In general, any form of exercise, if pursued continuously, will help train us in perseverance.

Earlier this year I started exercising more regularly, haven't done much after the available time to practice Eskrima dwindled away. But now I am playing floorball once a week, jogging once a week and going on bike rides  a couple of times a week.

But what got me over the first obstacle of keep on doing it, instead of ending up with it being a one of thing, was my phone. Or rather one of the multitude of smartphone applications that uses the built in GPS to track your progress and creates a training diary. Now with Zephyr Bluetooth Heart rate monitor, it can also record my heart rate during my exercise session.
And for a gadget geek that is a 3 for 1, reason to splash out on a smartphone, extra bluetooth gadget and the motivation to see the progress you make.

And who does not like the rush of feeling physically tired, but in a non stressed kind of way.