15 Quick Tips for People Who Dont Like to Exercise

We've all had days when we don't have the energy to tie our athletic shoes, let alone bounce around in them. But exercise can give a daily blast to your mind, body, and soul.

Here are fifteen quick tips to get you moving:

1. Don't get intimidated by the prospect of a daily exercise regimen. You don't have to run a marathon. You need only get your body moving each day. Once you tone your muscles, you'll naturally find yourself wanting to do more challenging workouts.

2. Reframe the way you think about exercise. Begin to think of each workout as a gift you give to yourself instead of just another "should," "ought," or "must."

3. Make sure you enjoy your exercise program. Some people like classes. Some people don't. Choose what's right for you so it becomes something you actually look forward to.

4. Make sure your workout is convenient. Schedule it for a time of day when you typically feel the most energetic. Have your gym bag packed and ready to go by the door or in the car.

5. Make your workout weather-proof. If you run or walk outside, get the right workout gear so weather conditions are never an excuse.

6. Make sure you're doing it right. One reason for wanting to quit exercising is injury or pain. Check with your doctor before you start an exercise program so you know you're safe in the workout you choose. And check in with trainers, too, if you're working on equipment at the gym or trying a new sport.

7. If you're having a low-energy day, tell yourself you have to exercise for only ten minutes. That will get you moving, and once you're in the exercise groove, you'll usually want to finish your workout.

8. Go with friends. Start a group for walking, running, or training. The camaraderie (and peer pressure) can do wonders for your daily motivation.

9. After a really good workout, write a few notes in your journal about how good you feel. Use it as a reference the next time you don't want to begin.

10. Start with small goals. If you want to run for 30 minutes, for example, start by walking fast. When you can do that, make a goal to spend those 30 minutes running for one minute, walking for one minute. When you build on these smaller goals, you'll be running in no time. And you'll give your confidence a boost, too.

11. Recognize that some days it will be easier to exercise, and some days you'll have to struggle through the workout. This has to do with a lot of factors, including mood, hormones, the glass of wine you had last night... Take the pressure off by understanding the fluctations. And exercise anyway.

12. Try behavior modification tapes. Mike Brescia has a good one for exercising here: http://www.momscape.com/thinkrightnow/exercising.htm This audiotape is not self-hypnotizing or subliminal. You'll hear every message, but these messages are subtle and, for many people, effective.

13. Use a visible reward system. The effects of exercise are cumulative and long-term, so sometimes it helps to see your results on a daily basis. After each workout, put a big red star on the calendar as a symbol that you completed the day's workout. Take photos of yourself every month in your workout gear so you have a visual record of your results, too.

14. Get to the bottom of your exercise aversion. For women, if it's the run-of-the-mill gym you can't stand, try a women-oriented fitness center, such as Curves. This is a fast-growing fitness phenomenon, and many women feel like their workout becomes a 30-minute vacation--like a girls' night out at the exercise machines.

15. Be gentle with yourself. Take a day off at least once a week. And if you do skip a few workouts, don't beat yourself up, but do get right back in the routine. The fewer consecutive days you skip, the more likely you'll be to make your workout a lasting gift you give to yourself.

About the author:
Susie Cortright is the founder of momscape.com and Momscape's Scrapbooking Playground - devoted to helping visitors record and preserve their cherished memories. Susie also trains and supports new scrapbooking instructors with a new and rapidly- growing direct sales scrapbooking company. Find out how to join her team here: http://www.momscape.com/scrapbooking/busine ss.htm and get a steady stream of new ideas with her scrapbooking club: http://www.momscape.com/scrapbooking/scrap bookclub

---

The Great Forgotten Exercise -- Parallel Bar Dips

When it comes to building lower pectorals, triceps and frontal... Read More

How NOT to Return from an Exercise Break

Several sites, including this one, recommend that you take a... Read More

Performing Potentially Dangerous Gym Exercises

How do you know that the exercises you are performing... Read More

Exercise Nutrition: How To Keep That Energy Up!

How many times has this happened to you?>> You psych... Read More

Lance Armstrongs Training Tactics: #1 Rule - Greatness Needs NO Explanation!

Great endurance racers will tell you "Leave your egos at... Read More

Banish Your Lower Back Pain Permanently Without Drugs or Surgery

It is estimated that about 80 percent of the population... Read More

Triathalon Racing, It Starts At The Beginning

Long before you can enter into triathalon racing, you will... Read More

The Cool Down - Recover Faster & Avoid Injury!

Many people dismiss the cool down as a waste of... Read More

Your Guide To Exercise

Even light exercise is good for you, so don't get... Read More

The New Lover Approach to Starting an Exercise Program

Approach a New Exercise Program Like a New LoverHow many... Read More

Fitness Focus: Overcoming Obstacles

If you're like me, the quest to be in shape,... Read More

Are You A One-Dimensional Trainer?

Most people are classically biased toward one of the three... Read More

Sets And Reps - The High And Low Weight Workout

Big weights! Wicked pump! I always get caught between two... Read More

Professional Triathlon Training Taking You To Your Best

There are hundreds of different programs for professional triathlon training... Read More

How to Pick a Good Personal Trainer

One of the major benefits of the YourBestBodyNOW Program and... Read More

5 Ways to Fit Fitness In

Five points to consider when you want to fit fitness... Read More

Get Fit From Home!

Using Things Around The House Don't feel that just because... Read More

Lance Armstrong and Exercise - From Denial to Desire!

Press Conference 1996 ? Lance Armstrong On Wednesday October 2,... Read More

A Great Way To Spice Up Your Workouts -- Interval Training

There's been a lot of buzz recently about Interval Training.... Read More

A Fitness Mothers Time

So you've been a mother for a while. Good for... Read More

Finding Time to Exercise

Exercising During Commercials I'm getting up an hour earlier these... Read More

Exercise Intensity

"Physical Fitness"Some physical activities (exercise) are not intense enough to... Read More

How To Overcome Workout Plateaus

Humans are habitual. They strive on routine and rituals. While... Read More

Discover the Best Weight Loss Exercise Ever!

The Best Weight Loss ExerciseThe exercise the experts are keeping... Read More

10 Workout Mistakes Cheaters Make

"When I'm lifting free weights, I tend to go pretty... Read More

Optimize Your Exercise: Maximizing the Time Spent Working Out

Diet and Exercise are the inseparable twins that are seen... Read More

Great Summer Workouts: Just Add Water

With warm weather season now in full gear, exercisers want... Read More

Mom, How F.I.T.T. Is Your Workout?

Moms don't have the time or desire to mess around... Read More

The Amazing Health Benefits of Walking for Exercise

Walking for exercise is a purposeful, brisk walk specifically designed... Read More

Top 3 Back Pain Risk Factors

Lower back pain is an increasingly common problem in fact... Read More

Elements of Exercise

Warm upWarming up before exercising has physiological and psychological benefits.... Read More

Online Fitness Coaching

If I were to tell you that you could burn... Read More

Basic Abdominal Exercises

If it's six pack abs that you're after, daily abdominal... Read More