I like to group people into 3 different buckets for exercise.
We have…
- people who exercise consistently
- people who are “streaky” with their exercise (ie go through short bouts of consistency)
- people who struggle to exercise consistently at all
All 3 groups potentially struggle with exercise. The first group might be relying too much on willpower to get them from workout to workout, while the other two might feel like exercise is more of an obligation they need to fulfill.
Regardless, it can make the dynamic with exercise dysfunctional.
One way we can address this issue is to focus on the exercise experience.
That means instead of thinking of exercise as a means to an end (ie burn calories to lose weight), we start looking at and optimizing the intrinsic enjoyment of the workout itself.
We do this by manipulating what we call “exercise experience variables”.
You might not realize it, but you are naturally attracted to certain experiences.
These experiences tend to be in alignment with your personality and life, and then exercise just becomes a tool to experience them.
For example, do you like to work out alone, with a partner, or in a group format?
Try to force an introvert into a group workout class and they might not enjoy it too much. And this will require more willpower to be consistent with exercise.
There are other variables too. Consider a few questions…
- Do you like to work out indoors or outdoors?
- Do you like a lot of variety, or do you prefer more structure?
- Do you like higher or lower intensity workouts?
- Do you prefer to work out at certain times of the day?
- Do you like to work out in silence, or do you like a certain kind of ambiance?
You job is to become aware of these patterns and start creating a workout experience that is in alignment with what you will enjoy.
If you want to strength train, you can manipulate these variables to make your experience better.
And the more you enjoy the experience, the easier it is to workout consistently.
You no longer have to push yourself out the door using willpower. Instead, you feel pulled to move your body because you know you’re about to do something enjoyable.
Talk soon…