Most of us know that we should be exercising. But do most of us exercise as part of our daily routine? I think it’s safe to say that the majority of us don’t exercise every day. Our culture has made it so that we sit all day at a desk (I’m raising my hand here), and go home to sit all night on our couch. This. Is. Not. Okay.
There are a number of reasons why people don’t exercise. Laziness, too busy, lack of motivation, too tired, feel like crap all the time, don’t know what exercises to do, think exercise is boring, don’t enjoy it, it’s too hard, don’t see results fast enough…and the list goes on. I want to tell you that these are all legitimate reasons, but it doesn’t stop there. We have to figure out a way to combat these and move on with our lives. It isn’t enough to just not do it because of any of these reasons. We need to evaluate our lives and ask ourselves how we can realistically incorporate exercise into it. Find what works for you. Our bodies are not made to sit all day and look at screens. Our bodies are made to move. This is why we have arms and legs. To MOVE.
God created us and commanded us to honor our bodies and treat them like temples. We cannot do God’s work if our bodies are not able. This is a great article written about how God honors exercise and how we can pray for God to help us in making it a part of our lives.
I think a lot of people assume that they have to do some crazy intense exercise in order for it to “count”. Well I am here to tell you that you don’t! If you go from being completely sedentary (inactive) all day, to walking for 30 minutes 3 times a week, that is an accomplishment. Heck, even if you just start parking further in the parking lot and taking the stairs. Just make being active part of your everyday activities. Baby steps is what it’s all about. Once you start to do that, you can progress from there. It also depends on what your goals are. If you want to lose weight and build muscle mass, we are going to have to do a little more than walking a few days out of the week.
I want to list some benefits of exercising. I took this from the CDC website.
Exercise:
- Controls your weight
- Reduces risk of type 2 diabetes
- Reduces risk of cardiovascular disease
- Strengthens bones and muscles
- Improves mental health
- Improves ability to do daily activities (especially if elderly adult)
- Increases chances to live longer
…my question is… WHO DOESN’T WANT ANY OF THAT?!?!
I think we all want those things. So why don’t we exercise as part of our daily routine?
Listen, we live in a very busy culture and I understand that it is hard to imagine fitting something else in. It just is. I think if we accept that it’s going to be hard and just move on despite that, we will see more success and realize it doesn’t have to be that hard. Even if you start by walking 10 minutes a day. That is GREAT! I am here to help you make a plan and execute it. If you are a person that can’t rely on your own motivation, you NEED to develop a plan in order to succeed.
Here are some STEPS TO SUCCESS:
- Make a plan (figure out what days you can workout, and plan for it. Treat it like an appointment)
- Look at your week and find what you can REALISTICALLY do right now.
- Get a buddy if you need one! (if you are more likely to workout if you have a friend to do it with, then find a friend!)
- If you’re a prayin person, PRAY! (this is something that is not talked about in christian communities… but it really is a spiritual act and we need help with it!!)
- Try to incorporate strength training as well as cardio (we will get into this in detail in other posts)
- Find classes if that is what you like to do
- Download apps or workouts that you would enjoy.
Just so you can have an example, I will share with you what I do. My plan is to do HIIT (high-intensity-interval-training) 3 days/week and slow and steady cardio 2 days/week (jogging, running, walking). I use the Sweat with Kayla app and I have loved it. I will explain more what HIIT is in another post. Pretty much it gets a lot done in a little amount of time so you feel like you’re gonna die but it doesn’t last long. I do this because it fits into my schedule and I absolutely hate cardio!!! I would rather die for 30 minutes that go on a light jog for 20 minutes. I know, I’m weird. But that is exactly my point! Find what works for YOU and do it. Maybe it’s yoga, maybe it’s a workout class, maybe it’s swimming; just find it and do it. I am here to help you. Remember, it doesn’t have to be hard!
Leave a comment below if you have any questions!
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