People's biggest excuses!

R

run4fun

Cathlete
Hi Ladies,

I am currently working on a fieldwork/internship to finish my graduate degree in Health Services. The Health and Wellness center on the Air Force base that I work is going to sponsor me. They are giving me a slot to do seminars on
Overcoming Obstacles to Exercising!

So, I was wondering if you ladies would answer a couple questions for me to help with some of the info and research I need to do.

What is the biggest excuses you have heard from people on why they don't work out????

Why do you think exercise is such a low priority to some people, or not a priority at all??

Thanks!

Have a a great day!

Beverly
 
>
>What is the biggest excuses you have heard from people on why
>they don't work out????

Hands down the biggest excuse is that they don't have enough time. I am one of the few at my office who works out regularly. This is a BIG office, too. People always ask me about my workouts and express that they wish they had my willpower but then say they have no time....Ya gotta MAKE time, people! My time is at 5am! LOL


>
>Why do you think exercise is such a low priority to some
>people, or not a priority at all??

I think with many people it is fear. Fear of making a fool of themselves or not being fit enough to begin with and being judged (i.e. at a gym) Fear of being too klutzy and failing. etc etc etc

I also think that it is just plain lack of motivation. As with dieting, you can say you want to do it but until you make the changes, it just isn't gonna happen.

Perception....People think that they must plan out hours of time to squeeze in a workout (they must think this as they always say they don't have time LOL) What they don't realize is that there are many ways to get in a workout and it doesn't mean it will severely disrupt their life!

Hope this helps! I'm interested in seeing everyone else's replies!
Karen :)
 
Excuse #1: I don't have time. (That trumps all others.) (They don't have time to exercise, but they do have time for all the doctor's appointments for all of the medical problems caused by sedentary living.)

Excuse #2: It's too expensive. (They don't have the money for exercise equipment or gym memberships, but they do have money for cell phones, cable TV, gas-guzzling cars, and other modern-life detritus.)

Excuse #3: I'm not in good enough shape to work out. (Swear to you-know-who I've heard that one many times.)

Excuse #4: I don't need to exercise; I've found the (Fill-In-The-Blank) Diet.

Excuse #5: I tried it once and it didn't work. (Need I say more?)

Excuse #6: I hate exercise. (That's my sister's excuse.)

I think exercise is such a low priority with the majority of Americans because they've demanded the marketplace tell them what they want to hear rather than what they need to know. And the marketplace is always willing to deliver, with it's 5-Minute-Body-Solutions and its Quack-Diet-Of-The-Week tripe.

Exercise is also such a low priority, especially among women, because they are so overfocused on instant aesthetic transformation rather than the long-term health benefits that they routinely blow off a good, sound program simply because it doesn't give them a Bikini Body overnight.

A-Jock
 
I've heard various fitness instructors say that lack of time is the biggest excuse they hear. I think Kathy Smith says this regularly. I love to exercise and always dream about having more quality time for it. In other words, I would love to have more time where I am well-rested and relaxed and not in a hurry to get to something else. If I exercised at 5 am like Karen, I would be giving up 2 very precious hours of sleep, which would not be a healthy trade-off for me.

As for being a low priority, I think most people are focused on things like making a living, raising kids, food shopping, doing laundry and other necessities of life. They see exercise as being more optional, and it is therefore one of the first things to go. I admit to being guilty of this. If I have a project at work to finish, everything else goes by the wayside. I have trouble putting myself first. I tend to honor my obligations to others more than I honor my obligations to myself, and I think a lot of women are like this.

-Nancy
 
"Time" is number 1 and also not seeing results the first week or so discourages them into thinking, "This is NOT working."
Your-Friend-In-Fitness, DebbieH http://www.handykult.de/plaudersmilies.de/wavey.gif[/img] If You Get The Choice To Sit It Out Or Dance...I Hope You DANCE!!!
 
Definitely time.

I'm having a huge problem with this myself. I get up early to get my workout in before my kids get up, but I feel so fatigued the rest of the day. I just don't know how long I can keep up this schedule. If I don't do it before the kids get up, there's just no other time to do it.

Erica
 
Hi Beverly,

Congratulations on the opportunity to do some seminars!

Like the others said, time is the biggest excuse. My mother is currently trying to lose wight and doesn't want to exercise because she thinks she is too heavy. I think many people believe that exercise needs to be this big formal all or nothing deal. For those of us that like structured workouts or specific machines, this isn't an issue. A lot of people are intimidated by those things and may be embarrassed to go to a gym. I think it's important to emphasize that especially for beginners, exercise can and should be really simple- walking, cleaning, etc.

I think exercise is a low priority for some because they don't understand the health benefits. Also, society is so into quick fixes that many people are shying away from the tried and true method of maintaining a healthy body.

Good luck!

Gina
 
Of course one of the biggest excuses is always time. I agree with Aquajock on the diet concept. I have heard countless times about people dieting to get the perfect body and they never seem to think about exercising also? To me its a no-brainer that exercising along with clean eating would be much more beneficial.

Why it's such a low priority is probably also time and the fact that it does take some effort finding out an exercise program that works for you and is fun. I feel that if you start exercising early in life....High School for example...you seem more inclined to stick with it. I cannot even imagine my life without exercise although I have had many people say I am obsessed with it, most distance runners are...:)....Carole
 
The biggest excuse I used for years when doctors told me to exercise is that I am too tired and weak and how can I exercise when I feel so bad and hurt so bad it will just make me worse.
I don't know why I never made it a priority to exercise, right now I have not exercised in such a long time and is back into my old way of thinking again, I am so tired how can I get going again when I have to take a nap at about noon just to get some strenght to make it through the day. I guess that is an excuse right there LOL and a reason for being low priority. If I can only drag my tired body through a workout I would just love it.
 
Beverly,

The biggest excuse that I hear is that there is no time. I make the time every day at 5a.m. I work in an office with overweight ladies that go to Weight Watchers and they think that is all they need. I ask them why they don't workout also, and they say workingout is to much work. That theory annoys me because my theory is there are 24 hours in day, workout 1 hour-THAT LEAVES 23 HOURS TO DO WHAT EVER YOU WANT!

Thank you for letting me vent, Have a Great Day

Shannon

P.S. I viewed your photos and like the step/bench your are using, where did you get it?

:)
 
Hi Beverly,

I think a lot of people say that time is the biggest factor, but I think that answer in a good number of cases is a cop out. Not all cases, but some. I'd venture that the real reason is lack of motivation and that exercise is just viewed as too much work.

Case in point: I have an employee who says he'd like to exercise, but doesn't have enough time after work to do it. I've told this employee (I'm his supervisor) that he could take time out of his workday to exercise, anytime he wanted (beginning of the day, lunchtime, end of day, whatever). The guy doesn't usually take a lunch, so there really isn't even a need to make up hours missed.

I told this guy that he has my full support and encouragement in this. We work on a college campus that provides FREE access to a fitness center, pool, fitness classes, aqua classes, gyms, etc. In the end, he went to the fitness center one day, rode an exercise bike for 20 minutes and hasn't been back since.

Not enough time, my a$$. BTW - this same person once mention that he'd given up coffee because he heard it makes you fat. Oye!
 
Not enough time is the biggest excuse. Most of us don't have enough time, yet we find time for our fav TV programs, and dinner and breakfast, etc...

I think that people don't place exercise high on the list because alot of people are so consumed with how the look "now" that they can't invision a better body in months to come. They have to stop looking at how they look now and start looking at what they'll look like in 3 months time.
 
*****What is the biggest excuses you have heard from people on why they don't work out????******

It's hard.
It doesn't work on me.
Everyone in my family is fat.
I have no clue what to do.


****Why do you think exercise is such a low priority to some people, or not a priority at all??******

I think it's because they want instant results. If they don't see results in a week, they quit. If they just gave it enough time to really see results, I'm sure it would move up on their priority list.
 
The biggest excuse I've heard is 'time'. Even from people who are my age that don't have children at home any more. I've also heard 'I'm too tired to work out' and 'I'm too fat' or 'too out of shape'.

I believe exercising being such a low priority is a cultural thing. We teach or children to make sure they brush their teeth, take a bath, etc. But exercise is not held up as a priority. Just look at the school situation. I remembered seeing something recently on the news where physical fitness is going to be taken out of some school ciriculums (sp). Phys Ed is where I learned my first exercises!
 
The biggest excuse is "I don't have the time", however if they really wanted to they could squeeze at least 30 minutes in somewhere in there busy day.

I think it's a low priority for many because they don't take time out for themselves -many are so busy taking their children around to all of their different activities, running errands, shopping etc... I know my 30-60 minutes of excerise that I put in daily is so beneficial to me- its kind of therapeutic for me. It clears my mind and I am a better person for it. I am totally committed to exercise and I wish more people would be as well.
 
Beverly-
I think the bottom line is -- ITS HARD! It doesn't happen overnight, it takes time, devotion and motivation. If it were easy everyone would do it. If there are health problems involved its hard to get started due to those limitations as well.

My mother had gone through this horrible cycle often-
She'd yo-yo diet, would gain weight back plus some, would try to exercise but couldn't continue due to the pain in her knees/shoulder/back because her body was carrying around so much excess weight. She'd eventually get discouraged and quit.

I know this happens to many people which is such a sad story- the very reason you're trying to excercise ends up being the reason you can't.

Those of us who are lucky enough to see and feel the benefits of exercise and diet know how good we feel and have a desire to continue. It just takes a lot to get to that point where it becomes a part of your life.

We would also be the first to say -- ITS HARD!!

Brenda
 
*Don't have time* is probably the biggest excuse DH and I've heard from some of our students' parents. To which I reply: *I totally understand how busy you are. You do so much for everyone else, take some time for you. You're here with your child already- jump on out onto the floor and we'll help you through*. Half the time, the parents do it, love it and it becomes a family activity.

I've also found, mostly for women and occasionally for men, that *the potential for embarassment* is a big factor as well- eg *I've never done this before and I don't want to look stupid*...

*I'm too tired* is another reason. I think they believe that if they're so tired now, exercise will only make it worse. I tell them that in fact, exercise will help them feel more energized, they just need to get past this initial feeling of *too tired* and they'll be fine. A few people give me a look like I just grew a second head but some do listen. I see our role as educators about fitness, health and mental well-being (eg confidence, self-seteem...)
not only to our students but their parents or SO's.

I think one of the reasons people don't make exercise a priority it is that they don't understand how it much of an impact it has on their health and fitness. They believe, as some posters said, that diet is the way to go.

Another reason is *physical discomfort* (ie sweating, breathing hard, heart pumping...). It's easier and more comfy to sit in front of the TV, munch and veg out- sorry if it sounds harsh but I believe it's true.

HTH! These are great posts I've read. Good Luck with your new job and endeavor!

Elizabeth
 
Definitely TIME! It's amazing too because this is usually from the same people who watch hours of TV every evening, or who talk about going out to the bar on every night they don't work. The second biggest one I hear is that they simply don't like to exercise. When you try to question them about what they've tried and haven't tried, they either avoid the subject, or you find out they tried a class a few years back, didn't like it, so just gave up on the basis of one class.

Best of luck with the internship and finishing your degree, Beverly!! Way to go!!!!

Carol
:)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Our Newsletter

Get awesome content delivered straight to your inbox.

Top