HEALTH & FITNESS | Top 10 ways to banish exercise excuses
1.6.21
Your day probably starts pretty early, regardless of whether you're a stay-at-home mum, a doctor, or a solo entrepreneur. You also probably don't stop until all your tasks are done for the day. Kids to drop at childcare, dog to walk, food to prep, emails to answer, calls to take, not to mention the rest of the daily hustle.
We hear about the importance of making time to exercise, but it can be hard to see the need while you are still young and relatively healthy. Why, then, should we pay more attention to exercise?
FUTURE PROOFING IS A THING
According to an ESSA (Exercise & Sports Science Australia) article on women's health -
"Being physically active drastically reduces a woman's risk of developing chronic conditions like heart disease, breast cancer and even dementia – which is the single biggest killer of women in Australia.
Exercise also improves mental health and helps to protect women from conditions like anxiety and depression. In Australia, as many as 1 in 3 women will experience anxiety in their lifetime, and exercise serves as a powerful tool for preventing and managing symptoms associated with this condition."
YOU'VE GOT THIS
We often talk about self-care in self-nurture, relaxation, sleep, meditation and other gentle pursuits. But regular vigorous exercise is also a vital element of caring for your body and mind. The benefits of firing up your heart rate for 40 minutes several times a week are well documented.
Why is it then we so often make excuses and tell ourselves, yep, sure, I'd love to work out more, but there aren't enough hours in the day to do ~everything~ you want to do?
Let's be completely honest here, one of the critical reasons for this self-talk is that it's daunting to get started, and thoughts of the initial discomfort and accompanying sweatiness send us into a spin. Yup, we find ourselves dipping into our tote bag in search of excuses like; no time, too tired, too unfit, too uncomfortable, too busy, too late, my body can only cope with gentle exercise. But deep down, you know they are just that, excuses. We get you, girl because that is us here at ALULU, every damn day!
BANISH EXERCISE EXCUSES FOREVER
In search of a pep talk ourselves, we polled a few of our Angels who somehow find the time to work out most days of the week to find out how they balance their work, social, and family life while also ensuring they always get their workout in. Here are the top ten strategies these busy women use for keeping their fitness motivation high and excuses low.
- Make exercise a part of your social life - you'll be more inclined to find time in your schedule
- Find a gym close to home to eliminate excuses
- Meal prep on Sundays to free up time for you - because you are important too!
- Get your gym gear ready and put it right near the bed or by the front door
- Exercise as soon as you get up, before you can talk yourself out of it
- Find a gym that has childminding or at least a safe space for the kids (or doggo) to wait
- Sign up for a fitness challenge - find an accountability buddy
- If you have kids, get to the gym during your lunch break
- Wear a tracking device and set goals and reminders to challenge yourself
- Write down your fitness and health goals and break them up into weekly targets
Remember Angels, you are doing this for you because it shouldn't always be about everyone else. You got this!!