PEOPLE OFTEN TELL ME THEY’RE NOT INTO FITNESS.
There are five common statements I hear all the time.
After delving into why people make these claims, I’ve found that they’re usually untrue. Interestingly, the individuals themselves often don’t truly believe what they’re saying.
So why do they say it?
It’s a way of letting themselves off the hook from doing something uncomfortable, which is a common human behavior.
If we don’t want to do something, we’ll find all sorts of reasons why we can’t.
I’d like to encourage you to start a fitness program and hold yourself accountable.
My first question is about envisioning the end. Truthfully, I don’t believe there’s an end to a fitness journey. When done correctly, fitness is sustainable for life. However, everyone has an optimal scenario they envision for themselves that brings happiness.
For some, it may be losing 20lbs. For others, it could be having more energy and feeling less tired. Think about what you want to achieve. Then ask yourself, with each passing day, week, month, or year without exercise, how much farther are you from that vision? If you start tomorrow, how much sooner will you get there?
Here are 5 common statements I frequently hear. It’s best to avoid these going forward.
- “I don’t really care about working out.”
Life is busy, and hitting the gym might not be a top priority. That’s okay, but it doesn’t mean you can’t start at a less time-consuming level. If you tell yourself the “I don’t really care…” story, you might follow it up with “one day I will start, but right now just isn’t the time.” If you know it will be important one day, it’s probably important today. The less important you make it now, the sooner it will become dangerously important, which we want to avoid.
Many people wait until they’re scolded by their doctor or until they’ve gained an extra 10lbs out of nowhere. Chances are, you do care about exercising. You might just be thinking that since it’s not the top priority now, it’s not worth doing. Exercise should never be the absolute most important thing in your life, but it should always be a part of it.
- “I’d rather enjoy life than stress out over exercise and food.”
I agree. The last thing I want is to stress out over a brutal workout or avoid cake on my birthday. None of this has to be the case to get started with exercise. A sound approach to losing fat is simple and doesn’t require suffering. You should enjoy life, eat your favorite foods in moderation, and incorporate fitness into your lifestyle.
- “These are the genetics I was born with.”
This brings up a classic nature vs. nurture debate. While there are genetic predispositions we can’t control, it’s a stretch to believe we have no control over our ability to lose fat, get leaner, stronger, and feel healthier. Think of the habits you’ve always had that you’ve never questioned. What minor changes could you make to improve health and fitness?
- “I don’t like exercise.”
This is usually due to a bad experience. Exercise must be enjoyable to stick with. You should be exercising within your capabilities and feeling better after the workout than you did before. In the right environment, it’s possible to start enjoying fitness.
- “I can’t do that.”
If you’ve been watching fitness on social media, you might think that’s true. But there are exercises that are just right for you now. The longer you stick with it, the more advanced your exercises will become. The advanced exercises you see online are not requirements for exercise. You may not be able to do specific exercises right away, but there are many things you can do successfully.
If you’ve said some of these statements in the past, I hope you can laugh about it. I also hope this sheds enough light on the topic for you to realize that you can and should get started today.