When's the last time you broke a sweat?
We all know the importance of exercise. It makes us healthier, stronger, more fulfilled and overall happier... plus, it can be super fun! Despite these known benefits, however, some people do not engage in any meaningful exercise whatsoever, while some who do exercise don't tend to get the most out of their workouts.
For someone who hasn't exercised before, exercise is hard. It's hard to get up off the couch or out of bed and go for a run. It's hard to go to gym for the first time and feel embarrassed at your lack of strength. Even as someone who exercises regularly, I'm not going to sit here and pretend I always like to do so. For me as a weightlifter, the thought of going on a massive multi-kilometre run makes me shudder. And even some days, whether I'm fighting off a cold or just feeling lethargic, the last thing I want to be doing is hitting a full-length gym session. I'm going to tell you something counter-intuitive that you probably don't hear any fitness junkies or athletes say. It's not always fun!
The unfortunate reality is that for so many people, this is where they throw in the towel and give up. If we don't feel like doing something, we don't do it. And honestly, sometimes this is ok. If we're really sick or overtired or whatever, you shouldn't be pushing yourself even further until you recover. However, the worst thing we can do for a habit we are trying to build is lose its momentum. If we stop exercising for a week, especially if we haven't been consistently exercising all that long, our habit building takes a hit. This is the ultimate paradox. We don't feel up to exercising, so we don't do it, which makes us less likely to go the next time. What can we do about this?
The only solution really is the simplest one. Exercise every single day, no exceptions. As you read these words, your mind jumps to come up with a bunch of counter-arguments. "You just said take a rest if you're sick!" "Rest days are important!" "What if I'm on holiday?" The fact is, I'm not talking about doing your normal, full-length, strenuous workout. I'm talking about doing something to get your heart rate up every single day. This means a handful of jumping jacks. This means a few pushups. This means whatever is a small yet doable challenge for you and you alone, day by day.
The other problem with this message is that the average reader is now like "Ok Jed, but what a waste of time that is! What's the good of doing 30 seconds of something? I might as well not do it!"
And to these people I say... you're right. It isn't very productive. You aren't going to get in shape by doing a sit-up or two every day.
But does that mean there's no point in doing it? Does that mean we should do nothing at all? Absolutely not. Why? Because we must change our identity into becoming an exerciser.
In the book Atomic Habits, author James Clear uses the example of each daily instance of a habit as being kinda like a vote for yourself in becoming a particular kind of person. Having one cigarette doesn't make you a smoker, but smoking every day for a year will make you one. Similarly, if a smoker smokes less cigarettes today than yesterday, this would hardly change anyone's perception of them. While this is a negative example, fortunately, the exact same scenario occurs for exercise.
Think of the most successful or inspiring athlete you know - or take, say, Cristiano Ronaldo, someone we identify as a footballer. Most of us would agree that he's a dude in top physical shape, someone we can aspire to be like in some way. Can we picture Ronaldo going a day without at least practicing football? Maybe. But what about a few days? A week? A month?
The fact is, to achieve anything we want in life to a meaningful degree including becoming physically and mentally healthy, we must adopt this mindset of doing something to push ourselves every day. At JERMs, our goal is to host some fun yet strenuous activities, but to encourage members to continue exercising every day. Our job is to get the ball rolling for you into doing some form of activity every single day, and to make you not a person who sometimes exercises, but a full-time fitness enthusiast. What's really the downsides?
Now, if you've followed along with this article, you'll do exactly what I'm about to tell you. Get up, right now, and do 5 star jumps.