
Reasons NOT to exercise:
-
Unrealistic goals lead to failure
Repeatedly failing to achieve your goals is a sure fire way to destroy your motivation. Deciding that you are going to go to the gym every day, or start training for a marathon are fantastic goals to have but for most of us they are unrealistic and are quickly forgotten about. It is far better to have a small, achievable goal which becomes a habit than enormous goals which remain a dream. -
Exercise doesn’t make you lose weight
In fact, for many people (particularly women) exercise can make you gain weight! Vigorous exercise increases cortisol, one of our main stress hormones, and the very one which is linked with abdominal weight gain. If you live a stress free life and/or are under 25, then this probably won’t have any negative effect. However if you are at all stressed or older, then this increase in cortisol can have a rebound effect on other hormones that leads to weight gain. -
Exercise makes you hungry
Our body keeps a very close eye on the comings and goings of calories. If you exert yourself and burn more calories than normal, you are likely to end up compensating for those lost calories by overeating at your next meal. People also often find that they “reward” themselves for exercising by eating unhelpful foods -
Exercise can slow down your metabolism
One of the big benefits of exercise is that continues to increase your metabolic rate and the amount of calories you burn for several hours after finishing. That is, unless you’re overweight. Then exercise has the opposite effect and your metabolism slows down after exercise!If you have a vigorous exercise session and eat a meal afterwards – particularly if you’re eating carbohydrates – you are very unlikely to lose weight, and in fact, you might well gain it.
You need to increase your activity
It’s that simple.Don’t:
- Join a gym
- Get a personal trainer
- Sign up for boot camps
You need to be active before you exercise!
You can increase your activity by:- Walking – walk around the block when you get home, before you go to work, at lunch time, to and from the train or bus stop.
- Park further away – from home, the shops, work
- Standing as often as you can – on public transport, while you’re on the phone, while you’re reading the paper or checking email
- Bend, stretch, squat or just jump around – as often as you can