Fitness Friday :: What I Tell Myself When I Don’t Want to Exercise (which is most of the time)

You don’t feel like exercising today. I get it. Neither do I. If I am lying comfortably in my bed or lounging comfortably on my couch, I need an outside force to get my booty up and moving.

A body at rest will remain at rest unless an outside force acts on it, and a body in motion at a constant velocity will remain in motion in a straight line unless acted upon by an outside force. ~Newton’s First Law of Motion~

Most of the time, the most effective outside force is the sound of my own voice commanding my booty to move.

If you were a fly on my wall (Or an ant crawling across my desk. Or a mouse in my pantry.)

(Yes, I currently have ants in my office and a mouse in my pantry.)

(Which I cannot catch.)

(Even though we have set a trap, and we have a cat)

(Ewww.)

(We have affectionately named the mouse “Pantry.”)

(I have yet to name the ants.)

Anyway, if you were a critter, in my home, with ears, who could understand English, and you heard me talking to myself to get my booty up and moving, here are some of the things you might hear.

1. “Just 10 minutes” Sometimes I promise myself that if I invest just 10 minutes into a workout, I will allow myself to walk away at the end of that 10 minutes, guilt-free. It’s a rare day when I stop after 10 minutes. Mostly, once I get started, I feel great and want to finish strong.

2. “Something is better than nothing” Thanks to a host of misinterpreted, outdated research, we have the idea that unless we exercise with full intensity for 30 or 60+ minutes, exercise is pointless. That is ridiculous. That’s like saying, “If I can’t get my recommended 5-13 servings of fruits and veggies a day, I’m not going to eat them at all.” The truth is, God created the human body to move. Every system, every cell, works more efficiently with regular movement. If your goal is over-all physical health, all movement is beneficial, whether you are pushing through an intense weight-training program or strolling through your neighborhood. (Unless you are ill or injured or doing something incredibly stupid that could make you ill or injured.)

3. “Exercise is a free and effective antidepressant” Long winter, anyone?

4. “If I workout today, I can take tomorrow off” I aim to workout 4 to 6 days per week. That means I have 1 to 3 rest days. At the beginning of the week, I look at my schedule and determine what days work best for exercise and what days work best for rest, and I plan accordingly. If I come up to a scheduled exercise day but don’t feel like doing it, sometimes just looking ahead to see that I have a scheduled rest day coming up is enough to get me over the hump.

5. “If I don’t work out today, I won’t be able to exercise for (fill-in-the-blank) more days” My weeks get busy, just like yours. Some days, I’d have to move heaven and earth to fit in a work out. Even a short one. If I see I have a few days in a row coming up where I CAN’T workout, it’s often enough motivation to push through today.

6. “I never regret working out.” It’s true. The sweaty, heart-pumping, endorphin-releasing activity ALWAYS leaves me feeling energized and thankful I stuck it out. Always. Without exception. Funny how quickly I forget this when I’d rather take a nap.

7. “Remember my goals.” Setting meaningful fitness goals helps me see the value in the daily work out. Sometimes my goals are weight-related. Sometimes my goals involve completing a program. Always, my goals include fighting bad genetics and setting a good example for my kids. When I remember it really is not about working out today, but achieving something over my lifetime, it helps me get off my booty.

8. “Remember my clothes.” So, here’s the thing: I’m officially at that age where unless I pay attention every day to what I eat and how much I move, I can’t get my pants over my hips. And it happens quickly. Like, over days. And, as much as I love me some yoga pants (which cover a multitude of sins) I also like cute jeans. And they get too tight when I skip too many workouts. It’s just the way it is.

9. “Adultery Repellant.” I don’t know about your spouse, but mine works in a giant hospital system alongside cute, young, thin women who happen to shower, style their hair and apply make-up daily. Sure, he made a covenant with me, and I trust him to keep it regardless of my muscle tone. But if I have the ability to stay fit and attractive, why wouldn’t I, for his sake? Yeah, I know it’s not very feminist of me…but I love my husband enough to take good care of my appearance. Yes, for him. It’s mostly for me, but also for him.

Speaking of repellant, I’ve got some ants to spray. I’m not even kidding. I wish I were. And then I need to work out. And, no, I do not feel like it. But I’m going anyway. And then, I’m going to reward my efforts with some cute new jeans.

Q4U: What do you do when you don’t feel like working out?

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Linking up with Jill Conyers today…coincidentally, she’s talking about motivation, too,

answering the question,

“How Do You Fit it All in?“

Go read!