The Power of Small Starts: Momentum Over Motivation
Momentum: A Journey of Mental Strength
October is a strange month. The mornings are darker, the air colder, and the sun is packing up early every night. It’s the kind of month that tests you — not just physically, but mentally.
The sun used to rise at 6 am and set around 9 pm. Now it’s closer to 7 am, and by dinner, it’s already dark. The light fades a little earlier each day, and that takes a toll. It’s harder to wake up, harder to move, harder to stay motivated.
But October has always been that grind month: the stretch where everything feels heavier, workouts, workdays, even moods. At Orangetheory, it’s Hell Week — the time when every class pushes you to your edge, when you grind through exhaustion and learn what mental strength really feels like.
And that’s the beauty of it. October is when you train for the tougher seasons, when motivation fades, and only momentum keeps you going.
The Story
When that alarm goes off in the dark, I think about something I once heard a Navy captain say:
“The first thing you do every morning is make your bed. You’ve already accomplished something.”
It’s simple. It’s discipline. It’s momentum.
That small win — that one early victory — can shift your entire day.
This week, during a 6 am workout. It was cold, still dark, and the studio had that pre-dawn silence before the music kicks in. One of my fellow runners looked over mid-set and said, “I know you love to push, but I just wasn’t feeling it today.”
And I get that. Some mornings, neither am I. But that’s when the internal voice reminds me, it’s not about feeling it. It’s about starting.
Because once you start, something inside you wakes up. You get a spark, then a rhythm, and suddenly you’re moving again. That’s momentum.
It’s not about how fast you go, it’s that you go.
The Framework: Building Momentum Through Small Starts
- Start small.
- Make your bed. Take the first step. Lace your shoes. Progress doesn’t start with passion — it begins with motion.
- Find the grind.
- Hell Week at Orangetheory isn’t meant to be easy. It’s designed to stretch your limits — to remind you that growth comes through resistance.
- Celebrate the small wins.
- Not every day feels like a victory, but showing up is winning. I’ve even worked at companies that celebrated losses — and now I understand why. Every lesson, every setback, is still forward motion.
- Borrow energy.
- Momentum is contagious. When your tank is empty, borrow the energy of those around you. At 6:10 am, that’s my team — they keep me accountable, and we push each other forward.
The Bigger Picture
Momentum is quiet, but powerful. It’s what carries you when motivation fades. It’s what bridges October’s grind and November’s growth.
We all talk about “pushing through,” but the truth is, momentum isn’t about force. It’s about flow. Once you’re moving, you find the strength you didn’t know you had.
So yes, the mornings are darker. The air is colder. The motivation might be thin. But that’s where resilience lives. That’s where the next chapter begins.
Small starts build unstoppable momentum.
Question for you:
What’s one small start that helped you push forward this week?