We all know there are tremendous physical and mental benefits for working out – especially in middle age- so what should you do if you want to exercise but hate working out?
Here is a quick and straight-forward game plan to get your body moving.
DO A MINDSET ADJUSTMENT
Hate is a strong word in my world, but I know there are peeps who really, truly, deeply hate to exercise and given a choice, would rather hug a cactus than workout.
…there are peeps who really, truly, deeply hate to exercise and given a choice, would rather hug a cactus than workout.
Take some time to process your aversion to activity. Did you get picked last on teams in elementary school? (brutal) Do you believe you need to “go hard or go home”?
Run an assessment and an audit on your thoughts. Acknowledge the negative, dispel the myths, and then wave them bye bye. 👋 👋
Replace those thoughts with an earth shaking WHY.
Here’s my fave- envision yourself 20 years from now. Are you strong or are you weak?
Envision yourself 20 years from now.
Are you strong or are you weak?
Decide what you want to physically do when you’re 80, and reverse engineer your activities to meet your goals.
For example, when you’re 80 do you want to be strong and mobile enough to:
- rise from a chair without leaning hard on the table,
- sit on the ground and get up without falling,
- walk with a straight spine,
- move grocery bags from the cart to the car,
- walk up and down stairs,
- put a carry on in the overhead bin,
- play with the future youngers in your family?
MAKE EXERCISE FIT YOUR LIFE
Make movement work for you, not the other way around. What feels good to you? Are you social or do solitary activities appeal to you? Do you want to be inside or outside? Structured instruction or loose movement?
Don’t like gyms? Then don’t join a gym.
Don’t like gyms? Then don’t join a gym.
Physical activity is whatever you want it to be as long as you’re moving your body.
Can’t think of something to do? What did you love as a kid? Roller skating, hula hoop, swimming, ping pong.
Do something fun. Take dance lessons, try pickleball, throw a frisbee, get a rebounder. A few weeks ago I went to the beach park and played on a swing and monkey bars.😄
(Want to learn about the power of play? Listen to the Huberman Lab Podcast #58.)
Get a dog. Done and done.
Sneak in movement all day. It counts! Park at the furthest space from the store entrance. Take stairs over elevators and escalators. Sit on the ground to put on your shoes. When waiting in line, stand on one foot to practice balancing. Bonus points for rolling your ankle. Another good time to balance is when you’re brushing your teeth.
COMMIT TO THE NO EXCUSES RULE
No energy, no motivation, no time, no money, too stressed…the list of excuses is as long as a CVS receipt.
No energy? You’ve got it backwards, movement creates energy.
No motivation? You’re always motivated whether you’re moving or not. If your environment encourages inactivity, then you’ll be inactive. If you want to change your motivation, change your environment.
No time? You can spread out movement over the day or week, or choose short high intensity work.
No money? It takes 5 seconds to find free workouts online + walking, running, hiking and body weight exercises are free.
Too stressed? According to the Mayo Clinic, “exercise in almost any form can act as a stress reliever. Being active can boost your feel-good endorphins and distract you from daily worries.”
Puhleeze don’t let excuses win!
ACCEPT THE DISCOMFORT
This is the tough love portion of the list…you just gotta accept this part.
Tony Robbins says that there’s 2 pains in life- the pain of discipline or the pain of regret. Discipline weighs ounces, regret weighs tons. Most things that are gonna give you the greatest reward require discomfort initially.
…there’s 2 pains in life- the pain of discipline or the pain of regret. Discipline weighs ounces, regret weighs tons.
Discomfort is part of growth. Fussing and complaining about it takes up energy that you can put toward movement instead. Believe in yourself…you can do this.
STICK WITH IT
The benefits of exercise compound like eating well and saving money. It may take weeks, months or more than a year to feel results, so be forgiving and kind to yourself. When you fall off track, it’s totally ok. Just start again, and keep showing up for yourself.
Step by step, little by little is what experts like James Clear the author of Atomic Habits say to do to create new habits. All or nothing thinking usually backfires.
If you’re just beginning, it will be hard, but when it gets hard, that’s when you dig deep and push. But you can do this because you’re in midlife so you know how to do hard things.
REACH THE ULTIMATE GOAL
Ultimately, the goal is to get to a place where movement is part of daily life like brushing your teeth. It’s gonna take some time, there’s no finish line, and there’s no medal, and that’s why finding something that sticks is key.
If you want a deep dive into why some people hate to exercise check out the book Exercised: Why Something We Never Evolved to do is Healthy and Rewarding by Daniel Lieberman. In it he debunks myths and perceptions we have about exercise, and suggests we all find movement we enjoy.
Note: I’m not a fitness/health/medical expert, and this is my own opinion. Check with your health professional if needed obvi!
Ok, byeeee
Great advice!
Another great motivator is to adopt a dog — unless he/she is a couch potato, you will have to get out at least a few times every day to walk or hike with your new companion, and you’ll see your surroundings in a new light.