What is meaningful motivation?

Athletes talk all the time about motivation. You text your training partners when you don't have the motivation to get out the door for your tempo run or create motivational playlists to listen to while doing intervals on the trainer. One of the most frequent questions I get from both athletes and coaches is how to increase motivation.

I usually tell them that not all motivation is created equally. The issue isn't that they need more motivation, but that they need meaningful motivation. For example, when you're at mile 18 of the marathon in an Ironman, your legs feel like lead. You don't know if you can't take in any more gels because just the thought of them makes you nauseous. So your desire to finish has to be stronger than your desire for the discomfort to go away.

Meaningful motivation is a version of why you participate in sport and why you sign up for races. It is the reason for putting in the work. My why, for example, is to explore and adventure, to feel alive through movement and new experiences. When I was a competitive swimmer, my why was to be the best athlete I could be. As you can see, my why has shifted over time. Perhaps it just got more clear. I've noticed that when I sign up for a race to try to PR or qualify for some other race, I struggle to get in the training. It doesn't seem as fun. However, I'm excited to explore when I sign up for a race in the mountains or in a new place. I'm more motivated to get my daily training in because I know it will allow me to have a great experience at my race.

You can absolutely have layers to your why, like secondary goals. For example, you can want to run because of the health benefits and how it makes you feel, and you also want to qualify for Boston. Meaningful motivation gives you the ability to not want to go to the pool to swim but go anyways because your longer-term goal is so decisive.

I have my athletes do in the build-up to big races to visualize they are two-thirds of the way finished, and fatigue is setting in. At that moment, when quitting or easing up on your pace would be easy, what will you tell yourself to get you to the finish line? I want you to know precisely why you are racing, and I want you to know it before, during, and after your race.

Playlists, youtube videos, and podcasts can be helpful to get yourself out the door. Still, they won't be enough to carry you through a training cycle in the absence of meaningful motivation.