I don’t wanna workout

In the last two-plus months, I have done exactly four workouts. This is highly unusual and not like me at all. I don't feel like doing workouts right now and I have decided to give in and be okay with it. I know I will start working out again because it is part of who I am and I strongly believe we need some form of exercise to be healthy but right now I am going to listen to my body.

My doctor informed me, quite brutally, that my years of athletics when I was young would come back to haunt me later in life and I have been struggling with tight hips and a tight back for several years now. Maybe it's time that I give my body a break. Instead of working out, I have been spending more time stretching, meditating, walking and hiking.

Some and probably many of you workout because you think you “should” but there is more than one way to get the benefits of a healthy lifestyle. If you are struggling for time and beating yourself up for not working out, try focusing on other aspects of a healthy lifestyle that may be easier to fit into your schedule: five minutes of stretching, going to bed earlier, meditating or preparing and cooking your meals at home are some examples. 

How to exercise when it is the last thing you want to do

If you do want to workout, or start working out, or re-start working out, check out these insightful and motivating videos; Wendy Suzuki explains how our brains change with exercise. Laura Vanderkam's TED talk, "How to gain control of your free time," re-frames how we think about time because lack of time is the number reason people give for not exercising.  Laura says, "I don't have time often means it is not a priority, that is more accurate language. Using this language means time is a CHOICE."

In Kelli Jean Drinkwater's TED talk, she challenges us to question why we have such a negative view of being fat and fat people. We are a fat-phobic society. This talk really struck a chord with me because sometimes l question why I want to workout, is it really for health reasons or is it more for aesthetic reasons? The uncomfortable truth is that it is both, but for me it's probably 50/50. Why do I feel such a strong compulsion to look fit? What does it matter if I look fit as long as I am fit? Kelli suggests: "Rather than seeing exercise as a way to punish ourselves for not being ‘perfect,’ it can be a way for us to take care of our bodies.”

So, my wonderful Strong Able Free family, I leave you with this: be kind to yourself, take care of yourself, don't beat yourself up for not doing something you think you should be doing, and be honest with yourself.  If working out isn't a priority, find something else healthful that you are willing to make a priority.

Happy New Year!