Kick-Start your Exercise Routine
Exercise. You may love it or hate it. It may seem elusive or addictive. The need to do it may be haunting you, as finding the time never happens.
Regardless of where you fall on the spectrum, it’s worth thinking about carefully, especially if finding the time to exercise or move doesn't happen regularly.
The best thing is you get to define exercise on your own terms.
Because what works for you is different than what works for someone else.
So if we start at the beginning, just how much time per week should we be committing to our exercise?
According to national standards issued by the Department of Health and Human Services (health.gov), the following weekly exercise to optimize our health is recommended:
A minimum of 150 minutes (five 30 minutes sessions for example) and up to 300 minutes of moderate intensity exercise OR
A minimum of 75 and up to 150 minutes a week of vigorous intensity exercise
Muscle strengthening activities of moderate or greater intensity that involve all major muscle groups, at least 2 days per week.
These recommendations are based on research that indicates that moving our bodies makes us feel better, function better and sleep better. It reduces our risk of developing a chronic disease, and is also a stress reducer.
But that’s probably not new information to you. Whether or not we find the time to do it, we all know how important it is.
I know I sometimes get stuck because I just don’t think I have the time.
Other times I get stuck as I think of all the variations that I should be doing - strength training to maintain and build those muscles (probably the most important thing we can do as we age), HIIT (high intensity interval training) to elevate my heart rate and kick up my metabolism, yoga for flexibility and strength, and I always love a walk … but that’s a lot.
How do I put it all together, focus my time, and make sure I get it done? It's not easy, that's for sure.
Let’s start with where you find yourself on the exercise spectrum. Where you are will help determine what some helpful next steps might be.
Which of these is you?
TYPE 1: Fitness Fanatic
I’m in a routine. I exercise regularly. I know how important it is to do, and I feel the benefits.
If this is you, WONDERFUL! Keep at it. Just a couple things to think about.
First, the range of exercise you do is just as important as eating a wide variety of whole foods. We receive different benefits from doing a variety of different things.
So if you tend to do the same thing every time you exercise … that daily morning run or class at the gym, just think about how to change it up.
When you do the same exercise routinely, your body gets used to it, becomes very efficient, and will start burning fewer calories. If you mix things up, you also diminish the likelihood of injury from doing the same thing every time.
Plus it can just be more fun to change things up … keeping us from getting bored with the same thing day after day.
Second, sometimes we can exercise too much.
Yes, that’s true. In exercise we can push ourselves too hard, which causes a state of stress. There is good stress and bad stress.
Exercise that creates “eustress” - which is a stress level in our body which is good for us - is what we should seek out.
But sometimes people can push too hard and push too long, and this overtaxes us. And when we do this, we’re essentially pumping out cortisol, in a fight or flight state, and that means our bodies are hanging on to everything that we got. Fat and all.
So if you’re one of those people who feels like they are endlessly working out and not seeing results, maybe it’s time to dial it back.
TYPE 2: An Exercise Groove Wannabe
I like to exercise, I want to exercise, but before I know it the day is gone and I’m exhausted. It’s just hard to find the time.
The biggest problem here is that you have an overloaded, hectic schedule. And when this happens, it’s easy to let exercise fall off the “to do” list.
But when there is a will, you can find a way.
You just have to schedule it, like all the other priorities in your day.
You also have to remind yourself about how important it is. Like if you don’t regularly do it, your ability to get all those other things done, and be there for all of those in your life, may become compromised.
Find some time on a Sunday to look at your calendar for the week. Schedule your work-outs. Protect the time you’ve identified by dropping it right into your calendar.
Remember, it doesn’t have to be all at once. If finding decent time blocks is a challenge, then pepper in your exercise throughout the day. Grab 30 minutes here or 10 minutes there. Heck, even finding a few times a day where you can take a five minute exercise break makes a huge difference.
It all counts. It all adds up.
Once your movement goals for the week are on your calendar, here’s another trick. Set your timer on your phone for 5 minutes before you plan to begin.
In fact - do this for all the key meetings, activities, appointments or tasks that you need to accomplish for the day. All too often we can get involved in a project and lose track of time.
I love scheduling a 7 minute workout into my day at 3PM. It’s my mid afternoon “exercise snack” break.
And if that’s all I can get in, at least I know that I’ve checked the HITT and strength training boxes.
If you’re not familiar with the 7 minute workout, you can load the app on your phone. There is a free version - and it’s a great routine of doing a series of strength/aerobic activities, with a 30 second rest between each. The best? It’s just 7 minutes! It’s hard to admit to not finding the time to do that. Thirty seconds of running with high knees, 30 seconds of push ups, 30 seconds of squats … and so on.
This is what my phone looks like when I set the alarms for the day to remind me what I need to get done. It is effective.
TYPE 3: Exercise Avoider
I hate exercise. I feel intimidated and self-conscious about exercise. I know I should do it, but I don’t know where or how to begin.
First off, begin where you are. If this is you, throw out the word “exercise” and just think about “movement.”
That vision of sweat dripping off your forehead as you run on a treadmill is not something that you long for.
As a starting point, pick up a pen, and write. First, think about the types of movement activities that you do like, or even really enjoyed growing up or when you had more time.
Do you like to walk in the woods?
Dance?
Go for a bike ride?
Play tennis or golf?
Jump rope?
Garden?
Remind yourself of activities that you really do enjoy. After making a list, think about which ones you could try out again, and put a plan in place. And it doesn’t have to be complicated.
Can you take a 3 minute dance break in the kitchen before you tackle the dishes?
Can you do some stretches while watching your favorite TV show?
Can you do a few squats while brushing your teeth?
Can you take a break from work and walk around the block, or the office building or your house?
And there’s gotta be something you can do while the coffee is brewing.
Just start small … with something. Even a minute. And then pull out that pen and paper again and journal.
Every time you do something, write down the date, the time, and the activity. Then write:
How did I feel before I moved?
How did I feel after I moved?
I guarantee that no matter how small your movement was, you’re going to feel better. You accomplished something. You’ll never regret taking the time to move.
Then recognize your gratitude at the end of the day for what you did accomplish.
Here’s a little secret to start a new habit, based on the profound research conducted by Stanford’s BJ Fogg, and author of Tiny Habits.
Look for some well established habits that you can add on to. You probably brush your teeth every morning. What quick thing could you do immediately following? Maybe a 30 second plank? Or a couple of stretches?
Read this article for more inspiration on how to do that and learn the art of habit stacking.
Even standing at your desk counts. It burns calories, and is so much healthier than sitting.
So much of health is learning how to struggle through what isn’t immediately comfortable for us.
But there is always a way to discover what works for each of us, what makes us feel productive and just plain good.
It’s about creating our own personal operating system. Just need to start exploring - that’s all it takes. And then take that first step into action. When you take that first step on that first day, as BJ Fogg would say, it may feel tiny … but it will definitely be mighty.