4 Tips to Eliminate Fitness Roadblocks
Making fitness "stick" is a very real struggle. Why is it SO hard?! Because LIFE:
“I’m too tired.”
“I’m too busy.”
“I have to take care of my family.”
“It’s too expensive.”
“I travel too much.”
“I’m not motivated.”
“It’s summer…it’s the holidays….school’s starting.”
As busy humans, it’s common to neglect Your own health for the reasons listed above plus, many more.
It’s easier to find an excuse than to take action but doing so only leaves you worse off in the end. While we wholeheartedly understand life happens and can’t deny the endless distractions, it does NOT mean you should neglect your health. There is nothing more important.
As coaches, we know with absolute conviction neglecting your own health to INSTEAD, wait for the "perfect" time is the biggest roadblock preventing you from improving your health and fitness, feeling your best and being able to LIVE and enjoy a quality life.
I have been coaching for over 15+ years and what i hear too often is the regret people have for not taking care of themselves sooner.
If you’re always “waiting” because _______ (fill in the blank), THAN YOU WILL NEVER START!
Maybe you aren’t (yet) thinking about your future life: how you are going to feel, how healthy or, unhealthy you will be, if you’ll be strong enough / able to live independently, if you’ll be limited to enjoy life due to chronic disease.
Remember, you are the only one in full control of how you live not just today, but tomorrow and the years that follow.
As a busy mom, single parent, successful professional, college student, or any other myriad of roles occupying your time, exercising and taking care of yourself gets lost in the daily shuffle. In a world where you can barely get enough sleep let alone fit in a workout, making fitness a priority feels hard and at times, impossible.
So, how do you make more time when feeling like you already don’t have enough?
How do you stay consistent when motivation is tapers?
How do you get started when everyone/everything else in your life requires too much of your time?
This blog is teaching you 4 ways to overcome fitness roadblocks so you can start LIVING healthy, happy and strong for life!
4 Tips to END Fitness Roadblocks
1. TIME: The most common roadblock hindering your ability to be healthier, happier and in control. With all your daily responsibilities, it may feel like there aren’t enough hours in the day to make dinner let alone have extra time to spend at the gym or make a nutritious meal. However, with the help of a few time saving hacks, you can learn how to leverage pockets of time to fit in daily movement, exercising and/or healthy meal prep/planning. Remember, being healthy takes effort!
ACTION STEP: Write out your daily schedule and identify free time. Planning and organizing your day seems simple but underrated and seldom used. By physically writing out your daily schedule, you can visually see and identify pockets of free time. Based on these windows, start planning how to best use that time to focus on your health and fitness.
Exercise: Maybe your pock of free time is early morning before the rest of your family is awake. Perhaps the sweet spot is after the kiddos get dropped at school or the lunch hour. Comparatively, maybe you realize evenings are ideal when kids are home and accounted for The answer will be based on individual preferences and schedules. The main goal is choosing a time that’s best for you and building that into your daily schedule. Like a doctor’s appointment, work meeting or parent/teach conference, schedule that block of time and treat it like any other appointment. This forces you to make time for yourself.
Success is NOT rooted in perfection. There will be days where that window is limited to 20 minutes and others 45 -60 minutes. This is about learning to do what you can in the time allotted. If you have limited time and can’t go to the gym, choose other forms of movement that can be done at home or in your downtime at work, i.e., walking in your neighborhood or playing outside with your kids/pets.
Nutrition: Save time by using grocery delivery services or curbside pick. When shopping, opt for prepared options like pre-made protein sources, chopped fruits / veggies and grab and go salads. Items to shop for and always have on hand include frozen fruits and veggies so you have access to healthy options.
Next, based on your window of free time, schedule slots to meal prep for the meals you have the least amount of time to prepare during the week.
#2. MONEY: Though something you can’t magically make more of appear, a roadblock you can overcome by understanding where and how money is being spent that could otherwise be invested in your health.
This is NOT us telling you how to spend money but like time, until you see how it’s being used, you may not realize how to best leverage the resources you have. If you are eating / carrying out, snagging fancy coffee drinks frequently, enjoying happy hours, Amazon priming your life away - these little to bigger purchases quickly add up. The $150 you spend per month on carry out and Starbucks could be used toward buying healthier food options or joining a gym.
At the end of the day, it’s ultimately your call to decide if your health is worth prioritizing over other purchases IF it means being healthier and living a longer, better life.
If you think working with a coach or joining a gym is too expensive, consider the cost of being UNHEALTHY. This includes both direct costs - prescription medications, procedures/hospitalizations, doctor visits - plus indirect costs: things like employment / low productivity/ missed work.
Approximately 60% of American adults suffer from at least one chronic disease: conditions like high cholesterol, high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes and heart disease.
Chronic diseases can cost the average American anywhere from $3,500 - $6,500+ / year! Investing in your health now guarantees you are healthy for life and enables you to save money in the long run and by offsetting the rising costs associated with treating chronic disease.
ACTION STEP: Review your monthly spend to identify where and how you / your family is spending money. Identify purchases / spending that can be scaled back or cut and invested towards your health. From there, research and explore all options to find a match for your monthly budget.
Exercise: This can include working with a coach, joining a local gym, investing in some equipment to use at home, walking shoes, or discounted exercise / nutrition programs offered through your employer.
From there, GET STARTED! At Results Fitness, we offer family discounts as well as different types of workouts to fit your preferences and budget. For example, we value being able to personally coach YOU to prevent injury and maximize results but understand 1:1 Personal Training is expensive! That’s why you can do Small Group Personal Training for a fraction of the cost of a 1:1 Personal Training ($27/session compared to $100/session).
Nutrition: Buy healthy food options in bulk (Costco, Sam’s Club, BJ’s wholesale), buy produce “in season” (it’s always cheaper), shop around for better pricing, take advantage of weekly ads/sales, shop local at farmer’s markets and grocers. If you are in the Cleveland area, some of our favorites places to shop based on quality and price include Aldi’s and Sweet Berry Market.
#3. STRESS: Acute stress is the most common and something you experience most days in some form. By definition, acute stress involves a perceived threat, either physical, emotional or psychological. This does not have to be an intense threat but something as simple as a new task or project deadline at work, upcoming interview, test at school, or a phone call or conversation you have to hold. Acute stress can trigger anxiety, change blood pressure levels, interrupt sleep and lead to digestive distress. Acute stress is easily managed because the symptoms occur only during periods of stress and then end.
Comparatively, chronic stress persists over an extended period of time and is constant in nature. If left untreated, chronic stress can result in a myriad of health conditions including: headaches, muscle aches/pains, sleep disturbances, anxiety, depression, high blood pressure, heart attack, and stroke. Studies show being under constant stress can take 2.8 years off your life.
Examples of chronic stressors include:
Emotional stress: marital/relationship problems, parenting duties and caretaking responsibilities
Environmental stress: home upkeep, neighborhood issues, climate/weather changes, current events, the political climate, economic state
Work stress: workload responsibilities, challenges, office dynamics / work relationships, leadership,
In today’s society, women also struggle with additional challenges/stresses because as women, you typically are caring for and responsible for others. These extra responsibilities fall under the umbrella of emotional labor: the invisible, unacknowledged or unappreciated daily, routine tasks required to run a household and maintain relationships. These additional responsibilities lead to women putting themselves last.
In the end, this leads to partial or complete neglect of your own needs and unhealthy lifestyle habits. The stress from emotional labor can cause emotional eating; leading to overconsumption of calories and/or choosing comfort foods to provide temporary stress relief/satisfaction. Conversely, this stress can lead to undereating; which impacted results at the gym, energy levels and more serious health issues.
ACTION STEPS: Movement! Exercise is scientifically proven to boost endorphins and relieve stress, anxiety and depression. All movement can be seen as functional and productive while helping to reduce stress.
Feeling too stressed to make it to the gym? Take your workout outside! Choose an activity you enjoy such as gardening, hiking, biking, swimming, walking your dog, or yoga. Spending time in nature has been proven to be stress relieving. Start with as little as 10 minutes of an activity and gradually work your way up to a half hour or hour as time allows.
#4. TRAVEL: Your job may require excessive travel for work or perhaps you enjoy traveling as a hobby! Frequent travels makes it difficult to establish consistent routines with regular exercise and healthy eating. Though you may feel any attempt to include health and fitness on your travel itinerary is a lost cause, with thoughtful planning and preparation, you can take your healthy lifestyle on the go! These strategies may be used for any type of travel:
ACTION STEPS:
Exercise: Choose hotels/resorts offering a gym as part of the package. If you enjoy trying new things, Google / find local gyms or studios in the area offering weekly specials or intro packs for new members. If you are working with a coach or personal trainer, ask for a workout you can do on the road requiring minimal use /access to equipment. Like you would when home, designate time to exercise and add this to your schedule to maintain consistency while away.
Nutrition: If traveling by land or air, pack healthy food items/snacks. Things that travel well include protein powder, nuts, tuna packs, self contained fruits (apples, bananas, oranges), chopped veggies, single serving packs of yogurt, almond butters, hard boiled eggs, rolled lunch meat, etc. This ensures you have health options readily accessible.
When dining out, prioritize protein and veggies first and always review the menu before arriving to assess better options. When choosing more indulgent options, consider sharing or packing half away in aa to-go container prior to eating to avoid overeating. For all other meals that day, continue prioritizing proteins and veggies and drink plenty of water.
Biggest takeaway: while making your health and fitness a priority may seem daunting, by applying these 4 action steps, you will successfully overcome and breakthrough your fitness roadblock. Remember, success is NOT found in perfection but repeated habits and behaviors. That is why you now have clear, immediate action steps to begin applying to be your best, feel your best and life your best life.
As coaches, we guarantee making time for your health will make all your other roles, duties and daily tasks easier and much less stressful.
If you need help overcoming the roadblock standing in your way, scheduled your FREE intro with our time so we can that we can strategize how to maximize the time you do have to live the best possible life!