Exercie In The Changing of Seasons
Exercise can be a very difficult thing to fit into life, but it’s so important as many of us live quite sedentary lives and we know it has many benefits in all facets of health.
This is a really important time of year to start thinking about exercise; as the days get darker and colder, some of the movement you enjoy may be harder to access.
There are a few questions I would recommend asking yourself and exploring when implementing an exercise routine into your schedule:
The first thing to ask yourself when building a movement routine is this: “What do I actually enjoy doing?!”
If you hate the exercise, you're unlikely to do it. The benefits of strength vs. aerobic vs. HIIT, etc. matter much LESS than actually building an exercise routine.
The second is,
“When am I actually likely to do it?”
It's pretty difficult to motivate yourself at the end of a busy day and so I find for most people exercising after dinner and especially after kids’ bedtimes can be quite challenging.
Finding a time that works best for your routine is important, and may take some time. Explore different times during the day and see where the right fit is for you and your schedule!
Another questions is,
“How much exercise will likely fit in my life right now?”
Even 10 to 20 minutes can have pretty significant impact in terms of mental and physical well-being. Are you going to be building loads of muscle in that amount of time? Likely not, but it will feel good for your body and brain! nd it may fit into your life a lot more easily. You might actually be able to do 10 or 20 minutes before the day begins without sacrificing your sleep!
Next, explore the tough stuff…
“How can I decrease the obstacles?”
If you're planning to exercise right after work; we want to have your gear with you. If you're going to go right after dropping your kids at school, we want you to be wearing those clothes on route.
It can be helpful to time exercise during transition times in your day as you have some inertia in that moment. As soon as you get started on something else it can be hard to get back to the movement.
We also want to ensure that everyone in your household knows the exercise is happening. It's much harder to do it if you feel like you need to ask for permission every time. If you are exercising at work, you may need to actually block that in your calendar.
Now that you have some momentum going, asking yourself,
“How do I keep up the routine?”
Starting small, but having it scheduled seems to make the biggest impact for most people. Check it off on your calendar every day you’re doing it to hold yourself accountable and see the frequency with which it's happening.
If there’s a day/time that you typically exercise but you’re unable to for sickness or other reasons, I’d still commit to doing it for 2 minutes.
The intention of the two minutes is not to trick yourself to do the full workout, but to maintain that day and time and routine in your schedule. As soon as we miss a day, it's easy to miss many days.
We want to stay on track.
Create Feasible Goals!
We also want to think about very feasible goals. Start really small and wait 4-6 weeks before increasing the amount of days, length of time, or intensity.
You’ve got this!
I have always been a gym or sport exerciser, but for the first time in my life, I’m doing home exercise. The 10-20 minute goals have been the key to my personal success with it; and it allows me to fit exercise in more consistently!
Let's Work Together!
If you are looking for help building and implementing your exercise routine, book a visit today! We can explore many options and find a solution that fits your busy schedule!