Finding the time to work out.

FightingGenetics

One of the most common things I hear when talking to people about committing to a program is “I can’t find the time to work out an hour a day”. While that is very easy to say, let’s just take a minute to examine how true that statement probably is. While that person may not have the time to “workout” for an hour a day I am sure they could tell you who got voted off of “American Idol” last week, or who they are rooting for on “Dancing with the Stars”.

It’s not that we don’t have time. It’s that working out is not a priority.

Just like with anything in our lives making a decision to go down a certain road means that we will not be able to do all the things we want to do. Now I’m not saying give up TV (Although one thing I have done to be successful is to cancel cable, this way I can still watch DVDs but I’m not glued to the TV every night.) What I am saying is that you need to look at your long term goals and decide whether or not the small things you are doing are taking you down the road to where you want to be, or away from it.

You’ve heard it before, but I’ll say it again. “It’s not the destination, it’s the Journey“

All I’m trying to say is this, you need to convince yourself that these things you are doing to complete your transformation are not just a way to get you to the body you want. Instead you need to re-engineer the way you think about it and tell yourself that you are making a lifestyle change and that includes finding the time to work out for an hour a day 5 to 6 days a week. If it is just something you do for 90 days then I guarantee that in 91 days you will be back on your way to that place where you are now.



If you don’t find the time to get healthy, I promise you’ll have to make the time to be sick.

nklunk

very well said!!

jwdog7

I suppose we often think I'll do it properly sometime in the future when I really have the time & never do:/

bcattoes

All I’m trying to say is this, you need to convince yourself that these things you are doing to complete your transformation are not just a way to get you to the body you want. Instead you need to re-engineer the way you think about it and tell yourself that you are making a lifestyle change and that includes finding the time to work out for an hour a day 5 to 6 days a week. If it is just something you do for 90 days then I guarantee that in 91 days you will be back on your way to that place where you are now.

While I agree that everyone needs to make regular exercise a priority, is there any evidence that an hour 5-6 days a week is necessary. Most statistics I've seen show 30-60 min a day of moderate to intense activity 3 days a week is sufficient to improve/maintain health and maintain weight (with proper diet, of course).

deb3129

Very well said. I am a great example of this. Before I decided it was time to change, I used the "I don't have time"" excuse. And it was a good excuse for me. I run a 911 center that dispatches police, fire and EMS for our entire county, I am married and have 4 kids that are in assorted activities. So I am busy. But when I truly decided it was time to change, I FOUND time for my exercise, and to make sure I had time to make healthy good. Starting out, I could walk barely a mile, so we are not talking a huge time commitment. But as I have gotten healthier, that has increased greatly. And I still find time to fit in healthy stuff for myself. It is about how serious you arel, and how bad you want it.

FightingGenetics

@Bcattoes,

I am sure there have been studies down showing both sides. They are like statistics, studies can be manipulated to prove whatever point is trying to be made. I am speaking from my own personal experience. I work out an hour a day because that is the perfect amount of time. It is long enough that I feel like I have accomplished something but not so long as to interfere with the rest of my life. Also I work out 5-6 days a week because I think about it like this:

What if I were to say "how often do you eat healthy?"

and you said 3 days a week. I think everyone would agree you would not see any progress, so why do we think that only 3 days a week is enough activity? Now some people may disagree but I will continue to exercise 5 days a week because that is still only 70% of the days of the week.

Now I will say 3 days a week is better than nothing, but not ideal. Just my thoughts.

bcattoes

@Bcattoes,

I am sure there have been studies down showing both sides. They are like statistics, studies can be manipulated to prove whatever point is trying to be made. I am speaking from my own personal experience. I work out an hour a day because that is the perfect amount of time. It is long enough that I feel like I have accomplished something but not so long as to interfere with the rest of my life. Also I work out 5-6 days a week because I think about it like this:

What if I were to say "how often do you eat healthy?"

and you said 3 days a week. I think everyone would agree you would not see any progress, so why do we think that only 3 days a week is enough activity? Now some people may disagree but I will continue to exercise 5 days a week because that is still only 70% of the days of the week.

Now I will say 3 days a week is better than nothing, but not ideal. Just my thoughts.

I'm not sure that I'd agree that eating heatlhy 3 days a week would show no progress. Going from 7 days a week of unhealthy to 4 days unhealthy and 3 days healthy likely would show some benefit. Though likely as much as eating healthy 6-7 days a week.

Sometimes baby steps are needed on the way to good health. If 3 days a week of exercise is all you can manage then it's certainly better than none, and will quite likely provide health benefits, though I agree when it comes to exercise, more is better. Our bodies are designed to move often.