Move That Body
It’s hard to be great if you don’t feel great.
It’s hard to live your best life and achieve all your dreams if you’re not at your physical best.
Unfortunately, more than half of our population is overweight or obese and out of shape. The International Obesity released a report that says we expend about 500-800 calories less per day than we did a few decades ago. All the labor saving devises like remote controls, escalators, elevators, moving walkways and the internet that are supposed to be making our lives easier are in fact making us sick and slowly killing us. If you think about it, that’s equivalent to a 5-8 mile run! That’s how much less we move our bodies today! Daily movement is absolutely critical to counteract our sedentary society.
So yes….
……you have to move your bodies – every single day!
And one of the things I’ve learned after being a fitness professional for 25 years is that exercise is 10% physical and 90% mental. Our biggest obstacle when working with clients is helping them to change their mindset so they catch the ‘fitness bug’ and exercise becomes a lifestyle habit like brushing their teeth or taking a shower. In the beginning most people find exercise a chore and they actually hate it but eventually, if you stick with it long enough, you will notice your days are better when you workout, you may look forward to workouts and actually enjoy them! Eventually you want to workout and actually need exercise and then you’re hooked for life!
For example, in the beginning some people might ask themselves “Should I workout today?” That’s the wrong question because the answer is always yes. You should always move your body everyday. Instead you should ask yourself ‘what workout should I do today?’ and the ‘what’ doesn’t matter as much as long as you do it! You might walk, run, cycle, swim, hike, climb, take a Zumba class, lift weights, go to Cross-Fit, have a session with your trainer, take a Yoga or Pilates class…Find activities that you love and then commit. Lock it into your lifestyle. Ritualize it. Schedule in your workouts like a work meeting or an important appointment with your doctor. Put yourself first. If it’s important enough, you’ve got to carve time out for YOU!
Another mindset people might need to change is this “I’m too tired to exercise!” That’s the wrong statement. Instead you should say “I’m so tired, I need to move my body”. Energy creates energy. I’m sure we’ve all had the feeling of being so tired we didn’t feel like moving. But we did it anyways and then we felt like a million bucks afterwards! So when you’re tired just do something…even a 10 minute walk will wake you up and make you feel so much better.
There will always be excuses that you can become victim to! There will always be someone with more kids than you that still finds the time to exercise and eat well. There will always be someone who is busier than you…someone who works harder than you…someone who travels more than you do…someone who has less money than you…someone who is older than you…someone who is in more pain than you…someone who is more out of shape than you…there will always be someone who is struggling with obstacles and excuses and yet, still figures it out. They do what they need to do to be at their best! So…..
……no matter what excuse you are using to convince yourself that you can’t commit to exercise, sorry, you need to get over it and start taking action. No more excuses! You deserve better than that! MOVE THAT BEAUTIFUL BODY!
Next week, I’ll give you a little more specifics for the ‘What’ to designing your exercise program.
Sherri McMillan, M.Sc. has been inspiring the world to adopt a fitness lifestyle for over 20 years and has received numerous industry awards including International Personal Trainer and Fitness Presenter of the Year. She is the author of five books including “Go For Fit – the Winning Way to Fat Loss” and “Fit over Forty” and is the featured presenter in various fitness DVDs. She is the owner of Northwest Personal Training in downtown Vancouver and can be seen running, hiking or cycling with her two children, Brianna and Jackson. She can be reached at www.nwPersonalTraining.com or www.ShapeupwithSherri.com Note: As an avid Columbian reader, you can redeem a 2 week pass at her world-class training studio to help get you started. Contact 360.574.7292 for more details.
Sherri McMillan
Sherri McMillan, holds a master's degree in exercise physiology and has been inspiring the world to adopt a fitness lifestyle for more than 33 years. She has received numerous industry awards including 2010 CanFitPro International Presenter of the Year, 2006 IDEA Fitness Director of the Year, 1998 IDEA Personal Trainer of the Year, 1998 CanFitPro Fitness Presenter of the Year and 2005/2006 ACE Fitness Educator of the Year - Runner up. She is a fitness trainer, fitness columnist for various magazines and newspapers, author of five books and manuals including "Go For Fit - the Winning Way to Fat Loss" and "Fit over Forty" and the featured presenter in various fitness DVDs. She has presented hundreds of workshops to thousands of fitness leaders throughout Canada, Australia, Mexico, Jamaica, New Zealand, Germany, England, Spain, South America, Asia and the U.S. She is the owner of Northwest Personal Training in downtown Vancouver, the founder of WHY Racing Events & WHY Community, participates in various community fundraisers and can be found running, biking, or hiking around the community. Find more information at nwpersonaltraining.com.