Excuse #3: “I’d much rather listen to This American Life/watch Netflix/catch up on the news"

The fix: You can do both at the same time.

Make it a rule that you can consume your favourite stories (Netflix/novel/podcast/news) only while exercising.

“Temptation bundling” is what this pairing of a pleasurable activity with a desired habit is.

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MORE IDEAS ON THIS

Excuse #1: “I don’t have the time to exercise.”

The fix: You’ve got plenty of time; the trick is being intentional about how you use it.

There are 168 hours in a week. Even after you subtract 56 hours to sleep and 50 for work, you’re left with 62 hours.

We have the power to fill our lives with the things th...

176 reads

Excuse #2: “I’m just so comfortable at home right now; I’ll start exercising next week.”

The fix: Put yourself in the future.

When it comes to temptation, we humans are engaged in a righteous struggle between our present self and our future self. Our future self knows it’s in our best interest to exercise, but “it’s an unequal battle” between the two selves.

89 reads

Excuse #4: “I feel like I’m out of shape, and I dread going to the gym with all those workout fanatics staring at me.”

The fix: People will judge, but you don’t need to be one of them.

We live in a culture where being fat is seen as being a bad person — lazy, greedy, unhealthy, irresponsible and morally suspect. And we tend to see thinness as being universally good.

Rather than seeing...

65 reads

Excuse #5: “When I think about working out, I picture myself panting, red-faced and in pain, so I find something else to do.”

The fix: Take a tip from top athletes, and imagine a different scenario.

You’ll frequently see Olympians frown right before they compete. Most of them are not worrying about the event (even though that’s what it looks like they’re doing). They’re engaging in imagery...

78 reads

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