So, I've taken the afternoon off work to get stuff done (food shopping etc..) and then go for a ride.

I'm sat here feeling knackered (again, despite 9hrs sleep last night) on the forum rather than getting changed and getting out on the bike and enjoying the (relatively) dry conditions.

This is happening more and more these days, once I get out and get through the first 30mins of feeling rubbish I really enjoy it, whats up with me? Any tips on motivating myself? Anyone else feel the same?

http://www.singletrackworld.com/blogs/2010/01/need-to-ride-have-to-ride-wont-ride/

Go and clean your bike, make sure it's all working nicely and ready to go that it's not going to let you down. Then sort out your spares for the day, have them packed or sitting next to your bike.
Hang your clean riding kit up on a clothes hanger in view.
Do this before the day you want to ride, it's not going to get you out for certain but it'll go somewhere towards helping.
Pre ride faffing about is a PITA.

DT78, I've been the same recently too, gonna force myself out into the forest for an hour or twos blast tonight though

Enter an event that you will have to train for (i.e. CLIC24). Have a countdown to show you how close it is (79 days) and then use the slightest excuse not to go out. Tell yourself you will go tomorrow instead.
Thats what I'm doing 😕

Buy one of these and put it by your desk:

That blog is great – hits the nail on the head –

Great idea about having the kit in plain view ready to go.

I've been entering a few events this year already to get me on the bike (spam and brassmonkeys in Jan). I'm doing a lot better than last year, I hardly rode over last winter.

Right. I'm getting changed and going out. And I will enjoy it. I will.

Give yourself something to incentivise you getting out riding – go out riding for 2-3 hours and you can treat yourself to several beers tonight; no riding = no beer 😉

Tell yourself you don't have to do more than 5 minutes. That act of getting on the bike itself is the challenge. Any riding after that is a bonus. Once you're out I bet those 5 minutes turn into 15 and then into an hour.

I am a procrastination queen, and yet this always works for me!

I have never known an activity like MTBing for the level of faff.

Road riding is marginally better, though still requires quite an effort.

It's the little things, like knowing where all your kit is, that help reduce the mental effort.

Oh, and if you're riding on your own, buy an ipod shuffle and load it with enough nice songs to ride for an hour. Stick it in your camelbak and enjoy the sound as the first song kicks in. Before long, you'll be an hour late home, covered in mud and blissfully happy.

Oh, and drop the 9 hours sleep – the more i sleep, the more i want to sleep.

I have never known an activity like MTBing for the level of faff.

I would've thought something like scuba diving would be worse than biking! my mate used to say, 'you should learn to dive & come with us to Scapa Flow' & I'd say, 'no thanks, It's a right faff on.' I mean, all that gear you need & you can't just pop round the garage & blow your tank up, or get the track pump out can you? No denying it must be thrilling but to me it's the thrill to effort ratio that puts me off.

So I'm back, bribed myself out with the promise of trying an apple strudel mule bar. The bar was a bit disappointing but the ride was great, LW trails are riding really well, alot drier than Sunday.

Thanks for the tips. I'm going to stick to getting the kit ready and having it in the kitchen ready to go.

And scuba must be a huge faff! Especially in this country