Fitness: Getting and Staying Active
Staying Active
Turning physical activity into a habit
Most people don't think about being active or inactive as a habit. But it is. And habits are affected by many things, including our work schedule, our home life, and our social life. When something becomes a habit, we don't think about it much—we just do it, like brushing our teeth.
And when something becomes a habit, it can be hard to change. That's what makes changing unhealthy habits into healthy ones so hard. Starting new, healthy habits takes practice and patience. But you can do it if you take one small step at a time.
Experts say that it takes about 3 months of repetition to form a habit. For some people, even 3 months isn't enough. So start small, and keep doing it until you no longer think about it as something "extra" that you have to do. When you slip up, don't get mad at yourself or feel guilty. Figure out what happened and how to keep it from happening again. Get right back into your physical activity routine, and don't look back.
Maintaining the lifestyle
Many of the good things about being active, such as having more energy and being in a better mood, happen soon after you become more active. But some of the most important health benefits have to do with being active over many years. If you stop being active, you lose the fitness you achieved. Being consistent makes the most sense for your health.
To help make physical activity a long-term commitment:
- Set goals. Develop and follow a specific program.
- Make it a habit. Turn physical activity into a normal, pleasant, and routine part of your life.
- Get the support of friends and family.
- Expand your fitness activities through coaching, competition, and cross-training.
- Add variety to your fitness program. Change the place, activity, and time.
- Don't let reasons such as lack of time or bad weather slow you down.
Fitness: Staying active
- Quick Tips: Having Enough Energy to Stay Active
- Quick Tips: Fitting Physical Activity Into Your Day
- Quick Tips: Staying Active in Cold Weather
- Quick Tips: Staying Active in Hot Weather
Establishing a routine
When you have decided that you want to get fit, you will want to plan a physical activity routine. Although most people think of classes and specific activities (such as jogging or tennis) as the way to fitness, there are many ways you can work physical activity into your life.
One Woman's Story:
Shellie, 39
"I realized that I had put myself on the back burner for too long and it was time for me to make time for myself, even if it was just a few minutes a day. I wrote myself a note and taped it to my bathroom mirror. It said, 'I will take a 10-minute walk during my morning coffee break every day this week.'" —Shellie
Structured fitness
Fitness classes or groups provide a consistent approach to an activity. Local gyms, schools, and churches may sponsor a regular fitness group. Teams also provide a consistent approach to fitness but are more competitive. Many communities have physical activity programs to help adults and children get fit. They often are found within social agencies and schools.
Structured fitness has the advantage of:
- Being held at the same time and place, which may be easier for some people to schedule.
- Having a social atmosphere.
- Providing support and "healthy" peer pressure to show up and participate.
Self-directed fitness
Many people find an activity they enjoy, and then they create their own fitness program. Self-directed fitness gives you:
- Flexibility as to the time and place.
- The ability to try different types of exercises.
For this to be effective, you must set up a regular schedule and stay with it.
Fitness within your day
You can use "everyday" activities for fitness, as long as you do them regularly. This includes:
- Daily aerobic activity, such as raking leaves, mowing the lawn, or doing housework.
- Physical activity in the workplace, such as using stairs instead of elevators.
- Muscle-conditioning exercises, such as scrubbing the bathtub, washing walls, tilling the garden, or pulling weeds.
- An outdoor interest or hobby that promotes walking or another type of exercise. For example, bird watching may require a lot of walking, and trail building may require both walking and strength to clear paths.
Prepare for slip-ups
It’s perfectly normal to try to change a habit, go along fine for a while, and then have a setback. Lots of people try and try again before they reach their goals.
What are the things that might cause a setback for you? If you have tried to make changes in your activity level before, think about what helped you and what got in your way.
By thinking about these barriers now, you can plan ahead for how to deal with them if they happen.
Here’s one person’s list of barriers to taking a brisk 30-minute walk every day, along with some possible solutions:
Overcoming barriers Barriers
Solutions
"I might be too busy."
- My backup plan will be to break my usual 30-minute walk into two 15-minute walks or three 10-minute walks.
- I will promise to meet my friend or neighbor every day for a walk.
"I might get bored."
- I'll listen to music or podcasts while I walk.
- I'll get my neighbor to walk with me.
"It might rain."
- I'll buy a good rain jacket.
- My backup plan will be to use an exercise DVD or a treadmill in front of my TV when the weather’s bad.
Use a personal action plan
(What is a PDF document?) to write down your barriers and backup plans.
One Woman's Story:
Kris, 56
"I just have to talk myself into it and just say, 'You know how much better you feel when you go. Just get up and go!'"—Kris
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| Author: | Debby Golonka, MPH | Last Updated: August 26, 2008 |
| Medical Review: | Kathleen Romito, MD - Family Medicine Heather Chambliss, PhD - Exercise Science/Weight Management | |
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