New Years Resolution: Exercise More? Make Exercising Easier On Yourself

Make starting an exercise program easier on yourself. You’ve been bombarded with it wherever you look on social media. Self-styled gurus keep at you to: Exercise for improved health, exercise for longevity, improved health span, fight dementia, avoid osteoporosis or sarcopenia, improve overall body function, an essential adjunct to a weight loss programme and so on. Instagram is overflowing with influencers imploring you to do this particular exercise or ‘this is how to run faster after the age of 50’ or ‘do these exercises  after 60 to prevent falling’

The trouble is there is a grain of truth in all of this. One needs to exercise frequently and consistently for all the reasons given and many others.

But it it’s all so overwhelming! Where does one start? Its time consuming. Exercising is darn painful! “I haven’t got the right equipment”. These are among the numerous valid reasons why one would shy away from starting an exercise programme or letting it fizzle out shortly after beginning.

The path to a successful exercise programme incorporates two non-negotiables. One, you must find your base level of exertion and, two, (most importantly) you need to gradually, but relentlessly, increase that level over time.

What is a base level of exertion? It’s exercise that you can do today, given your current level of physical fitness and mobility. Let’s say you can walk 2km at a stretch and not much more. You decide that that is your base level. Start by walking that distance a minimum of three times a week. After a while (this could be a week or two) you notice that you can complete the walk with less and less effort. When that happens it’s time to increase the effort level. You can increase the distance to say 3km, you can walk the same 2km distance over a hillier route or you can walk the same route but at a slightly faster pace. The choice as to how to increase the effort level is yours but, importantly, you have embarked on a a journey of gradually increasing your effort level.

The consequence of starting exercising at a too high a level for their state of physical fitness as often seen  when people decide to start running or cycling. They start at a speed or pace way too fast. The experience quickly becomes a pain fest and thoroughly discouraging and the would-be cyclist or runner quickly finds excuses not to continue.  The problem is they have started too fast for their base level and need to commence at a much lower speed – yes, even if this is embarrassingly slow.

Perceived peer pressure is often to blame for this reluctance to start an exercise programme at a very low level of exertion. Friends and associates who run or cycle just “naturally” seem to be so much faster, run so much further. Don’t be fooled! Yes, some people have a natural ability to run further and faster from the start, but most of us have started from a low level and worked our way up. And, in actual fact, the human body reacts to physical stress quite readily and it doesn’t take over long before you will be much improved.

But the secret is to start well within yourself!

Click here to be taken to the Run Walk for Life website. Click here and here for more info on osteoporosis and sarcopenia