There Should Be No Excuses When It Comes To Heart Health!

Mark Sisson is back yet again, and his message is loud and clear! There should be no excuses when it comes to your heart health. And that’s just what exercise is! So listen up people, get it movin’ today, let this be your wake up call. How did you like my tuff guy approach?

I Can’t Afford the Gym

And?
I’ve been coaching people at all levels of fitness and competition for two decades now. I’ve heard every excuse you can imagine (and in my days as a newly-minted marathoner, I was guilty of a few myself). Some of my favorites:

• The Exercise Sucks Excuse: I can’t work out because it’s boring.
• The I’m Broke Excuse: I can’t work out because I can’t afford the gym.
• The Vanity Excuse: I can’t work out because I want to lose some weight first.
• The Ignorance Excuse: I can’t work out because I don’t know what to do.

First, exercise only sucks if you think it does. One person’s push-up is another person’s party, if you will. Look, there’s no “better” or “worse” exercise. Well, there are, but the most important thing is really just to move around daily. Take it from a former mileage king – you don’t have to wail away at the cardio machine. In fact, it’s probably better if you don’t. There’s no holy glory in the treadmill. Do what you like. There are thousands of sports, indoor activities, outdoor pursuits, seasonal pursuits, videos, classes, gyms, disciplines, groups and tools to select from, and most of them are both cheap – or free – and good for you. There’s something for every fitness level, age, health condition and passion. This excuse is the weakest of them all, so don’t even think about cheating yourself. It’s too easy to find something fun, and there’s no law that says exercise can’t be fun. Exercise is just a part of life, like flossing or eating or sleeping. Just do it. Don’t think about it. Just put on the sneaks and do it – once you put the shoes on, you’ve won the battle anyway. Don’t think!
Second, while some gyms are expensive (some cost hundreds per person per month), and things like yoga or pilates can get pricey, most exercise is free. Aside from some sweats you probably have anyway, and an investment in some equipment (which you can almost always find second-hand on Craigslist), exercise is a hell of a lot cheaper than what not exercising costs. Think of how much money we waste on dinners, junk food, alcohol, and the monstrous health care tab that is bound to result when you don’t take preventive measures like working out. So what’s more, a pair of sneakers, or a trip to the hospital for a gastric bypass? I’m just sayin’…
Working out doesn’t have to be costly. Even “chic” activities like yoga are not usually out of anyone’s range, because most cities have budget-minded folks just like you, grouping together for all kinds of activities. Do you have a community bulletin board? Access to the Internets? Unless your hands are broken, I don’t want to hear it. Walks, hikes, jogs, public tennis courts, and a round of hoops at the local park are all free. Even McDonald’s gives away fitness DVDs now.

The Vanity Excuse is just funny, but it’s actually one of the major reasons people don’t work out. People think that working out will build muscle (it does), which will make them look fatter (it won’t). From this misguided premise, they decide to lose some blubber first. But exercise and dieting are not in opposition – they’re on the same team. Your body wins when you exercise, no matter what.

I get it: no one wants to be the chunky monkey in a room of body builders admiring themselves in the mirror. You know what? Most of those dudes are self-obsessed losers anyway. None of them care about you and your level of flabbiness. Hey, they’re all too busy looking at themselves. Are you going to let your imaginary delusions of what people may or may not think about you keep you from getting healthy? Come on! Get over it! As far as worrying about bulking, don’t. As you build muscle, your resting metabolic rate will increase, so you’ll burn more calories – and fat – even when you’re sitting around doing nothing. And working out is a better way to shrink away flab than starving yourself – really. Don’t “wait” to be thin before you start exercising. You’ll accomplish your goal so much faster if you work out and diet. Don’t wait to live.
Still thinking the gym is not ready for you? How about a home-based video DVD workout! My good pal Tony Horton developed one of the most effective 50-minute workouts in the world. It’s called Power90 and thousands of people have used it to shed pounds and sculpt muscle quickly. There’s no equipment necessary – just squats, crunches, push-ups, dips and a host of other body resistance exercises you do in the privacy of your own home while Tony shouts out the instructions. And his is only one of many such home-based workouts.
Finally, the Ignorance Excuse is not an empowering way to go through life. Who’s that helping? Ignorance is never an excuse. If you don’t know what’s healthy, start reading health and fitness blogs (mine is a nice place to start, I think). There are blogs for every activity and sport – millions of them, written by passionate people who are really into their topics and are happy to share their knowledge with you. And if you’re reading my blathering, you’ve got internet access, so what are you waiting for? Learn what’s right for you, and get to it! Move that butt!

Reasons to exercise

How long it takes to see results