Now that the year is in full swing, there are many who have attempted to start their health and fitness new years resolutions… some with great success and others (well probably most) with results that leave something to be desired! It can be easy while on Christmas holidays and out of your usual routine to make these plans, but once the new year starts and we’re back into the usual 9 – 5, it can be a different story. Sometimes it’s just a matter of getting started. Here are my top 3 ways to get active.
1) Exercise is an opportunity
It’s not necessarily the exercise that makes it hard, but the way you are thinking about it. If you see exercise as a chore, something that must be done under duress, then that’s what it will become. So, just like washing the dishes, you will avoid it wherever possible! Instead, it helps to view exercise as an opportunity. Exercise can be your valuable ‘me’ time. If exercising with friends, exercise can be your social time. If you don’t have much time to get out and meet people, exercise can be your time to make new friends. Walking or cycling with work colleagues can be very effective work meeting time. Exercising with a member of your family can be bonding time. The list goes on! Find your reason to exercise!
2) Just do it – 5 minute rule
Some days when you have planned to exercise, it can just be hard to get the session started. Maybe you work in an office and have been staring at a computer screen for 8 hours and the last thing you feel like doing is going for a walk! For these times, it helps to apply the ‘5 minute rule’. The way this works is to make a deal with yourself that no matter what, you will do the first 5 minutes (at normal training intensity). If after this time you still don’t feel like it, you can stop with no strings attached! The trick here is that usually during the first few minutes, your body moves out of ‘rest mode’ and starts move into ‘exercise mode’. You will notice that after feeling sluggish for a minute or two, you will start to feel your energy levels increase. Once this happens, you want to keep going because it feels good!
3) Do it together
Why struggle through your own personal exercise routine when you can exercise in a group! Exercising in this way has many benefits particularly when you have difficulty maintaining your motivation. Good examples of this type of exercise can include team sports, group fitness classes, walking or cycling groups. Another you might not of thought (or heard) about is dragon boat racing. This group exercise is fantastic for your strength and fitness. As we live quite close to Moreton bay, this exercise option is readily available (as it is becoming more popular). The advantage here is that it takes the emphasis off how you are feeling individually to how you are performing as a group. Usually this means that you will exercise at a much higher intensity and stick with a routine for much longer than if you tried to maintain exercise on your own.
Struggling to get started with your routine? Our Exercise Physiologist Mick Craven has over 18 years experience in the field and is more than happy to answer any questions and help you get moving!
