your goal is. Listen to your body and your emotions and figure out what it is that you need. I have some days where I need to challenge myself with hill training. I have other days where I want a flat and easy path. I have days where I want a long but slow run where I can take my time, not caring about speed, but only the distance.

There are times I want solitude, and other times where I don't mind running into other people. There is typically an option for every mood and every need. If you're not a runner, that doesn't matter - you can still follow these steps for whatever your workout activities and goals are.

Step 2: Visualize the activity. Steps 1 and 2 can actually occur at the same time. It may sound hippie-dippie but the psychology behind visualizations are extremely important and lead to more positive outcomes. Before any run, I literally go through in my head what that experience is going to look like. I picture myself on the trail, moving along, in each section, hills, valleys, areas that have uneven or difficult terrain... everything. If I'm not satisfied that a particular route will be fulfilling for me that day, I try another route or another trail and see if that fulfils my goal. But the practice of mentally going through the route/routine prepares me for what I'm about to do.

Once I've made my decision and set my goal, it's set. Time to get ready.

Step 3: Get your gear on and make sure you're prepared. This step involves what I consider to be the "point of no return." Once I'm in my workout or running gear, there's no way I'm not going out. Even if it's pouring rain out, I know I'll still be glad I made the effort and got out there, but I'll dress appropriately for the weather. In this case, it also helps to visualize finishing your goal. For me, that means a yummy protein shake waiting for me at the end, a nice hot shower, warm fresh clothes and then a really awesome big meal (typically breakfast), all that will accompany my sense of accomplishment, feeling strong, and a runner's high. It's a pretty epic deal.

Step 4: Be comfortable being uncomfortable. Exercise isn't always going to be easy. It's not suppose to be. That's the whole point: you're training your body. But this is also an exercise in mental strength as well. Get yourself into a groove, relax your body where you can, and hold strong the areas that require your power (ie. for running, it's my core and hips that I hold strong, while my upper body is relaxed.) During the tough spots, tell yourself not to quit. You can quit if you want to... a lot of people do... but that doesn't have to be you. Can you go another minute? Another 5 minutes? Longer? Do you need to quit, or are you just tired of being uncomfortable? This is the game I play in my head: realizing that I don't need to quit yet. Get comfortable in your stride, get comfortable in your body, even though you're working hard! Then once you achieve your goal, you'll feel huge sense of pride and accomplishment.

Step 5: Always take that moment after you finish a workout or run to appreciate what you just did. Savour that moment. Stretch out your body and feel every single muscle. Feel your breath, and just how easy it is to breathe again. Enjoy every aspect of what you just did, and give yourself a high-five (not kidding, I do it all the time... when no one else is around or looking). Remember how good this feels. That way, next time, you can reflect back on this experience and let that be a driving force for repeating steps 1-4.

How do you make a home gym affordable and user-friendly?

The home gym. I have to say it's probably my favourite gym. No line ups for machines, no sweaty men staring at you, no worrying about the A/C not working, or of it working too well.

The issue is that many people will argue that it's too tough to have a "home gym". They don't have enough space, or they can't afford big machines. The truth is that a home gym is what you make of it, and it can be so much more simple!

My own personal home gym is actually my living room. While in my undergrad, it consisted of a 3'x6' space between my bed and the wall where my yoga mat would fit. During my grad studies, it was my basement: a huge open space with a cold, tiled floor, and no furnishings. Just a makeshift table that my laptop sat on and oodles of basement space to do some kickboxing videos or animal flow.

Now, in my very own house, I transform my living room into a home gym. It's more affordable than you think and the only "set up" is moving the coffee table out of the way and rolling out my yoga mat:

The first thing to do is decide what you want to do at home. Maybe you just want to do yoga at home, or maybe you want to be able to do a variety of workouts. My collection consists of:

1) Yoga (P90X yoga, a few Rodney Yee videos, and Wanderlust TV's 21 days of yoga which can be streamed online for about $30 for full access anytime you want)
2) Weight aerobics: I love The Firm and all of their videos but their original ones from the 90's are by far the best workouts I've ever done!
3) Cardio: Cardio-dance-kickboxing fun, I have a collection of Turbo Jam and Turbo Fire DVD's from BeachBody's Chalene Johnson. Totally fun, and I can still manage it in a small space.

Building your home gym
The above workouts are just a small tasting of what's out there. I highly recommend visiting www.collagevideo.com to checkout a variety of workout videos. See what you like - what looks like fun and what you would be interested in doing. Based on what which workouts you want to add to your collection, you can start thinking about the equipment you need.

In general, start with a yoga mat. Something for you to work on, or stretch on. Any mat will do, though I'm in love with "The Mat" from Lululemon as it provides extra grip support and doesn't slip.

If you want to include yoga, invest in yoga blocks. These by far are my favourite accessories. They can help with posture and support, even with just sitting on the ground.

Beyond that, work up slowly with anything. Always start a new workout without any weights at all. Just go through the motions and get used to the new routine. Then work up in weight. Start with 1-3lbs. In the picture above, I have a set of 1 lb hand weights (pink), 3lb dumbbells (black), 5lb dumbbells (green), 7lb dumbbells (silver and pink), and 2lb ankle weights that used to belong to my mom.

The nice thing is that you don't need to buy 3-5 sets of dumbbells all at the start. For most beginners I suggest picking one super light hand weight (1-2 lbs) and one slightly heavier dumbbell (3-5lbs), depending on your physical strength and condition. That's really all you need to start. For a lot of videos and workouts, you might not need any weights at all.

To make things even more affordable, focus solely on body-weight exercises, (or hook up a TRX system). These don't require any hand weights at all, just your own body and your own strength. The goal is to find a routine that you love to do. That way, exercise isn't a chore, it's a part of your daily body maintenance, a fun activity, and part of your everyday life.
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Exercise as a chore, a "drug" or a lifesaver?

I know I'm not perfect but I am proud of my dedication and will-power. Growing up, I don't think I realized that everyone has a different perception of diet and exercise, and it makes me a little sad. I'm still fairly astounded when I hear of people who don't exercise - ever. Mostly I'm thinking "Do you have any idea what you're missing out on?!"

To me, exercise is like eating - it's a necessity of life, and I can't imagine a life without incorporating even a weekly workout. So I thought it would be important to explain just how amazing exercise truly is.

Seriously, how amazing is this photo from one of my favourite workouts? Susan Harris in the 80's... legwarmers, bodysuits, men with mustaches... Amazing :)

I think we get stuck in the whole "gym" idea. People think that in order to exercise they need to join a gym. Like that's the secret to getting fit for someone who never exercises. "I want to lose 10lbs so I'm joining a gym!" Seriously? A gym is not a weight loss pill and a gym will not force you to attend. They're perfectly happy just to take your money and not see you again, unless they can talk you into personal training sessions and take more of your money. So this is the part when you need to take control over your workout.

I'm not saying that gyms are bad and personal training sessions won't help you. They can be amazing and some people praise their personal trainers, but you have to beware of your expectations. I wish we would get away from the thought that exercising is a chore: You know you have to do it, but you dread it. You psych yourself up to it and you kinda do it, but then the next day you're so proud and content with the fact that you had your exercise and don't go back to it for a while.

I'm the opposite. You can almost say that it's like a drug to me. I need to workout, otherwise I will get very fidgety and restless, just itching to do something active... Like a workout withdrawal. And then there are those days when you push yourself just a tiny bit harder and you wake up with nice sore muscles. It's like they're telling me "Man, we really did work yesterday - good job!" and then your muscles give you a little high-five for being such a trooper. ... at least, that's how I like to think it is.

Maybe you're not up for an hour-long weight aerobics or cardio workout, but start with some great stretching. Get your muscles warmed up. Yoga is amazing for that! You'll increase your flexibility and mentally feel really relaxed afterwards.

Exercising isn't just like a drug to me, but a lifesaver. I can't even count how many times a workout has saved me when I'm feeling my worst. Working out dissolves my PMS and cramping; If I'm feeling angry, I let my aggression out with some kickboxing cardio (thank you Turbo Fire), and if I'm just plain grumpy, or bored, a workout will reset my whole body and mentality.

Everyone should have "me-time". Time when you can block out the rest of the world and focus on you. That's what this does for me. I love my old 80's videos (now on DVD thanks to www.collagevideo.com) and I will do them in whatever space I have.

I think the biggest hiccup is that people say they don't have enough time. I think when it comes to your physical health and your sanity, you need to do what you have to do.

• Wake up earlier. (Just make sure to eat the tiniest bit of something pre-workout)
• Have your kids workout with you (this doesn't always work... my niece always wanted me to pick her up and hold her while I tried to workout and obviously that wouldn't work)
• Have someone watch your kids while you're busy for an hour.
• Have dinner in a slow-cooker and workout as soon as you get home from work (if you're snacking throughout the day, you won't necessarily be starving when you come home. Plus, sitting while commuting can be terrible for your hip flexors among other things)
• Workout on your lunch break (I also used to do this when my work was only a 5 minute drive from home... totally worth it)
• Workout with a friend (that way you have no excuse to miss it)
• Try going to a gym and use your membership fee as an excuse to go there. Get your money's worth!
• Buy a 10-class pass to a yoga or fitness class - again, that way you have to use them up because you already paid for them. 
• Make sure you do something fun or that you enjoy. If you hate the type of workout you're doing, you're not going to want to do it. If it's a video you're doing, make sure you like the instructor. If you're running, make sure you have a sweet-ass music playlist to keep you going. 
• For 30 minutes (or one-hour if you can) be selfish. It's so hard when you have family and friends who count on you, but at the same time, you can't take care of anyone if you're not taking care of yourself. 

I can't stress that last point enough. I've seen it happen far too often with people around me. They work themselves into the ground trying to please or help everyone around them. And these same people maybe think I'm selfish but I don't care. I know how badly I need to take care of myself otherwise I'll be run into the ground too. 30-60 minutes is really a very short splotch of time in a 24-hour day. Do something for you and your body. If you keep up with it, you won't regret it.

For a list of my favourite workouts, check out this link from my website: http://www.thehealthyfox.ca/#!workouts/c24co