Fitness Tip of the Day

Opening my e-mail this morning, I came across the following fitness tip. It said to successful in your exercise program, you need to find the “right” activity. Answering these three questions will tell me if my exercise program is right for me.

Question number one, “Do I look forward to this?”
Question number two, “Do I enjoy this?”
Question number three, “Do I feel good afterward?”

If I answer yes to all three, then it’s an activity that I will probably keep doing. It gives me another tip that says that, “No exercise program will work for long if you have to force yourself to do it.”

O.K. So I’ll answer the quiz based on my current activity, the treadmill. No to question one, no to question two, yes to question three. (They don’t call it dreadmill treadmill for nothing.)

So according to this quiz, the treadmill is not for me. I have been working out on the treadmill for almost three years now. I do it because I have to. I do not have the luxury at my age to forgo a fitness program nor do I have the luxury to pay a sitter and go to the gym at my leisure. I also don’t enjoy it. I put on my headphones and use the music to get me through the workout. Do I feel good afterwards? Yes. I am glad it’s done and I have more energy to get me through the day.

But upon further examination, these questions just didn’t cut it. I exercise on the treadmill for a couple of different reasons. First, it’s easy. I get my son off to school, jump on the treadmill, get in a great workout, shower and start my day. Two, I have more energy for the entire day. Three, I know that by exercising I am increasing my metabolism for a 24 hour period and I will burn more calories. This is turn, will help me lose weight. Four, it’s a great cardio workout which will benefit my heart and lungs. Five, the incline work gives me a great backside and legs. Six, it makes my body look good.

Make no mistake, I think it’s great if you have fun with fitness and I totally agree that you will stay with it longer. But the reality is, I have a disabled child at home, I can’t afford a sitter and I can’t find a sitter who can lift 125 pounds, which is what he weighs. So it works. I also vary my routine in the summer and walk outside pushing my son in the wheelchair. I use a step counter to measure my distance.

If I were to be honest though, I think we need to look at this a little differently as we get older. If I had to create some questions to determine if an activity was right for me, it would be:

1. Does the activity increase my heart and lungs for an extended period of time?
2. Does the activity have a positive effect on my weight, my blood pressure and
my metabolism?
3. Does the activity give me more energy to get through my day?
4. Can I do this activity for the rest of my life?

Now if I were to answer these questions based on the treadmill, it would be a solid yes to all four.