This technology includes a method of correcting the motion during T1 mapping using cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Ischemic heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. The lack of blood supply among myocardial tissue, especially for scar regions, changes the T1 relaxation value of heart muscles. The non-invasive quantification of T1 value of myocardium (T1 mapping) is therefore of great importance for the diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular disease. However, the accurate T1 measurement of myocardium is hard to achieve, mainly due to the inevitable respiratory and heart motion. This invention applies the dedicated motion correction and Tl estimation methods and leads to largely improved robustness and accuracy of myocardial T1 mapping.