When it comes to exercise, everyone’s got an reason to skip it. The vast majority of those excuses sound something like this, and none of them are good enough reasons for avoiding exercise:
“I’m not strong enough.”
No kidding. That’s why you need to exercise. Yes, the start will be rough, but that’s the way it was for all of us.
“I don’t want to get big.”
Me, neither. That’s why I don’t take steroids nor work toward bench pressing 300 pounds. Lifting is so good for you, and for most of us (women especially) it’s pretty hard to really bulk up. What will happen instead is your muscles will get firm and toned, and you might actually lose weight because muscle takes more energy to maintain than fat does. That means that even if you’re just sitting around, your body has to work harder (and burn more calories) if you have some muscle.
Oh, and moving through your day (climbing stairs, lifting boxes) is going to start getting much easier.
“I don’t have time.”
This one grinds me. You say, “I don’t have time” but what I hear is, “It’s not important to me; I don’t want to.” We all have the time for the things that are most important to us. When your health and fitness become important to you, you’ll find the time.
“I don’t like it.”
Three things:
- Adjust your attitude. Quit repeating that nonsense to yourself.
- Try something new. There are so many ways to move your body; you’re bound to find something you do enjoy.
- Not everything in life is enjoyable, and we do it anyway. In the case of exercise, it’ll actually get more enjoyable as you do it, because you’ll get it better shape and it won’t be so uncomfortable. And the benefits far outweigh the temporary discomforts.
“None of my friends exercise.”
Your friends are missing out. Go to the gym and make a few new friends.
Are you guilty of going out of your way to avoid exercise? What would change that for you?