Have fun with exercise

By Lionel Wijesiri

It is 5.30 a.m. and the clock radio has just blared you out of a dream. Got to go running, you think, but it’s just yet dark yet. You hit the snooze button and go back to sleep. By the time the alarm sounds again, it’s too late to run.

Despite the many scientific discoveries abort the importance of exercise and greater public interest in fitness than ever before, few people get regular, vigorous exercise. The problem? In a word, motivation. You can learn about how your body works and make resolutions, but that is not enough to keep an exercise program from fizzling out. Many health professionals believe that exercise is as much psychological issue as a physical one.

Exercise doesn’t have to be an all-or-nothing proposition. You don’t have to spend hours in a gym or force yourself into monotonous or painful activities you hate to experience the physical and emotional benefits. Adding just a little physical activity to your daily routine can have a profound effect on your mental and emotional health. Whatever your age or fitness level - even if you’ve never exercised a day in your life before - you can find simple, fun ways to add more movement into your life and start to feel better, look better, and enjoy life more.

Study

A recent study by researcher Diane Klein, PhD, shed some light on the subject. Long-term exercisers (who had been working out for an average of 13 years) were asked to rank what motivated them to keep up with their regimes.

Their answers might surprise you. The exercisers were not as concerned with powerful pecs and awesome abs as they were with feeling good and being healthy.

Here’s how the study participants ranked their motivators: (1) Fitness, (2) Feelings of well-being, (3) Pep and energy. (4) Enjoyment of the exercise, (5) Making exercise a priority, (6) Sleeping better, (7) Feeling alert, (8) Being relaxed, (9) Weight management, (10) Appearance

Favourite ways

So, for you to live a fit and healthy life, you need to get your head straight and understand a few key facts:

When you say “but I don’t like exercising,” what you’re really saying is: “I don’t enjoy the particular type of exercise that I have in mind. “If you don’t like lifting weights in a gym, don’t do it. If you don’t like running, don’t do it.

Here are a few exercises that one may not dislike doing:

Hiking, especially with friends - For the keen trekker, there is a plethora of opportunities awaiting in Sri Lanka for hiking and trekking. You do not need to visit Belihuloya or Horton Plains or Haputale for hiking. There will be many places closer to your hometown.

Dancing - Ever tried serious swing dancing? You’ll be sweating within 10 minutes. How about hip hop? Drenched in sweat, and sore as hell the next day. Zumba? Tango? Flamenco? You’d be surprised what you can sign up for and what will elevate your heart rate.

Martial arts - Be honest. Whether it’s Kung Fu, or Muay Thai, there’s a martial art out there that will make you feel like a hero.

Stop meeting for coffee - If somebody wants to meet up with you for coffee, suggest something active: game of badminton, or going for a brisk walk - anything that gets you up and moving.

Adult gymnastics - In the same vein, gymnastics will help you build some of the best real world strength you can get with any type of exercise, and it’s all done in a playful way without a single weight being picked up. Swing from rings, somersault, flip onto pads, and more. There are gyms all over the country.

Yoga - Build flexibility, strength, and learn to freaking relax. There are million kinds of yoga, so sign up for a few different kinds and see which one lines up the best with what you’re looking for.

Play on a playground - Obviously not when children are around. Preferably with pants on. Go down the slide, swing across the monkey bars, climb the rope all, balance on the balance beam. Create an obstacle course for yourself and see how quickly you can get through it. You can even work out on a playground too.

Play a musical instrument - Did you know playing the violin for an hour burns about as many calories as walking around a track at a moderate pace for an hour? It turns out, our brains can burn boatloads of calories too. So challenge your brain!

Cycle to buy your provisions - I know there are a lot of rebels in our community who dropped a bunch of weight by making one change: they cycled to their friend’s house, or started cycling generally. You get from Point A to Point B, you save money on gas, and you get a workout. That would make Michael Scott proud.

Make a beginning

While any kind of exercise offers tremendous health benefits, different types of exercise focus more on certain aspects of your health. Mixing up the different types of exercise can add variety to your workouts and broaden the health benefits.

Aerobic activities such as rapid walking, running, cycling, and swimming strengthen your heart and increase your endurance.

Strength training such as weight-lifting or resistance training builds muscle and bone mass, improves balance and prevents falls. It’s one of the best counters to frailty in old age.

Flexibility exercises such as stretching and yoga help prevent injury, enhance range of motion, reduce stiffness, and limit aches and pains.

If you’re not ready to commit to a structured exercise program, think about physical activity as a lifestyle choice rather than a single task to check off your to-do list. Look at your daily routine and consider ways to sneak in activity here and there. Even very small activities can add up over the course of a day.

In and around your home. Clean the house, wash the car, tend to the yard and garden, mow the lawn with a push mower, and sweep the sidewalk or patio with a broom.

At work and on the go. Look for ways to walk or cycle more. For example, banish all elevators and use the stairs, briskly walk to the bus stop then get off one stop early, park at the back of the lot and walk into the store or office, take a vigorous walk during your tea break. Walk while you’re talking on your cell phone.

With friends or family. walk or jog around the soccer field during your child’s practice, make a neighbourhood cycle ride part of weekend routine, play tag with your children in the yard or play exercise video games. Walk the dog together as a family. Take a class in martial arts, dance, or yoga with a friend or spouse.

Lack of time is the most common excuse for not exercising. But, according to a survey, people who exercise have about 25 hours of leisure time a week - the same as the non-exercisers. It’s a question of priorities, not time.

If exercise is fun, you’ll find the time.