I sit down to talk to a prospective client.
“What are your goals?”, I ask.
“I just want to lose weight”, they say.
“Why?”, I clap back.
“I’ve always been overweight and I hate exercise.” They say.
It’s a common obstacle. And every single day, someone will tell me how much they hate something, don’t enjoy something or (sometimes) flat out refuse to do something.
I get it. Working out can be hard.
It can be tough. And it will be, as there is an endless supply of ‘fun’ any fitness professional can dream up.
And I guess the optimist in me likes to see beyond the complaints…I don’t see it as a refusal to enjoy exercise as much as it is a challenge! Exercise in itself has a very loose definition. And it is not the same for everyone.
It doesn’t have to be lifting heavy weight.
It doesn’t have to be running on a treadmill.
Exercise is defined as ‘a process or activity carried out for a specific purpose, especially one concerned with a specified area or skill.’.
With that said, cleaning your home can be exercise. Mowing the lawn. Going for a walk. Really, anything that gets you off your butt and moving can be called exercise.
I’ve personally always been obsessed with the act of dunking a basketball. It’s a cool thing to see done and to me, it says a ton about that person’s athletic ability (or height). Anytime I’m feeling fully overwhelmed with the ‘perfect’ program, I fall back on going out to play some basketball. I like a mildly organized game, with people I do or don’t know. To me, exercise is play.
And I think there is also a bit of a genetic component to certain activities.
For instance, individuals who tend to weigh less or have a lighter frames (ectomorphs) tend to lean toward activities that they perform well at, or have a physical advantage in. Activities like climbing, running for distance, biking for distance or swimming are fun for a lot of these folks as they get an advantage from their physical stature.
Individuals with medium frames (mesomorphs) tend to lean into activities that are more explosive, intermittently. They tend to lean toward sports like basketball, short track sprinting, short track speed skating, soccer, gymnastics, hockey and tennis.
For even bigger frames (endomorphs), try activities that are a bit slower and can use strength as an advantage. These include powerlifting, hiking, golf, football, rugby and baseball.
The thing is, sometimes fitness can be like trying to fit a round peg in a square hole. I’ve seen first hand how flexible exercise can be. Instead of trying to conform to the ‘norms’ of exercise, I always will introduce different types of stimuli to see what people truly enjoy. Not every workout has to be a butt kicker. But it should be fun. And it should be rewarding!
And if you haven’t found the right type of exercise yet, keep searching! Keep trying new stuff! Set aside a specific day to go out and kick a ball against a wall. Or throw a ball into a net. Or hit some golf balls. Because why spend all the time and energy worrying about getting to the gym everyday, when you can be out exploring? YOU GOT THIS!
Peace like geese,
Mike
Stella Fitness 