I have worked in the Fitness Industry for over thirty years and have loved every minute of it! Fitness has always come very easy for me, I actually crave it! I have vivid childhood memories of the excitement and joy I felt when playing kickball, whiffle ball, tag, jump rope or riding my bike. In middle school and high school I equally found joy in competitive sports, cheerleading, and… gym class was my happy place! Once I started participating in fitness classes, found strength training and eventually made fitness my career, I knew I had hit the jackpot and wanted to bring everyone and anyone along with me in this celebration of movement!
That’s when I got hit with the hard reality that unlike me not everyone was as excited about fitness as I was! I seriously could not comprehend how everyone didn’t feel the excitement, endorphin rush and euphoria that I did when working out. Over my many years of teaching thousands of fitness classes and personal training countless people, I have heard many reasons as to why people are so resistant to working out. Why they start and stop. All of the legit and not so legit excuses; It’s too hard, I’m not fit enough, I feel judged, I’m too old, I’m too weak, I’m not athletic. Sound familiar? What I want to focus on in this post is not the resistance but, offer assistance and insight into what might be holding you back.
Just recently, I was taking part as a facilitator in a Wellness Accountability group. The discussion was centered on the psyche of why we don’t do the shit we say we’re going to do. Fitness retention was at the top of the list of challenges for several in the group. I set out to find as much information as I could to assist this group. Guess what? Apart from using my own experience as a fitness professional and offering what I thought were helpful suggestions, I found that there is not that much enlightenment or information out there because this is one tough nut to crack!
Everyone experiences fitness/movement in a different way. Some people may have had a traumatic experience with sports or a gym class where they were made to feel less than or not good enough. Some may have experienced a fitness class where they were not taught to modify therefore, felt defeated because exercise was just too hard. Some may have health issues that have made them afraid of exercise for fear they could do harm to themselves. So many legitimate reasons.
I’ve thought about this a good bit and am learning to lean in, really listen and meet people where they are. What this long time fitness fanatic has to offer is this. We only get one body, these bodies are our vehicles that lead us through life. Just like a car we are designed to move. We have to fuel our engine in order for it to run. (One of my favorite sayings is, “you rest, you rust”, just like an unused car that just sits and rusts). Exercise/movement is a huge part of that fuel, our strong pumping hearts are what keeps everything moving through our body. Without exercising our hearts we become weak all the way around, our blood doesn’t flow efficiently, our oxygen levels falter, our cholesterol levels take a hit and all of this eventually affects our quality of life.
My experience of what works in exercise retention is starting out slow and easy. Walking, biking or swimming for ten minutes, working your way up to twenty minutes and eventually to thirty minutes, start with one day a week, move to two and then as many days of the week as you can. Find an activity you enjoy! Grab a friend because it’s more fun with friends. Find a community of likeminded people who also have possibly struggled with exercise retention in the past but, have found ways to combat and win over their struggles. Look at exercise as a gift not a punishment because it really is a gift of life!
This post is a bit longer than I had intended but, the subject matter is so very important! If you’ve made it to the end and you are one who struggles with sticking with exercise. I’d like you to sit down and really take a look at why. Why are you not sticking with a program? Write down your list and then look at those reasons and flip the script. You just might see exercise in a different light, not as a punishment or struggle but, as a joyful opportunity to live your best and healthiest life!
I truly hope this post has been beneficial to you or someone you love in some way. I would love to hear your feedback and breakthroughs.
Love,
Robin
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