I know it can be hard to get exercise in sometimes. I am the fitness freak/exercise lover, but as a busy Mum it can still be hard for me. So I can only imagine how hard it can be to motivate yourself when you hate exercise, but know you need/want it.
I remember saying to a friend one time ‘Oh I’m feeling really blah’, him ‘why’, ‘Oh you know that feeling when you haven’t been to the gym in ages and you just feel out of your groove’, him ‘No?!’. Um ok, then … This clearly wasn’t normal behaviour to him.
You know all the health benefits of exercise, right?
But does your body & mind know what it is missing out?
It’s all about changing your normal and finding your groove. At this moment in your life it may be comfortable, easy, or just what you have done for so long that you don’t know any different. In fact you may feel worse after exercise initially with sore muscle or being more tired.
But could you imagine if fitness was normal for you? If you suddenly felt like say, ‘man I wish I could have gone for a walk/run today’ and your body actually be craving and enjoying it?
It can only take a couple of weeks to set yourself up on this path with a simple guide to get you started.
- Find something you love. If you hate all forms of exercise, try something you have never tried before, do it with a friend, don’t take yourself too seriously
- Start with 15mins. It doesn’t have to be a huge amount of time, just some momentum to get your heart racing. I don’t run often, but when I do I find the first 10mins REALLY hard. I tell myself, I want to stop, I want to stop. But once I break that threshold, I am on cloud nine and could run for an hour (kids permitting of course!)
- Schedule it. Find those little windows in your week where you might be able to sneak something in. Remember, we are only trying 15min blocks at a time. It can be any time of the day, in any situation
- Take imperfect action. You don’t need fancy clothes or gadgets to start. You can workout in your pj’s at home and have some crazy ‘I haven’t burshed my hair in 3 weeks’ hair do going on. Don’t wait for all your stars to align… they never do when you are a Mum, so just try it.
- Keep it Simple. Actively play with the kids, walk with the pram or baby carrier, dance in the kitchen or take a group fitness class. You don’t always need a babysitter or new equipment.
- Stretch through the road blocks. Stuff comes up all the times and can stall your progress. If a workout doesn’t happen for whatever reason, just take a few minutes each evening, before you go to bed to stretch a little. Perhaps at a bit of pelvic floor or core workout. But don’t stress – just try it again tomorrow
The key is to stay with it so that craving to move your body stays with you. It can work in the opposite way if you stop exercising for a few weeks, your body forgets how amazing and energised it can feel.
Take 1 minute now, to figure out when your next workout will be. Text a friends, lay our exercise gear out to use in the morning and stop for 10 squat while you read this.
Till next time x
Philippa Bowman
Found of Nurtured Fitness
Pre/Postnatal Fitness Expert
