INDIA: Top Five Excuses for Not Exercising or Going for Walk

KOLKATA, September 6, 2003: There are scores of excuses people give for not exercising. Here are the top five, and how to beat them, writes Nirmala Ferrao in The Statesman today. By now, everybody – the young, the middle-aged and the senior citizens – knows it’s important to exercise. Yet most adults don’t get the recommended amount of physical activity, and a good number of them are not active at all. The excuses? “I don’t have time” (tops the list), “I’m too tired”, “I’m just not in the mood.” And exercise gets shelved, again and again, a habit that has come to be known as exercise procrastination. The trick to beat exercise procrastination is to learn how to counter the excuses that keep you from exercising. Taking control of your workouts not only helps you get the body you want, it also makes you feel more in control of your life. So stop making excuses – and start making progress! Excuse #1 I’m too tired. Sorry, you’ll have to toss this one right out of the window. Exercise gurus say that, unless you’re incredibly sleep deprived or jet-lagged, there’s no reason not to exercise when you’re tired. Quite the opposite, in fact – working out will make you feel rejuvenated. Research at California State University backs up their assertion; researchers found that just 10 minutes of brisk walking can give an exerciser up to two hours of increased energy. Excuse #2 I’m too busy Many people don’t exercise because they feel weighed down with work, but a good sweat session will make you more productive on the job. You’ll have less stress, a clearer head and a better perspective. You can actually get more work done after your workout than before, according to fitness experts. A recent study at University of Illinois suggested that people who thought they were too busy to exercise really did have the time but chose not to make it a priority. Figure out how to incorporate physical activity into your workday. Try exercising at lunch-time, when many of us can steal away without missing too many calls or meetings. Excuse #3 I’m feeling ill. Feeling under the weather doesn’t have to keep you from the gym. Research from Ball State University in Indiana, shows that working out with a head cold isn’t harmful. While exercise may not improve or shorten your cold, it certainly won’t make it any worse, the study leader reported. Excuse #4 I’m bored with my workout. Boredom is one of the major reasons people give up exercise. If you’ve done the same routine day after day for months, it’s time to try something new. To keep yourself interested, try varying your activity. Experiment with new moves from magazines or books, or sign up for an activity you’ve never tried, like mallakhamb, ballet or yoga. Excuse #5 I’m too stressed. Instead of adding tension to your life, exercise actually reduces it. Studies show that, when faced with nerve-racking situations, regular exercisers are less likely to experience chest or joint pain, anxiety or depression. Working out can buffer stress simply because it acts as a distraction. Researchers at the University of Wisconsin compared the effects of meditation, hypnosis, exercise and resting quietly to determine which had the greatest ability to promote relaxation. If you think you might be ready to get started with an exercise programme, try the following steps to help you through the initial hurdles. Commit to get started. Take the time to make a list, writing down the reasons that exercise is important to you. For example, “It will increase my energy”, “It will help me fit into my clothes again”, “It will improve my health”, “I will look better” and so on. If your primary reason for beginning an exercise programme is to become leaner, now is also a good time to have a photograph of yourself taken (preferably in skin-hugging workout gear). This photograph will be indispensable in motivating you to continue — and in benchmarking your progress. If you are over 35 and have been sedentary for more than one year, it is strongly recommended that you obtain a doctor’s clearance before beginning any exercise programme. Set specific, achievable goals. Now that you’re committed to beginning a programme, it’s time to define specific, achievable goals. Set long-term, intermediate and short-term goals as benchmarks to monitor your progress. For example, your long-term goal might be to reduce your body fat percentage from 30 per cent to 22 per cent, and to decrease your total cholesterol to under 200 mg/dl within 12 months. Your interim goal might be to raise your upper body strength fitness level from poor to good in three months. Your short-term goal might be to increase your aerobic exercise time from 20 to 30 minutes within two weeks. List your favourite activities. To keep your workouts fresh, create a list of various activities you can choose from. Include activities for all possibilities — for when you’re feeling energetic, for when you’ll be on an out-of-town trip, for when the weather outside is bad and so on. Schedule your exercise. Write down your exercise “appointments” in your diary as you would any other appointment and schedule them a week in advance. Be specific and realistic. Be careful not to be overly-zealous initially. Keep your exercise appointments. Think of your scheduled sessions as you would any other appointment. You wouldn’t break your dental appointment because you didn’t “feel like” going would you? If you’ve committed to reaching your health and fitness goals, you must follow through. Use the “Five-minute Compromise”. There will be days when you can’t face the very thought of exercise. You may have had a hard day at work, or you may be tired after a bad commute. On these days, try the “Five-minute Compromise”. Tell yourself that you’ll try to exercise for only five minutes. If after five minutes you don’t feel like continuing, then tell yourself you’ll stop and you won’t feel guilty about it. Nine times out of ten, once you’ve begun you will continue. Reward yourself. As you reach your short, intermediate, and long-term goals, reward yourself. Buy that new exercise outfit or pair of Nike. Look over your appointment book and see how much progress you’ve already made – and all the fitness appointments you’ve kept! You’re doing a terrific thing for your health and appearance – reward yourself for a job well-done!