Accountability: The "secret" trick to staying motivated (and how to find yours)
Run to the Top Podcast | The Ultimate Guide to Running
RunnersConnect: Coaching Community, Running Experts, Inspiring Runners, No Fluff Blog
4.5 • 936 Ratings
🗓️ 15 December 2021
⏱️ 43 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Staying motivated is something that every runner has to deal with.
Whether you're constantly lacking motivation or it only comes up once in a blue moon, one of the secrets to powering through these times is accountability.
So, how do you set yourself to be accountable? What happens when you need external accountability?
To answer these questions, we've brought on Sabrina Little, an expert coach and accomplished professional trail and ultra runner for HOKA ONE ONE. She has qualified for 5 US teams and has won 5 US titles from the 50-mile trail to the 24-hour road ultra. She previously held American records in the 24-hour and 200K distances.
This is a fascinating discussion that just might change the way you look at who is accountable to whom.
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This week's show brought to you by:
LMNT
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hi, this is Sabrina Little, and you're listening to the Run to the Top Podcast. |
| 0:13.0 | Hi there, my running friend, |
| 0:20.0 | this is Coach Claire Bartholic, the Planted Runner, |
| 0:23.2 | and this is the Run to the Top Podcast, |
| 0:25.5 | one of the first and only running podcast dedicated |
| 0:28.3 | to making you a better runner with each and every episode. |
| 0:31.9 | We are created and produced by the expert team |
| 0:34.6 | of running coaches at runnersconnect.net |
| 0:37.7 | where you can find the best running information on the internet |
| 0:41.0 | as well as running coaching plans to fit every runner and every budget. |
| 0:45.0 | One of the beautiful things about running is that when you go out for a run, you're accountable to no one. |
| 0:55.0 | It's just you and the road or the trail, and you can choose to leave the busy world behind, |
| 1:01.0 | for a little while at least. But how do you stay accountable to yourself? |
| 1:05.9 | Some runners are great at this and they have developed habits and routines that take all the decision-making |
| 1:11.1 | away. You're a runner and you run. It's no different than |
| 1:14.6 | brushing your teeth or making your bed. This kind of self-accountability does not |
| 1:19.3 | come easily to everyone else, however. Sometimes we need something external to help push us out of our warm beds in the morning. So maybe you find a |
| 1:27.5 | running buddy or a running group to help keep you accountable. After all, if you |
| 1:31.8 | know someone will be waiting for you at 5 a.m. to run it's a lot harder to skip |
| 1:36.0 | another way to hold yourself accountable is to hire a coach |
| 1:40.0 | the idea is that you are paying someone else to make the decisions for you and you will likely feel bad if you don't do what he or she says. |
| 1:48.0 | It's also a relief that you can outsource the task of planning your training to an expert that knows more than you and only has your best interests in mind. |
... |
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