My Relationship with Exercise

Exercise is one of the most important parts of living a healthy life. Exercise goes hand in hand with eating right. However, so many women, including myself, struggle with making it a part of our regular routine. How do you find time to workout when you work full time, have kids, or haven’t worked out in awhile? How do you make exercise a priority when there are so many other things vying for your time? If you are like me, these are questions that you have asked yourself as you sat on the couch eating a snack after a long day at work or as you realized your favorite pants don’t fit anymore.

We all have heard the benefits of exercise. It is beneficial for your heart health, it decreases the risk for cancer, it helps your skin look better, it helps improve your mood, and can even improve your sex life. The list goes on and on. So why aren’t we doing it more often? 

There are many reasons and excuses for why we are not exercising. Some of the main reasons we are not exercising are a busy schedule, hating exercise, feeling too out of shape to start, and being too tired. I have used almost all of these excuses at some point in time in my life. What excuse have you given yourself?

You probably can remember a time when you were more active. I used to exercise at least 3 times a week. I would go to the gym right after work or before work. I was in good shape, I felt great, and I was happy about my progress. However, as my life became busier and I had more children, I exercised less frequently and settled into a more sedentary life. I would walk or do a video online every now and then, but not on a consistent basis. I started to see my weight increase and my mood decrease. I started to have health issues I did not have before and I realized that I needed to get back moving. 

It is time for you (and me) to tackle our relationship with exercise and get back moving. You don’t have to wait until January to set an exercise goal to get moving or to prioritize your health. Let’s Start Together today. I have 5 tips on how to start exercising. You don’t have to do anything elaborate or pay a lot of money. 

5 Tips to Start Exercising

1. Schedule the Time – If you don’t have a set time, you most likely won’t do it. Paper remembers, people forget. Block off a time that is best for you – before work or right after works best for me. That way nothing gets to creep in and encourage me to change my plans. 
2. Start Small – If you have not been exercising do not do an hour and a half class or routine. This will only set you up for failure. You can get hurt or be so sore, you take multiple days off. I have done this before and it took me weeks to start again. Going too hard too quickly is counterproductive. Pace yourself. 15 or 30 minutes is much better than the 0 minutes you have been getting.
3. Set Realistic Goals – If your overall goal is to lose 20 lbs, break it up into smaller soft goals. I will exercise 3 times a week. I will lose 5 lbs in 2 months. This will help motivate you to keep going and not lead you to disappointment, because you are being realistic with yourself. My current goal is to walk for 30 minutes at least 3 times a week.
4. Do Something Fun – It is important to do something fun or something you like. If you hate running, don’t tell yourself you are going to run every day of the week. Exercise doesn’t have to consist of things you loathe to do. You can take a dance class or ride a bike on a nature trail. Find something you like to do and start doing it on a consistent basis. 
5. Make a Challenge with your Friends or Family – I hate exercising alone. Having someone with you makes it more fun and helps motivate you not to quit. You can create a walking challenge where whoever gets the most steps in a week, gets a reward. You can make any kind of challenge you want with your friends or family.

I want to be healthier and I know exercise is a piece of that puzzle. Join me in starting small and get back to moving. Commit to schedule a time to exercise, start small, set realistic goals, do something fun, and make a challenge with a friend to motivate you even more. You can’t be your best if you ignore your health.  Today is the day to start fresh and tackle your relationship with exercise.