How to make a run fun

Today at the gym I went for a run... on the treadmill. Okay, I haven't worked myself up to going on substantial runs in the real world just yet (although I do run for 15-20 minutes around the neighbourhood with James sometimes), but I am able to clock 30 minutes at a decent-paced jog on the treadmill. So I'm getting there. Yay!

Prior to my run today, I decided I would do a full 30 minutes. On a typical day, when I hit the 23-25 minute mark I have to push past a psychological barrier. I know it's purely psychological because if I can run for 23 minutes without stopping then why not go to 30, right?

Today I almost stopped at that barrier. And you know what got me through that last five minutes? A fast, energetic, pumping song came up on my mp3 player. It was inspiring. Two minutes left and the song ended so I backtracked to play the same song again.

I'm telling you, music can make all the difference.