#41 - Discover Your Why: The Five Whys Exercise to Stay Motivated to Run

Discover Your Why: The Five Whys Exercise to Stay Motivated to Run

In episode 41 of the Forever Runner Podcast, host Herb addresses runners who struggle with motivation and make excuses to skip runs, warning that this pattern can lead to quitting. He shares how two heart procedures and a vertigo attack nearly caused him to stop running, but he kept going by discovering his “why.” Drawing on Lean productivity principles from his former government job, he explains the “five whys” method to uncover the root cause of why you run: write “Why do I run?” and ask “why” five times to drill down to a core motivator. Reeves’ own fifth why was being healthy enough to be there for his granddaughter at 90, shifting his focus from awards to staying present and capable. He suggests keeping a picture of your person, place, or dream as a reminder.

00:00 Motivation Struggles
00:32 My Health Setbacks
01:04 Discover Your Why
01:21 The Five Whys Method
02:09 How To Do It
02:40 Example Five Whys
04:35 My Core Why
05:29 Make It Visual
05:47 Final Challenge

P.S. If you are passionate about running, and you don't want to lose that passion, then joining the free Forever Running Club is the right move. Click this link to join: https://www.skool.com/forever-running-club/about.

Runners over 50: Pain free running without injury with slow running!

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Hey runners, how's it going? Do you struggle to get out of the door sometimes? Do you have days where you just lack the motivation to go for a run, grasping at convenient excuses like, oh, it's too cold, it's too wet, or it's too late in the day to go out. Well, you're not alone. The problem is if you continue with this behavior, eventually it becomes easier to just quit running altogether than to lace up your shoes and get out the door. Now I've had multiple health issues over the past couple of years that have challenged my will to go out and run. Two heart procedures and a vertigo attack put me on the brink of quitting running altogether. But stay tuned and I'll let you know how I sorted this all out and kept running. Welcome to episode 41 of the Forever Runner Podcast. I'm your host, Herb Reeves. Let's make your running smarter so you live longer. So what pulled me back every time was something pretty simple. Discovering my why. Once you know your real why, no excuse in the world is really strong enough to keep you inside. So this idea actually came from my old job. Back when I used to work a government job, I was certified in the lean method of productivity. This was popularized from Toyota's approach to building cars. An important part of the lean method is determining the root cause of a problem by asking the five whys. The root cause is so important because it's the determining factor, good or bad, for the result that you're trying to achieve. For runners, the root cause of why you run is either your greatest motivator or the thing that you never knew was missing. I found this approach works really well for us older runners to get clarity on why we run and to keep that fire lit. So to get started, find a pen and paper and a quiet spot where you can focus. And then here's how you do it. So I I just put this all on one sheet of paper uh with with some questions and blanks. But what what you do is you just write down the question, why do I run? Now your first answer might be something is well I I run because I want to stay fit, uh I want to lose weight, uh I want to hang out with my friends, um, and that's great. So then we go to the second question. So it's why why do you want to stay fit? So you would answer that second one, let's say, well, I want to be fit so I can stay active as I get older. So then you ask another why? Well, why do you want to stay active as you get older? Well, the answer could be I want to stay active as I age, so I'm not limited on what I can do. Okay, so let's go one more down. And why do I want to be not limited on what I do? Well, I don't want to be limited on what I do, so when I'm 90 years old, I'm not in a home or stuck in a wheelchair. So the last why would be, why don't you want to be in a home or stuck in a wheelchair when you're 90? And the answer could be, well, I don't want to be in a home or stuck in a wheelchair when I'm 90, so I can be there for my granddaughter. So that's kind of how it worked for me. You know, you just keep drilling down, asking why five times. What you should discover on the fifth why is the core reason why running is so important to you. So when I did this exercise myself, what I found on the fifth Y completely changed on how I think about my running. So, as I said, when I did this exercise, I found that my core why was being there for my granddaughter when I'm 90 years old. And I'll be honest, I didn't expect to get emotional doing a productivity exercise, but you know, there there it was. It really hit home for me because having someone else depend on you is a huge motivator. So it's no longer about race times or age group awards, it's about still being present, capable, and alive for the people who mattered most. Now, if I'm feeling down about my running, all I need to do is to look at my granddaughter's picture and I'm out the door. This is a simple exercise that can have profound effects on your running. Find your person, your place, or your dream. Put a picture of it somewhere where you'll see it, and let that be the thing that gets you out the door when nothing else will. Once you know your real why, no excuse is strong enough to keep you inside. So give it a try and let me know in the comments what person, place, or dream is your ultimate motivation. Have a great week and we'll see you in the next one.