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Writer's pictureTatjana Oldham (Scholl)

Becoming an Exercise Lover - Part 1 - Why Exercise?



I can't tell you how many times I have heard people say "I hate to exercise. I just don't like the whole idea of it".

Believe me, I know exactly where those people are coming from. I come from the same place and said the same thing many times myself. I was a true and passionate hater of exercise, so much so that I wouldn't go to physical education classes in school. Those were the first two hours of the day and to me it meant that I could sleep in. My eating habits weren't any better. I was a true hater of anything healthy and lived from potato chips and chocolate with the variation of an occasional piece of pie or cake. No wonder that at a very young age I was out of shape and very weak.

It wasn't until the day I discovered my cellulite that I gave even a second thought to this whole ordeal!

A few years later I was a full-time professional athlete and exercise became my life, which makes it possible for me to say that if I can do it anybody and everybody can do it. And that is a fact.

Unfortunately, not a lot of people believe they can make the change from exercise hater to exercise lover. That's why only 9% of all of the American population is active at a level and frequency recommended for enhancing physical fitness. 30% of the population doesn't engage in any leisure time activities; not even a stroll in the park or the mall. It doesn't look any better in other countries. I for sure was part of the 30% in Germany. Also alarming is the fact that more than 50% of all individuals drop out of their exercise program in the first 6- months.

So, first let's understand the meaning of the word exercise. Exercise is a word that wasn't really used many years ago. Exercise stands for physical activity and was part of daily survival then. People had to work the fields, hunt and build their own shelters. They had to walk and run and climb to get around and being sedentary was a rare and ultimate luxury. In today's world it is turned around. Today, most of us sit while we work, while somebody else builds our house, while we travel and while we enjoy leisure times. That's why the term exercise exists, because physical activity is not part of survival anymore. What lots of us don't understand, or don't want to consider, is the fact that ultimately, physical activity still is part of survival. Even though physical activity is not necessary anymore to get food on the table, or to be able to even have a table, it is necessary because we are made to move. If we don't move we can get sick, lose the quality of our lives or even decrease our lifespan.

Clearly, a long list of society induced diseases like cardiovascular and artery diseases, gastrointestinal problems, emotional illnesses, musculoskeletal disorders and a faster deterioration of the body and its system, show that we should all be physically active. It is proven over and over again that exercise can prevent, improve and eliminate those conditions. A lot of us are very aware of these facts and we go and join a gym, hire a personal trainer, buy some exercise equipment and have the best intentions, but we still can't get ourselves to actually do it! Eventually the membership expires without ever being used and our home equipment collects dust or ends up at a garage sale.

How can we go from hating exercise to loving it or at least not minding it? In Part 2 of this article I want to share my advice with you and which comes from my own experience and the experience of others that went through the same dilemma. Just know there is a way for everybody and I know you can find yours. So, read on in Part 2 to find out how you can get, and stay, motivated about exercise!

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