While it’s widely known how important working out is for your health, your body, and for weight loss purposes, it’s much easier to not go to the gym and put in the time and effort required. I’ve known many people who’ve begun to workout seriously, had some great results, were really getting in shape and then… they stopped coming to the gym.
It wasn’t always a total pause. In some cases they still came to the gym every once in a while, but usually, if they lowered the frequency of their workouts, they ended up not bothering to show up at all. What happened next? Their results evaporated and they watched their muscle shrink back and the body fat start to appear again all over their body. And this after they put in so much effort and time at the gym.
In this article I want to talk about some of the common excuses people give when they begin missing workouts and letting themselves go. I am going to tell you exactly what I think about these “reasons” that people give and why you shouldn’t let yourself off so easily.
Excuse #1 – I can’t afford a gym membership
Listen, I don’t care whether you go to the gym or not. Some people are simply wasting their money by going anyway as they spend more time chitchatting then actually working out. The truth is that not having a gym membership is a poor excuse for not working out. There are many excellent alternatives to a gym membership that can help you get an awesome workout at. Fitness equipment such as the Weider 200 Power Tower can give you an awesome multi-muscle workout. You can also choose to buy something like the Bowflex SelectTech 552 Dumbbells to get a more free weight type workout.
If you can’t afford to spend any money on fitness equipment there are plenty of body weight exercises that you can do at home. Programs like the Bodyweight Blueprint For Fat Loss offer an excellent set of challenging workouts and you can also find some great home fat loss workouts that are free with some awesome ideas for exercises that you can do.
The point is that you don’t need a gym membership or even equipment to workout. Sure, having access to machines helps a lot but it’s not a must. Excuse #1 busted!
Excuse #2 – I have an injury
If you’re in pain and you’re afraid of hurting yourself further than I can totally relate. I too have experienced workout related pain, more than once, and it’s a scary feeling. You’re just worried that you will have some sort of permanent injury.
However, having an injury is (usually) no excuse to not workout at all. I say usually because most injuries are crippling or total body in nature. If you were in a car accident and your leg and arm are broken, then you may have very little workout capabilities at the moment. However, if you have a sprained shoulder or you pulled a tendon in your calf, you’re far from an invalid. You still own it to yourself to stay in shape.
If you only have an upper body injury, what’s stopping you from working your legs, doing squats or lunges? If your knee is bothering you, is there any reason why you can’t do bicep curls, pull ups, or triceps extensions to keep that upper body in shape?
The majority of injuries are not a real reason to miss working out. Sure, you may need to give up on some exercises and to change things up but you still can do quite a lot to stay in shape and to burn the fat. Excuse #2 busted!
Excuse #3 – I’m just too busy
I know how you feel. The modern lifestyle is a hectic one and it’s hard to find enough waking hours during the day to get everything done. Between a demanding job, taking care of the kids, and keeping a normal looking home, it’s a wonder you can find time to sleep, not to mention work out.
However, let’s be honest, you do find time to watch TV, chat on the phone or on the web, and do lots of other stuff, right? It’s all a question of what you think is important for you. I think… scratch that, I know how important working out is for your body and your health. It’s not something that is done just for burning fat and looking good. It has a lot more benefits than that.
The truth is that you can find the time to workout. I believe that you can find the time to go to the gym and do a complete workout 3 times a week. However, if you’re really are going crazy with all the stuff you need to get done, take 10 minutes of your time and do a home workout. Even 10 minutes can be enough to get your heart rate up, work those muscles a bit, and burn more calories.
Using time constraints as a reason to do NOTHING is simply an excuse that has no basis in reality. I’m sure that you can find 10-15 minutes to do some simple home exercises that may not get you optimal results but they will sure help you maintain your weight and not get fat. They can even help you lose a few pounds if that’s what you want. Excuse #3 busted!
In Conclusion
Working out is something that you may not feel like doing at certain times but it must become a part of your regular routine for it to be effective. There are plenty of excuses why you shouldn’t workout but there aren’t too many reasons to not do so. Every time you start rationalizing to yourself why you can’t do your workout today ask yourself whether this is a valid reason or just an excuse to be lazy. More often than not, you will find that you can and should do something for your body and your health.
