Copyright © 2024 FabYOUlous Fitness | Powered By 
Can you take a guess at one of the top reasons people use for not exercising? There are several but the one I am going to talk about today is time. When I use Google Forms to recruit women for our personal training programs I always ask, “What is your biggest obstacle to being consistent with exercise?” The top answers also include motivation, not knowing what to do, and not wanting to work out alone. But the top answer is time and not having enough of it for exercise.
I used to use that excuse. I was too busy and I didn’t have time to work out, or so I said. I wasn’t lying. I truly believed that I didn’t have the time. Except I was wrong. We all get the same 24 hours in a day, so why do lots of people have time to exercise, while others don’t? Because they make it a priority. It ranks right up there with their jobs and their family; it is a part of their routine. Let's be honest, we all have things we don't like to do or hate to do, but we still have to do them. Have you heard of the term "adulting"? Adulting basically means you do things you don't want to do, anyway, because you are an adult. Yeah, go ahead and file exercise in that category. If you aren’t currently exercising, it’s time for you to make it a priority and I’m going to tell you why.
Exercise has a multitude of benefits, many of which will help extend your life and fight off chronic illness and conditions like diabetes, heart disease, osteoporosis, and obesity. Those benefits also include helping to relieve stress and allowing us to lead busy, active lifestyles. If you don’t make the time now to exercise, you will most likely be forced to make time down the road to take care of health issues that could have been prevented with regular exercise. Regular exercise allows us to live our lives on our terms.
If you believe you don’t have time to exercise let’s take a look at some ways you can change some things around and make exercise work for you.
Set your alarm to get up 30-60 minutes earlier. Yes, it will sting at first, but it will soon become a habit. By exercising first thing in the morning, you eliminate the “I don’t have time” excuse that will pop-up if you plan on exercising later in the day or after work.
Set aside 30-minutes after work or dinner to do something active - walk, run, cycle, play with the kids or dogs. Protect that time with your life! Don’t give it away to anyone else, and if you find yourself doing so, refer to #1 and remove this excuse from the equation.
Use your lunch break to get a brisk 30-minute walk in.
Spread your workout throughout the day. Try 10 minutes in the morning, 10 minutes at lunch, 10 minutes after work or dinner. Walking, body weight exercises, etc all work for this format.
If you absolutely won’t do any of the above, hire someone to hold you accountable. Personal trainers and coaches are experts in this area. Your life depends on it.
Still struggling to get going? Check out Mel Robbins and The 5 Second Rule. Robbins came up with a brilliant way to give ourselves a swift kick in the behind to get moving. Basically, the 5-Second Rule has you count backward from 5 like so - 5-4-3-2-1-GO! Do this the moment you start to hesitate. The moment you start to hesitate your brain begins to talk you out of whatever it is you had the impulse to do. By counting backward from 5 and then taking immediate action (control), you remove the option to talk yourself out of it. I know it sounds silly but it really works and can be applied to many other things in addition to exercise.
Ultimately whether or not you make time to exercise is your choice, but don’t continue to use the excuse, “I don’t have the time.” You do. We all do. Put yourself first and make it one of your highest priorities.