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Sarah Mercer, Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, Denver

Mercer is a partner in the firm's government relations practice and focuses on lobbying, political and regulatory advocacy, campaign finance and land use. Her work helped secured a $9.2 million increase in funding for marijuana education in elementary, middle and high schools in Colorado.

How often during the week do you work out? Every day, sometimes twice!

At what time during the day or evening do you work out? I wake up at 5:30 or 6 a.m., except Tuesday when I sleep in. On Tuesdays, I work out at 7:30 or 8 p.m. or if I need to do a second workout.

Sarah Mercer.

What's your go-to routine? I race short and medium-distance triathlons competitively, so I train with my coach and team multiple days a week. We swim Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday, bike Tuesday, Friday and Sunday, and run Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. In August, I finished eighth in my age group at the USA Triathlon Olympic-distance national championships and qualified for the world championships in Canada next summer!

How long does it take? We swim five to six hours a week, bike six to eight hours a week, and run five to six hours a week.

Why do you like this routine? My coach sends me my training schedule for the entire week on Sunday night. I love that I don't have to think about what to do. All I do is open the spreadsheet and do what's written down for that day. My hardest workouts of the week—like Wednesday track practice—are always with my coach and team. Track practice is so hard that sometimes I don't look at the workout until the morning of, because if I read it the night before, I'll be so nervous about how fast a pace we're supposed to run that I won't be able to sleep.

What does regular exercise do for you? For me, training every day is necessary housekeeping—it shakes off the cobwebs. Also, I love the challenge. Almost every day I get to think: "Can I do this?" And I never know the answer until I try. Risking failure first thing in the morning in a low-stakes environment—who really cares if I make the interval or not—gives me the confidence and courage to go all-in for my clients the rest of the day. I know from practice that if you want a great result, you have to be willing to give up a good enough result.

How long have you been exercising regularly? My whole life. My parents were the epitome of the 1980s fitness craze—my dad played handball and my mom was way into aerobics—and they passed along that love of sport. My dad still plays in a weekly handball league and my mom competes in ballroom dance.

In what ways have you changed your routine over the months or years? I've been training with my coach since law school, so the rigor of my routine has been pretty much the same for over a decade. The biggest change I've experienced since my 20s is inside. I've grown to appreciate that my well of self-discipline is only so deep and to recognize that when my work schedule is more demanding, the well dries up more quickly. When I sense that happening, I acknowledge it and work with my coach to make adjustments rather than trying to power through.

How do you convince yourself to work out when you don't want to? I lie to myself, especially when it comes to jumping in the pool late at night. I'll have to swim two miles, but I will lie to myself that I'm only going to swim half a mile. Then once I get through that half a mile, I'll lie to myself that I'm just going to swim the next set. Then, I repeat that same lie to myself about swimming only the next set. Before I know it, I've done the whole workout. My other trick is to create a false sense of urgency by waiting to do my swim until an hour before the gym closes. The clock ticking down to closing time gives me a shot of adrenaline.

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