Aaron Tang on how to overcome the obstacles that stop you from exercising.
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Everyone knows that exercise is good for us. It reduces stress, makes us happier, increases our self-confidence, prevents cognitive decline, and makes us an inspiration to others as well.
But what if you don’t like to exercise?
What if it’s just not you?
There are many excuses people give for not exercising regularly, but I’ll just state four of them. If any of them resonate with you, consider the suggestions that I have for you.
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- You just don’t have time.
If you’re struggling with a full-time job, housework, and the kids, how do you find time and energy to exercise? Even if you have a free hour, I’m sure you would rather spend it on things you like to do, or Facebook right?
But wait… What about all those busy people who still manage to find time to work out? President Obama, who’s probably a lot busier than you and me, works out every morning. Other super-busy-successful people like Richard Branson, Oprah Winfrey and Anna Wintour do it too.
How?
Time management.
If you can’t find time to exercise, here’s a suggestion: Make a daily activity log. Take a notepad and write down every single thing you do every day, and how much time it takes. Do it for a week. Now review it — and see how you’ve been utilizing your time. Are there inessential things you could drop to free up more time?
This may mean no more TV (or doing squats when commercials come on). Or less late-night-Facebook, so you can wake up earlier. Or spending money to delegate unimportant tasks to others. But the benefits you’ll get from regular exercise will more than make up for it.
Most of us don’t look at it this way, but time and energy are finite resources. Dropping inessential things lets us focus on things that really matter.
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- You haven’t experienced progress, because you don’t know how.
I remember the first time I stepped into a gym. It was one of those old-school without air-conditioning or yoga studios.
I was a skinny teenager with matchstick arms. But everyone there was a grownup man with muscles. BIG muscles. It was intimidating. I felt their eyes were following me as I cluelessly studied the instructions on the machines, and picked up the dumbbells for the first time.
Thankfully, I had a friend who was willing to teach me the basics. Basics which allowed me to progress.
Progress is what keeps people coming back to exercise. No matter how difficult exercise gets. Whether it’s losing pounds on the scale, running a faster time, or lifting heavier weights – people love progress. It makes us feel so proud of ourselves that our efforts are paying off.
But if you’re not sure what you’re doing or IF you’re doing it the right way, working out can be demotivating.
To solve this, one of the best ways is to hire a personal trainer for a short period of time. Get him or her to teach you all the basics. If one-to-one is not your thing, maybe you would like to consider those foundation classes that gyms offer. It’s one of the good ways to learn all the foundation skills. Once you’re comfortable, you can start training on your own.
The most important thing to note is that, to progress, one must leave their ego at the door and be humble to learn and be corrected.
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- You don’t have fun.
You don’t exercise because you think it’s not fun for you.
“Leave my comfortable room just to run in the heat? You’ve gotta be kidding!”
So let’s find a way to make exercise fun. How about trying different exercises until you find one you like?
Maybe you don’t like running. (I hate it).
How about some basketball? It’s easy to organize and most beginners will have fun playing it too. Or any other team sports? Look around and I’m sure you can find someone you know who regularly plays sports. Ask if you could join them for once.
They just might be happy to have another player.
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- Your loved ones don’t exercise either.
It’s tough to exercise if no one in your circle cares about it. Or worse, they mock you for trying.
For most of my life, I belonged to the exercise-once-a-week club. Despite my love for sports and self-improvement, I could never be disciplined enough.
The once-a-week exercise? It was usually basketball. With a bunch of friends I’ve known for more than a decade. Even if I was unable to play, I would often drop by just to catch up and have a chat with them.
A strong community to support your exercise habit will make things much easier. It’s how I got from once-a-week to three-times-a-week. I have friends who remind me that it’s gym time at 5pm on Wednesdays and Fridays. Friends who encourage and push me when we’re lifting weights. (So I return the favor). And friends to discuss progress over post-workout dinners.
Maybe you don’t have a bunch of friends who love to exercise. But that’s okay. All you need is to make that decision to work out and maybe you will be that inspiration. The one who leads your family and friends to live a healthier lifestyle.
And then, hopefully one day soon, none of the above reasons will exist in your life anymore. Because they don’t exist anymore in the lives of your loved ones too.
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This post originally appeared at mr-stingy.com
Photo Credit: Pexels
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