Theres always an excuse not to do something. Anything really. From going to the grocery store to writing that article you want to write to going to see your family doctor naturopathic practitioner or otherwise. Our minds are really good at excuses especially if its something you dont really want to do. Exercise is one of them. Exercise is part of any successful weight loss program as well as any healthy lifestyle. And yet people have hundreds of excuses for why not to exercise. And like most excuses they just dont make sense when you really examine them. But while proper diet and nutrition are important they only go so far. Without exercise youll be spinning your wheels in frustration unable to live up to your full health potential. Here are some of the most common excuses your brain may come up with for why you dont need to exercise and how to ignore them. 1. Im Too Fat If youre overweight it may seem too difficult to exercise. You may feel like youre too far gone. And if youve been overweight for a long time you may be stuck in your overweight lifestyle and mentality. Humans are creatures of habit and its tough to break out of our habits. But if youre hoping for a successful weight management strategy youll need to start exercising. The good news though is that even if you get winded after only a few stairs you can still start exercising. Start gradually even if its just going for a walk around the block. Youll be amazed at the difference it can make. Nobody goes from being overweight to running a marathon overnight. But if Rosalie Bradford could go from weighing a whopping 1053 pounds to just under 300 youre not too far gone. 2. Im Too Busy Everyone is busy. 21st century lives are busier than ever. But if something is important enough to you youll make time for it. After all you make time to catch up with your favourite TV shows dont you? The truth is you have the time. If you want to exercise youll make the time. If you want to feel better youll make the time. If youre committed to a weight loss program and want to make a change in your life youll make the time. And if you dont youll make this excuse. 3. Exercise Is Boring If you think exercise is boring you may need to broaden your idea of what you consider to be exercise. Going to the gym and grinding your body isnt for everyone of course. Neither are team sports. And if your memories of exercise are all related to gym class that might be your first association. But there are other ways to exercise as well. Dancing is exercise. Swimming is exercise. Going for a bike ride is exercise. Playing the drums is exercise. Even going for a walk with a friend is exercise. The trick is to find some sort of exercise you enjoy doing. You can push yourself to do what you dont like to do once in a while but in the long run your willpower will give out you wont want to do them anymore and youll end up hating exercise. Thats not healthy. Find something you enjoy and find a way to fit it into your daily routine. 4. It Hurts To Exercise Now this isnt always an excuse. This is a legitimate problem which many people face. However theres a difference between pain and soreness. If you run a kilometer on the treadmill after not having done so for a while for example your legs may be sore. Thats to be expected. This soreness usually gets worse in the next day or two after exercise but then it will start to feel better. However if youve injured yourself the pain will be different. Each person is different but if youre experiencing joint or muscle pain talk to a doctor physiotherapist chiropractor or other specialist to find out how you can exercise without hurting yourself. In fact many different types of pain including lower back pain can be offset by certain types of exercise. 5. Im Too Old Very few people are so old that they cant exercise in some fashion. But again this comes back to a different understanding of what exercise is in the first place. Most fitness centres have some sort of exercise program geared toward seniors. These are usually gentler exercises which take into consideration older bones and ligaments but theyre still doable. If your body feels frail and you have trouble exercising there are many small low-impact exercises you can do which will help you keep moving without hurting yourself. Contact The Mindful Healing Clinic Now that we have all our excuses out of the way lets find some easy ways to exercise. If youre interested in building a weight loss program that works with your lifestyle come see us at the Mindful Healing Clinic. Youll get a FREE 15-minute wellness consultation where youll get to sit down with me Dr. Maria Cavallazzi get all your questions answered and find out how naturopathic medicine can help you with how to lose weight and keep it off. Contact the Mindful Healing Clinic to book your FREE 15-minute wellness consultation today. Until next time Dr. Maria Cavallazzi N.D Mindful Healing Integrative Naturopathy 251 Queen St S Unit 4 Mississauga ON L5M 1L7 - https://goo.gl/maps/KYspifT7J232 Dr. Maria Cavallazzi is a medical doctor from Colombia where she practiced as a family physician for 8 years until she moved to Canada 16 years ago. To discover more ways about health wellness and alternative medicine please visit us here: downtown Mississauga naturopathic clinic