Who Likes to Exercise?

By Cindy Williams, RN

Coordinator, Health Ministries

In my last article, we discussed how important activity and exercise is to our health. But, probably like most of you, I hate to exercise! Some people have even told me they even hate the word “exercise.” It conjures up a picture in their mind of someone exhausted, sweaty, stinky, and miserable working out at a gym. I hope that isn’t the picture that you see when you think of exercise. If you do, let’s find a way to switch out that picture.

The beauty of exercise is that there are so many ways to do it. You can be alone or with a group of people. You can be indoors in the comfort of your home or on top of a mountain. You can use lots of equipment or only your own body. You can spend money or not. You can be yourself!

Here are some tips that I have found helpful personally or have gleaned from friends.

• Identify what is stopping you from exercising. Be completely honest with yourself. It is much easier to tear down barriers that are real and not just excuses.
• Identify the benefits you personally want to experience from regular exercise. Write them down. Celebrate them as you realize them.
• Start small. Thirty minutes a day (for the rest of your life) may seem completely overwhelming. Ten minutes is much easier to see yourself doing for an extended length of time.
• Do what you enjoy. Doing what you think you “should do” isn’t sustainable. Anything works if you are moving your body.
• Build a habit. It will be much easier to stick with exercise once it’s almost automatic – a part of your daily life. 
• Join forces with a friend. Exercise together or just touch bases and hold each other accountable. 
• Never give up!

This article is part of a continuing series of health during these COVID times. For other articles, please see www.uccsda.org/healthministries.

Photo by Fitsum Admasu on Unsplash