A magnetic resonance imaging system is disclosed to perform an imaging pulse sequence that acquires data to generate an image of at least a portion of the patient. The magnetic resonance imaging system comprises an acoustic transducer to irradiate an anatomic structure in the patient using ultrasonic energy. A receiver, in response to ultrasonic energy, generates echo signals. Using the echo signals, a signal analyzer generates a plurality of gating signals, including a first gating signal in response to a first period of motion of the anatomic structure and the second gating signal in response to a second period of motion of the structure. The magnetic resonance imaging system, in response to the first gating signal, acquires data from the center of k-space, and, in response to the second gating signal, acquires the periphery of k-space.