Posts Tagged ‘workout’

That smile is a lie!

When I was chatting to Biggest Loser trainer Bob Harper the other day, I was explaining to him that I'm a bit of a fatty because I'm not one of those people who like to exercise.

I told him that whenever I think about getting off the couch to workout, I involuntarily think "NO! I DO NOT WANT TO DO THAT!"

Bob laughed and said, "So do I".

Wait — what? I thought he loved to exercise! He's in such great shape. I thought it was easy for some people to stay fit because they really enjoyed exercise. Somehow, these people were finding pleasure in the muscle pain, exhaustion, excessive sweating and loss of breath.

I, on the other hand, do not like those things.

But it turns out that they probably don't love it, either. "That's when resolve and self-discipline come in," said Bob. "If you're actually ready, you're going to find that gumption to get up and go to the gym."

You can tune in to The Biggest Loser Tuesdays at 8 p.m. on E!.

I haven't tried Maureen Hagan's Boot Camp Fitness - Week Six workout yet and we're already two days into Week Six. I have a load of excuses, and although they're all good ones, I still feel guilty for missing my workouts.

Sound familiar?

Yesterday, I was chatting with Dr. Mary Louise Adams who teaches in the School of Physical and Health Education at Queen's University. She told me that when it comes to guilt, we're darned if we do and darned if we don't.

"The guilt works either way,” she said. “We live in a culture that makes people feel guilty if they don’t exercise. But if you go to the gym, you feel guilty because you’re not home doing something with your kids or making a better dinner or cooking from scratch or whatever.”

Amen, I thought.

“But then if you don’t go to the gym,” she continued, “you’re going to feel guilty because we’re all supposed to take our health very seriously and we have somehow decided that going to the gym is part of being healthy. Women are bound to feel guilty no matter what. They’re in a real catch-22.”

Do you ever feel guilty when you miss a workout? Do you think it’s important to feel guilt because it motivates you to get your next workout in?

Have you ever felt guilty while you worked out because you thought that you should be doing something else, maybe something for your family?

How do you handle guilt?

Dr. Adams brought up a lot of thought-provoking points during our conversation yesterday, and I’ll be sharing some of them with you over the next few weeks.

Be sure to check in tomorrow when I’ll share what Biggest Loser trainer Bob Harper had to say in response to some of your questions from Day 29!

Ahh, Christmas holidays. Today I slept until noon, spent the afternoon shopping, then ate almost an entire pizza and downed three bottles of Budweiser in front of mindless reality television. It was fabulous.

You did what at 7 a.m.?

It was fabulous . . . until my friend called and told me about how she had started her day with a 7 a.m. workout before heading to the library and then accomplishing a myriad of other constructive activities.

Her day of shiny, healthy productivity really put me to shame. But in a good way — I found it inspiring. If she can do it, so can I.

Tomorrow, I will aim for an early-morning workout.

I'll let you know how it goes. After all, if I can do it, so can you.