I flinch in the face of motivation

Pam Burke

As strange at it may seem to read about me, I had an interesting conversation with a health professional about fitness a while back — of course, it wasn't like I was setting up an exercise regimen or something crazy like that, so no worries.

We were actually talking about motivation, and the pro told me about adopting the inspiring motto of a competitor he'd met; she'd had it tattooed on her arm: "Never Weaken."

"I've been doing more cardio," he said, "and when I'm ready to quit, but know I need to go a few more minutes, I just think 'Never Weaken,' and I can power on through."

He ga...