It’s quickie Friday! I’ll bet most of you are deep into the Holiday Hustle, as Deborah @ Confessionsofamotherrunnercalls it. I’m not, but the last couple of weeks were a bit tiring with Gizmo and that inherent stress. He may not be completely back to normal; it could be his new normal — but he’s a whole lot better!
So how do you motivate yourself to stay active when you’re crazy busy, you’re tired and the couch is calling, and the sun is nowhere to be found?
Fairytales and Fitness
Surround yourself with motivation
I like to pick up inexpensive motivational saying tchotkes and have them around the house where I’ll see them often. Homegoods, TJMaxx, and Marshalls are all good sources.
You are what you surround yourself with
The more positive thoughts we have, the more positive our outlook on life. So why not surround yourself with positive affirmations?
There are lots of preprinted cards you can pick up, too. I got Louse Hay’s Power Thought Cards on Amazon here (Amazon Affiliate link). When I remember, I change out my cards.
Love is all around
I struck out at Homegoods looking for love-themed inspiration, but I found a couple of plaques at Marshalls.
Do you have a favorite positive saying/affirmation?
Do you try to accentuate the positive?
How do you motivate yourself when you’re feeling unmotivated?
What you dream about, you bring about
Chocolaterunsjudy 
I have to stay away from those stores. Lol. Too tempting. I am trying to declutter my house. It’s easier to clean without tchotchkes.
I try to surround myself with people not things. I mean positive people. Ignore the others. They keep me motivated. Bloggers are included.
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I went in yesterday before my run. I didn’t have a lot of time, and I was looking for 2 specific things (love-themed home decoration & dog coats). Found both, bought them, and didn’t buy anything extra).
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I love this idea! I definitely agree I try to have positive motivational messages around 🙂
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I’m typing with my little love sign right in front of me right now. I think I’ll be able to remember my word for 2019 for sure!
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These are great tips! Staying motivated this time of year is rough.
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I’m still motivated, the problem is usually motivating myself out the door.
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I agree the more positive thoughts and mantras you have around you, help you to think and feel more positive. This can be such a stressful time of the year for people. Since we don’t celebrate Christmas either, we always go away as a family this week. Leaving tomorrow! Can’t wait to get my feet into the warm sand
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I envy you were trips to warm locales! We will actually go to my parents on Christmas, just because it’s a day that we can all get together, since my sister & her kids don’t have to work.
Enjoy your holiday! I’ll have to live vicariously through you (until feb, hopefully, when we go to Savannah).
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I love Home goods, Marshall’s, and TJ Maxx! Your signs are great! My signs usually say something about dogs…haha
To be honest, I dont know what really motivates me. I guess it cN be something different at different times of the year! -M
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It definitely makes sense to be motivated by different things!
And of course we have lots of dog/cat stuff around, too. 🙂 In fact, I totally forgot about the LOVE sign over the photos of the furkids!
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I love your idea of surrounding yourself with positive thoughts. Everywhere you look, you are reminded of positivity. I have found so many motivational running quotes that I love. I don’t think I could pick just one, but maybe it’s “One run can change your day. Many runs can change your life.”
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Definitely a good one!
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My motivation is usually pretty constant. Since I started doing the daily walks, fasted cardio, leg lifts, etc. following my surgery (when I couldn’t run), I haven’t had too many issues. Not being able to do what I really wanted to do (run!) really made me appreciate doing it when my body was able. All the other fitness stuff I did, when I couldn’t run, is always my back-up plan if the run doesn’t happen. I guess my main motivation is to maintain my fitness, because I’d never want to start over.
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I’ve been lucky that while things can and do ache, I’m rarely truly injured. Knock on wood.
Starting over at our age would be hard — but I’m sure we’d do it if we had to, and you did an awesome job of staying fit while you couldn’t run — the way you pretty seamlessly got back at it was proof of that!
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I too think it’s important to do whatever you need to do to stay motivated. And having these reminders around the house are a great idea. I live in a pretty small place so I wouldn’t have places to put these things but I like the idea a lot. I am generally pretty motivated. Maybe not always to run, especially when not training for anything (like right now, mileage is really low), but I enjoy staying active and so I continue to bike everywhere (despite the weather) and go to the gym. Having a partner who is constantly running also helps me put my shoes on and go. Currently I’m motivated by my “daily habits” app to keep my streaks alive (logging my food in the WW app, no junk at work, etc).
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If you journal, you can put motivational sayings in your journal, too. Or start journaling so you can. 🙂
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