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No excuse for excuses

By Matt MacLeod

Even though obesity is at the top for preventable causes for heart disease, it still amazes me how many people make excuses for not working out. We think that the cure is going to be found in a magic pill or some fad diet plan. Please wake up. What most people fall for is some slick marketer’s advertisement promising that all you have to do is follow a simple diet plan or take a couple of supplements and voila, you will have the body of your dreams. They tell you that the results come quick and easy. That you don’t have to do much exercising, and the results will be overnight. I hate to be the one to wake you from this dreamland, but some one has to do it. Real results come from taking responsibility for the results you get. Not hoping for the weight loss fairy to christen you with her magic wand. Results, not excuses are what will create the body you desire.

One of the most prevalent excuses is that you have no energy to work out. . Although counter-intuitive, the reason you don’t have energy is not that you are tired from work. The reason you are tired is that you don’t exercise. The human body will adapt to the environment that it is placed in, Think of it like this. You have an internal storage tank of energy to created to accomplish the tasks it is given. As you begin to exercise, the body will reallocate its energy reserves to be higher since the demand of work is greater. Don’t exercise, sit around watch TV, and unless you have an incredibly active job, watch how quickly your energy levels will plummet.

Other people are quick to point out that exercise is boring. This true is wrong. Exercise is simply physical activity. Many times people think of exercise as nothing more than lifting weights and running on a treadmill, over time, yes this can get boring. Want to know a secret on how to make it exciting? Find something physical, you enjoy. Although weight training has been a way of life for me, I too would get bored just lifting weights day after day. However through a love of martial arts, I have come to realize that weight training is a tool to allow me to get better. For other maybe you prefer tennis, dancing, or even golf. Find something you enjoy and find ways to make yourself better. By challenging yourself and creating specific goals, you stave off boredom.

I hate being sore. Unless you are a masochist, so does everyone else. Consider this through, not working out makes you hurt even worse. More and more Americans suffer from chronic back pain. The culprit is lack of movement and lack of exercise. If you sit at a desk for the majority of the day and then go home and watch TV for a couple of hours, you body loses flexibility. Low back pain, unless injured, is generally caused by two major factors. Tight hamstrings, the back of your legs, and weak abdominal muscles, contribute to low back pain and discomfort. Now if you were to place a pillow under your knees when you go to sleep to help alleviate low back pain, you are creating a recipe for disaster. Notice that for the entire day you hips are for all means and purposes in the same position. Lack of flexibility comes from not moving. By you hips being locked in the same location around the clock, it is a fact, you are going to have low back problems some time in you life.

No matter what excuse you may give, ultimately people understand the need for exercise is paramount. Excuses, plain and simple are just give a way to give you an out. Isn’t it now time we drop the excuses, refocus, and get focused on having the body we truly desire?

About the Author:

Matt MacLeod is a certified personal trainer and martial artist located in Atlanta, GA. His website is www.BodyDynamic.org