Just did an easy 30-minute spin on the bike today.  Nothing spectacular but at least I got sweaty.

I gotta admit that for the first time in as long as I can remember, this workout failed to have a significant positive impact on my mindset and emotional state.  Usually a workout really improves my mood, even after a bad day at work.

The physical exertion combined with the psychological satisfaction of having done something that requires discipline and is good for me usually gives me a nice endorphin boost.  But today it just wasn’t there.  Or maybe it was but the amount of endorphins just wasn’t enough to overcome work stress and other factors.

Health and fitness is a mental game.  The more stressed you are the more important it can be to workout to mitigate stress and stay healthy; but the more stressed you are (or at least the more stressed I am) the more likely I am to lack the motivation to get out the door and workout.

For me the key is to make the routine, the habit of working out so strong that it counterbalances any ennui or negative influences on workout motivation.  Right now I am just rebuilding that habit after too long a layoff, so it’s extra difficult to do the right thing.

But I’m two in a row right now. Yay, me.