Passion Quote

"I do the very best I know how - the very best I can; and mean to keep doing so until the end. If the end brings me out all right, what is said against me won't amount to anything."

Abraham Lincoln
1809-1865, Sixteenth President of the United States

Passion Quote

"Get to the Top!"

"I do not know anyone who has got to the top without hard work. That is the recipe. It will not always get you to the top, but should get you pretty near."

Margaret Thatcher
Former Prime Minister of England

DON'T EXERCISE TODAY! You don't have enough time!"

"Not enough time."

Be honest with yourself. You probably have time, but don't want to set some aside for your exercise, for your health. How long will you keep selling yourself the excuse that you don't have time to take care of yourself?

What concerns me is that you know by not making time you are passing up the great benefits of exercise, such as more energy, a strong heart, strong bones, strong immune system, improved circulation, better metabolization of fat, an outlet for stress, a fulfilling sex life, lowered cholesterol levels, good posture, the ability to eat foods you enjoy, a good night's sleep, self-confidence, a firm and toned body, and a positive outlook on life. You know this, so why "no time"?

Take an honest look at your daily life and see what you find more important than your health. Visualize yourself in the future and answer this honestly, could you afford to not take care of your health today? NOW? If you don't have your health, you may not be able to do or enjoy those other important things taking up your time.

You say you don't have enough time, but you have time to schedule a lunch date, surf the Internet, catch the nightly newscast, shop at the malls, meet friends or co-workers for "Happy Hour" or a night on the town, or watch a movie with a friend. Why not make it an "exercise date" and DO an activity while you chat? I drove by two women, that I know for a fact to be very busy, out with their dogs walking around a golf course and waved them down to say I was proud to see them out. They were my clients, hard at work making time to exercise together on their own, separate from a scheduled appointment with me.

Schedule your workouts just as you schedule everything else. If you have to get up at 6:00 a.m. instead of 7:00 a.m. to catch a brisk walk or exercise with weights, do it. A woman who has never been a morning person said, "I can't believe people don't make the time to do this more. It is such a small part of my day. I just finished 30 minutes of cardio and now I have the entire day to do everything else. I'm so glad I've made this time." She couldn't have said it better, "made this time".

A very busy couple realizes the importance of their health and consistently schedules their workouts, at least three times a week with a trainer (yes, me) and daily on their own. They have said, "If we didn't write it down and block that time to exercise, we wouldn't do it." It's that important to them that they schedule other things around their exercise (their health) time.

Another woman has been so dedicated to achieving her fitness goals that she completely drops her work in the middle of very busy days and exercises for 30 to 90 minutes, dependent on what is scheduled to do be done that day. She realizes that exercise is an extremely powerful tool to help get her through stressful periods. As a reward for her dedication and discipline, she surpassed her initial fitness goals!

Another woman called me with a very hectic day planned on a day she was scheduled to workout and said, "I'm not canceling today. I'm keeping you in the book. I'm making the time for you." I'm sure she meant to say "for her". Her commitment has caused her pants to loosen in its fit.

And another woman has said to me several times that if I were not meeting her, she would not be exercising that day because she had so much to do. This same person, an avid swimmer and cyclist, also admitted to not wanting to exercise on a day she had scheduled a time to meet me, yet once I arrived she was glad I was there.

Not to shock you, but I recently called a friend to ask her to go on a hike because I needed the accountability to exercise on a day I was busy working from home and would have gladly stayed home because it was too cold outside. If I did not do that, I would not have worked out that day. (Yes, personal trainers sometimes struggle with making time too. I'm sure you've seen those out of shape trainers in the gym.)

There are many more extremely busy people that are an inspiration because they continue to make time for their health by staying committed to scheduling their exercise. The common denominator is they schedule it and reschedule it if there is a time conflict. They make the time.

Time constraints should not be an excuse to skip workouts. Schedule it as you would an important business meeting. Think of your daily workout as a date or a party you wouldn't want to miss out on if that helps you stay committed. When you're writing down the next holiday event, take the time to write down your exercise event for that day too. Write it down. Put it in pen in your calendar. If that doesn't work, hire a personal trainer to hold you accountable to it. Once that happens, a good personal trainer will check to see what you are doing to exercise on your own and will say they missed you if you miss a workout with them. There is more value to making time and keeping it when you have to pay for it.

You have the choice to make the time to take care of your health and of yourself. Do it today and start improving the quality of your life NOW!

"Yes! You CAN!"

~Michelle