‘ve been writing in the wellness space for a few years now and I’m starting to get very concerned about the way the majority of people view exercise. I’m a warrior of manageable health and fitness so I trial lots of different exercise trends and then I report on them. I’m starting to notice that whenever I write about a new class or regime, I get asked the same questions again and again.
Did you lose weight?
Did you get more toned?
Did you get a six pack?
Did you maintain your weight loss?
The problem with these questions is that the focus is always on physical results. The truth is, the physical results of exercise are actually the least important benefit of getting your sweat on, yet most people have ‘getting thin’ as their primary reason for exercising. This is an enormous mistake and this mind set is one of the reasons why so many people are dangerously sedentary in their lives. They want to lose weight, they exercise for a bit, they don’t see results, so they stop. It’s an incredibly unhealthy cycle that needs breaking. This is why we all need to stop expecting miracles from exercise. A few 5km runs and some half hearted sit ups aren’t going to make anyone look like Jessica Alba and the sooner we realise this the sooner we can appreciate exercise for what it CAN do rather than what it can’t do.
Exercise Truth Bombs
There are a few things that people just don’t want to hear about exercise. For instance, it takes AGES to see physical results from exercising. I’m talking months, sometimes years, sometimes a life time. Unless you exercise for several hours a day and you’ve won the genetic lottery, it’s highly unlikely that you will ever look like Gwyneth Paltrow but this does not mean that exercise is pointless. Far from it. I have exercised for at least 45 minutes, 3 days per week (usually closer to 5), every week since I was 16. That’s over a decade of consistent exercise.
Am I thin? No. Do I have a six pack? Snort! Am I healthy? Hell yes. Do I feel happy most of the time? Absolutely. Am I strong? You bet! Can I hike for 10 hours without crying? Yep. Can I spend a solid evening dancing with my 5 year old niece at a family wedding? Show me the dance floor! These are all long term benefits of exercising, benefits I wouldn’t be experiencing if I quit when I was an obese teenager who hated running and stupidly assumed I’d drop a kilo every time I did an aerobics class. My body is also totally pain free. I have no ongoing or persistent back/neck/shoulder issues and I know that’s a result of years of dance training, learning to stand up straight and moving my god damn butt every day. I’m not the fittest person I know, not by a long shot but I’m absolutely the most consistent and that’s where the magic happens.
The weight loss myth
Okay I’m about to tell you something that is going to change your life. You most likely won’t lose weight from exercising. Read that sentence, process it, accept it and re-adjust your thinking. Exercise absolutely helps maintain weight, but weight loss from exercise alone is difficult to achieve. Stop worry about the number on the scales. ACTUALLY stop worry about it. It’s quite possible to lose 20 centimetres all over your body and not drop a gram on the scales. So when your favourite jeans are starting to look totally awesome and you’re all a glow from the exercise goodies that have been flowing around your body why the hell would you stop if you haven’t lost weight on the scales? That is MADNESS! It’s fine to weigh yourself to monitor your progress but if you gain 2 kilos, yet your used-to-be-too-small dress now fits you like a glove DO NOT QUIT. You are not a number on a scale, you are a hot, fit, healthy and totally gorgeous piece of ass and you need to tell yourself that every day when you don’t feel like going for a walk or hitting the gym.
Another exercise truth bomb
Exercise isn’t negotiable. Skipping exercise has a negative effect on everything in your life – mental health, general mobility, weight maintenance, cardio vascular health, life expectancy – it should just be a part of your routine like brushing your teeth or doing the grocery shopping. Stop looking at exercise as a thing you do when you’re trying to lose weight and start looking at it as an essential activity for health and wellness. It’s as simple as doing 10,000 every day and breaking a sweat for 30 minutes, 3 times a week. That’s all you have you to do.
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How’s your exercise attitude? Does it need a re-adjustment?
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