With the viewpoint of the brain doing all the decision making, I’m going to take an honest look at what motivates me to be physically fit.

Looking back almost a decade, I have no idea why I took that first step towards changing my life. Knowing myself back then, I assume it was for all the wrong reasons. Something along the lines of thinking, if I looked better, I would be happier.

In reality, there are a million reasons why I might have taken that first step, but what made my brain take the second step, the third, and so on? There must have been some reward(s).

Back then, I was way out of shape. I was an overweight, couch dwelling, low self-esteem, pile of; you get the picture. After that first workout, my body was undoubtedly screaming, “what’s up with all the unnecessary pain and suffering!”

Here’s what I’m getting at. There was no immediate physical reward that motivated me to take the next steps, so it must have been something else. Perhaps a comment from a stranger, inspiration from a book, an existential crisis, or a combination of things. Who knows?

Here’s what I do know. The cause and effect of the universe played out in a way that my brain maintained a mediocre level of fitness for years. Then, I discovered ultrarunning, and my motivation was turbocharged.

I’m not going to turn this into a lecture on the merits of ultrarunning. However, I will focus on the specific characteristics of ultrarunning that in retrospect, we’re extremely rewarding, and the key to my motivation in the early years of my fitness transformation.

I’m not saying that these are essential elements to consider when choosing a sport or activity. What I am saying, this is what I firmly believe made the difference for me.