Here is some plain but important advice: Exercise. Go outside and exercise. Regularly. Humans were not meant to sit inside and move only their fingers over computer keyboards. Our eyes were not meant to stare at computer screens. Our backs were not meant to hunch over desks. Don’t let your body collect dust.
Knowing that you should exercise is different from exercising. One requires that you sweat, the other doesn’t. When given the choice between two options, one that requires you to sweat and one that doesn’t, many people will choose the one that doesn’t. It’s easier. But it’s worse for you. So don’t ask yourself if you know this already. Ask yourself if you do this already.
There are many benefits of exercising. It boosts your energy and puts you in a better mood. It gives you a break and often provides you with a new, refreshed perspective. It will clear your mind. Your breaths of fresh air will feel like breaths of fresh air. It will keep you healthy. Not exercising is like not eating a certain food group, like starches. Not exercising is like missing out on a certain, basic part of life. Life tastes better when you exercise.
For eyes just to look and see is an amazing experience. For ears just to hear what’s there is everyday incredible. For legs to run, arms to swing, and backs to lean into things, this is a joy for them. It is life living. The sweat glands are there for a reason. Use them like you use your brain. The only things that don’t move are dead.
If you have a hard time motivating yourself to exercise, here are a few tricks you can use.
- Make it part of your routine.
If your daily routine is to wake up, exercise, eat breakfast, and go to work, then you don’t have to think about it. Exercise is just there when you get out of bed, just like breakfast is just there when you come back in. - Sign up for something.
If you sign up for a team sport or a workout class, then you’ll be more committed to go because it’s on your schedule. Maybe you paid for it and you don’t want to waste the money you spent. Maybe the fact that your teammates are depending on you will make you more likely to show up. - Do what’s fun.
Some people naturally love running. I don’t. Running is something that I have to do in order to be in shape to play soccer. I play soccer because I love it. When I play soccer, I’m not exercising—I’m just playing, having fun. They say that if you find something that you love to do, then you’ll never have to work a day in your life. The same is true of exercise. Find an activity that you love to do and you’ll never have to exercise a day in your life. Watch a dog run and you’ll see what I mean. - Treat it as a treat, not a chore.
Some people exercise to burn off the calories they eat. Other people eat so that they have enough calories to do what they want to do. These are two completely different ways of approaching the same thing, the cycle of eating and burning calories. Make exercise a treat, not a chore. One day you might not be as strong as you are now. You might not have as much energy. You might not be as flexible. Climb the mountains while you can. Enjoy the sweet sweat.
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