Get Fit and Quit Making These Three Common Exercise Excuses

Wade Souza
Daily attitude, long-term outlook, and personal mindset serve as critical components for success in nearly any area of life. Invariably, excuses remain "public health enemy number one," persistently and powerfully derailing our commitment towards improved fitness. Rather than falling prey to fitness's most common and convenient pitfalls, overhauling our mental approach to exercise will subsequently reap significant, sustainable success.

Exercise Excuse No. 1: "I don't have time for exercise."
New "Fit" Philosophy: "I will make time for my health."

A lack of time serves as one of the most common and convenient excuses for "fair-weather" exercisers. However, regardless of how busy, stressful, or exhausting your schedule becomes, personal health must remain a priority. Exercise undoubtedly emerges as a refreshing, rejuvenating source of personal relief from an otherwise hectic day. For beginners, creating brief periods of light to moderate activity on a daily basis will provide considerable health benefits, reduce stress, and jumpstart our metabolism. For more advanced exercisers, high-density aerobic training or anaerobic weight training remains critical to the time-crunched participant.

Exercise Excuse No. 2: "I don't have the energy for exercise."
New "Fit" Philosophy: "Exercise energizes my day."

Exercise consistently emerges as a scapegoat for feeling lethargic through the course of day. Ultimately, regular periods of properly-planned exercise should unleash greater energy for the day ahead, by increasing cellular function, releasing vital natural hormones, and significantly improving our cardiovascular, neuromuscular, and respiratory systems. Likely culprits of chronic fatigue include a high-fat, high-sugar diet, inadequate sleep or irregular sleep patterns, or excessive amounts of stress. Addressing these essential areas, in addition to regular physical activity, remain empowering sources of increased energy for work, family, the home, and serving others. Furthermore, establishing specific short-term and long-term health and fitness goals should powerfully provide purpose for our personal pursuits, while serving as a reinvigorating source of pride, passion, and progress.

Exercise Excuse No. 3: "I can't afford a personal trainer or gym membership."
New "Fit" Philosophy: "The whole world is my playground."

Personal fitness remains as accessible and inexpensive as ever. If you simply do not currently possess the financial means for a gym membership or group fitness membership, blaze your own trail. Fortunately, many of today's healthiest activities, sports, and fitness programs require limited equipment and present little or no cost of entry. Additional "expense-less" exercise suggestions include to research equipment-free workouts online, join a local running or biking chapter, rent fitness books or videos from the library, volunteer in the community, borrow equipment from a friend, or enjoy the outdoors at a local park.

Published by Wade Souza

Souza graduated with distinction from the Exercise Science: Sport Management Program at the University of Kansas. Souza currently resides in Dallas, Texas and is employed as a certified Personal Trainer and...  View profile

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