From running 2 miles to a 200-mile relay race

Two years ago, I could barely run 2 miles without stopping.

A few weeks ago, I ran a 200-mile relay race with some friends. In October, I’ll be running my 3rd marathon!

You might think, “Dang, that must require a lot of time and willpower.”

And you’d be partially right— training for a race is time-consuming. But I’ve found that when I’m exercising consistently, I’m more energized & focused at my desk job. Despite having less free time, I do more high-quality work.

And yes, training requires some willpower. But what’s kept me consistent isn’t discipline; it’s designing my routine so my workouts feel almost un-skippable.

So I want to go through the 4 main things that’ve helped me exercise way more consistently. You don’t need to do all of them. Just incorporating one could make it easier to stick to your own exercise routine.

1) Hone in on ONE exercise-related goal you’re excited about 🎯

I recently found an old list of my goals from 2020. On that list there were 15(!) life goals, including: 

• Doing a front split 😂

• Gaining 10 lbs of muscle

• Getting back into jumprope (I was on a team as a kid)

I completed 0 of these 15 goals. In fact, I barely made progress on any, because my attention was split between so many things.

A few years later, I heard Jesse Itzler talk about the idea of a ‘misogi’ - basically a year-defining goal where you’ll look back later in life and think, “Oh shit, I remember 2025! That was the year I [insert accomplishment]”

I started picking one single exercise-related thing to work towards at a time, and it’s been a game-changer.  In 2024, my ‘misogi’ was running my first marathon. This year’s was to pull together a team to run the 200-mile relay.

Your goal doesn’t need to end in a competition, or take the whole year (for example, next, I’m considering training for a few months to try and dunk a basketball). The important part is narrowing your focus on something that genuinely excites you.

If you have a goal already, are you actually excited about it, or is it just some arbitrary milestone that doesn’t matter to you? If you don’t have a goal, what’s something that excites you to work towards?

2) Reduce the friction to show up day-to-day ✂️

For most of the summer, I didn’t look forward to going to the gym. I had a YMCA membership, which was cheap, but kind of a nightmare- long lines for equipment, middle schoolers running around, and the weight room was a windowless basement.

I decided to pay extra for a gym that’s less crowded, closer to my apartment, and has a lot of natural light. Since then, I’ve found it way easier to show up and enjoy my gym time.

What about your current system is making it difficult to exercise? Some things to consider:

• Proximity - Are you consistently deterred by how far away you are? Is there a closer option that would make it easier to show up?

• Environment - Do you like the physical space you work out in & the people there?

• Program - Are you actually enjoying the exercises you’re doing? Ex: If you hate barbell squats and skip legs half the time because of it, try cycling in a different exercise.

• Time - Can you work out at a different time of day when the gym is less crowded or it’s less miserably hot outside? 

3) Build in accountability with training partners 🤝

My relay race team did our longest run each week as a group. Despite the runs being much too early on the weekends, I didn’t miss a single one because I felt like I’d be letting the group down if I bailed.

I can easily skip a solo morning workout to keep sleeping, but I’ll always roll out of bed tired if I’ve committed to meet up with someone.

Do you have a friend that you’d enjoy doing the activity weekly with, or who you’d enjoy teaching? Is there an existing group you can join to meet people pursuing the same goal?

4) Keep things fresh ♻️

The main reason I started running is that I was tired of lifting weights. I wanted to try something new and feel like a beginner again, so I shifted my focus to long-distance running for a while.

For you, maybe keeping things fresh also means a whole new mode of exercise (ex: picking up a new sport, running more instead of only lifting, etc.)

Or maybe it just means tweaking the exercises you’re already doing. Some longer distances instead of just HIIT. Some bodyweight exercises instead of only heavy weights. 

Has the monotony of your routine worn you down? Are there small changes that would make your workouts more exciting, or would you benefit more from a bigger pivot?

My transformation from a non-runner to a marathon runner didn’t happen because I suddenly got motivated. It happened because I did all of the things above to stack the deck in my favor. To make skipping a workout basically as difficult as just showing up.

So with that, try out one of these principles this week! You’ll be surprised at how quickly consistency builds when you stop relying on pure willpower and start designing your routine to work for you.

-Nico

P.S: If you ever have thoughts or feedback, I read every response to this email!