I contributed the Thought for the Day on BBC Radio Ulster on Friday 7 August.
You can listen here, or read it below:
The Comber Greenway
A personal trainer asked me a question recently that caught me off guard.
“How do you stay motivated?”
I had to stop and think. It had been years since I’d even thought about motivation.
I used to compete as an elite runner, representing Northern Ireland at the Commonwealth Games. That was twelve years ago now. These days, I’m older, a little slower, and I know my days of competing at that level are behind me. But I still run, and I still spend time in the gym doing strength and conditioning.
The more I reflected on the question, the more I realised I’d been looking at it the wrong way. Throughout my athletics career, I also worked full-time. That meant I couldn’t rely on feeling inspired every day. I needed a routine. Training became part of the rhythm of life, rather than something I negotiated with myself each morning.
Of course there were days when I didn’t feel like heading out for a long run, or tackling a demanding speed session. But once a habit becomes part of your life, you stop asking whether you feel motivated. You simply do it.
Structure trumps motivation every time.
One of my favourite places to run is the Comber Greenway. It’s a pleasant, tree-lined route stretching from east Belfast to Comber, built on the line of a former railway. Recently, researchers from Queen’s University Belfast published the results of a fifteen-year study into its impact.
The findings were stunning. Since the greenway was created, overall use has more than doubled, with women’s participation increasing by over 200%. There has been a 400% increase in cycling at some locations. People report improved mental wellbeing and a stronger sense of community.
It made me wonder whether the Greenway itself provides something rather like structure. By creating an attractive, accessible place to exercise, it removes some of the barriers that stand between good intentions and good habits.
We all have hopes for the people we want to become— healthier, kinder, more present. But good intentions alone rarely change our lives. Change begins when we build the right habits, create the right environment, and make the better choice the easier choice.
When we build lives, communities and spaces that help us do the right thing almost without thinking, remarkable things can happen.
The Comber Greenway shows us that sometimes the path to a better life begins by simply building a better path.
Image: Copyright Rossographer and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.