How to Stop Being Lazy

Physical activity is an important ingredient in maintaining a healthy mind and body. Too many people have trouble incorporating physical activity into their daily lives. In addition to eating too much of the wrong foods many Americans don't find time to be physically active. This leads to obesity and a negative self image. I want to share some tips that got me back into a regular work out routine.

The first step to becoming more physically active is to recognize that you are not doing as much as you can. You must accept yourself for where you are at now – No lying to yourself! Accept yourself without guilt or shame. You made the choices you did out of habit, poor parenting, cultural influences and blah, blah, blah. The opportunity to change those bad habits is now.

The next step is to change your beliefs about your own physical fitness. Most likely you have some sort of self sabotaging in your head about how you “don't have time to exercise,” or “there's nothing physically active I really enjoy.” Identifying these mental blocks is essential to incorporating physical activity into your routine. Even if you start doing something for a week or two your brain will shut it down with the excuse you've been previously living by. You must establish an inner monologue as follows, “I recognize that physical activity is important to having the body I want, I will find a way to incorporate it into my life!" Then you must refocus your energy into discovering a physical activity that you can reasonably incorporate into your current life style. This can be as simple as doing stretches on your bed at a certain time everyday (right before or after sleep is easy to remember). Subsequently you will adopt a new, truthful belief system, "I'm slowly starting to incorporate exercise into my daily habits." When you see your belief system falling into alignment with your desire to have a fit, healthy, attractive body... then you know you are on the right track!

I've noticed that the only thing that will really make you abandon a sedentary life is finding an activity that you really enjoy. Once you do this it doesn't seem like a chore. If you enjoy the process of making yourself sexy it becomes a double win. It took me a lazy two years in my early twenties to find my love of indoor and outdoor climbing. After a few sessions on a guest pass I committed to a membership and still average three to five times a week. On my off days I find time to go biking which is a great trade off when my arms are exhausted. The only thing that keeps me going back to my gym is the pure desire to do the sport NOT the benefits it has on my body. For you to incorporate physical activity in any sort of lasting way you must consciously choose an activity that you enjoy.