The problem with exercise... and some solutions

Before you tell me, "Camella, exercise is sooooooo good for you and absolutely necessary if you want to maintain a healthy body and weight!" let me preface this by saying yes, dear reader, I know... and you're right!

While my understanding of the human body is basic at best (I did take several anatomy/physiology/exercise based classes for my course requirements, I want to make it clear that I'm in no way an expert and this blog consists of my opinions on exercise and diet from my own perspective and educational level), I wanted to try to start a conversation about what makes us not exercise and in doing so, give us a better understanding of what inspires us to be healthy and to stick with it.


My problem with exercise is that my motivation starts off at a really good pace, then slowly declines until it has withered away into nothing. The problem with exercise for me and a lot of other people is that studies have shown that in order to become "addicting" or even to benefit your mood in the long term, endorphins (ie the warm-and-fuzzy, feel good neurotransmitters that give you a feeling of well-being as well as pain inhibition) need to be released by the brain and this doesn't happen until EIGHT WEEKS of CONSISTENT EXERCISE (ie 30 minutes a day 3-5 days a week). I would much rather sit here on my couch, blogging and YouTubing it up than force myself to run a 5K or even do a few situps. It's painful, sweaty, and not much fun.



My other issue is that I can never stick with it long enough to see any meaningful results. I'm sure we all have the image of the tight abs, firm booty, and strong arms that Cosmo tells us is beautiful and necessary for survival but alas, I have never achieved these elusive signs that I am fit and trim. So I huff and puff up the stairs at my work, I shuffle across campus in hopes of achieving these things that I need to be beautiful.


Now you see my problem? Eight weeks is a long time and usually, my motivation subsides after only three!


So how do we solve the problem of keeping ourselves motivated? I did a little digging and found some good ideas that might just help us lazybones out! (Some of them are from the last article I linked to, some are from my own noggin... feel free to leave your suggestions in the comments!)

1) Do your research! The more you believe in a healthy lifestyle, the more likely you are to maintain it... the more time you invest into your research, the more compelling the arguments are to actually get off your duff and sweat a little.

2) Find your starting point! Find out your BMI, weight, measurements, etc as compared what is considered healthy (by a medical standard, not Glamor Magazine's!) Keep in mind that you're looking for the average... and that everyone is unique and sometimes people fall below or above the average. Don't beat yourself up over numbers and measurements... averages are like a bell curve, the reason a number is considered "average" is because more people fall within this set of numbers than others, they're clustered in the middle of the curve.... it isn't right or wrong, it's just a starting point... This is just to get you focused on change and to give you physical data to compare back with once you are consistent with your exercise and diet.

3) Everyone else is doing it! Find some positive inspiration from athletes you admire or family members that have started living a healthy lifestyle. Sometimes, I past up pictures of active people on my fridge to remind myself of my goal to be healthy. Use these people as role models and look to them for inspiration and as a model of determination. Whenever you feel like quitting, think to yourself, "Did Venus and Serena give up? Did they decide that it wasn't worth it to keep at it?" and who knows? Maybe you'll find some of that elusive determination!

4) Make it fun to sweat! Find exercises that you enjoy doing and try new things! Take a class, buy a dvd... whatever your style, try something new! You're more likely to stick with something if you like doing it!


I hope that my ramblings on exercise and motivation helped you out. I was trying to give myself a pep talk about keeping up with my fitness routine and I think that maybe I feel inspired to give it another go.


If you're interested, here are some links to interesting articles I found pertaining to the topic of exercise and endorphins as well as how to being and maintain an exercise program. Good luck!

http://www.overcoming-depression.com/depression-and-exercise.html
http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/bb/neuro/neuro05/web2/mmcgovern.html
http://www.rd.com/health/fitness-fundamentals-begin-and-maintain-an-exercise-program/