Sticking With It - How to Overcome Barriers to Exercise

The hardest part of any new behaviour is adherence (the fancy word for sticking with it). And, the Transtheoretical Model suggests that the first 6 months are the most likely stage in which dropping out occurs. 

However, once you get past the first six months, and you are much more likely to maintain your new behaviours!

 




But how do we get to six months?

 

Firstly, we need to identify some of the barriers we may face to exercise. Common barriers include: 

  • Lack of Time
  • Work Commitments
  • Stress
  • Injury 

And, of course, anything else that may stop you from exercising regularly. 

 

Psychologists have suggested that preparing to come across the barriers, can help to reduce the impact they have on you. So, how do we prepare? 

 

Simply anticipate something that may limit your exercise and make a plan for if this happens. Here's some examples for the above barriers:

  • Lack of Time - Identify anything that wastes your time (I find I am often victim to Facebook stealing time) and make a plan to limit it. Otherwise, setting up a schedule may help you better manage your time, or following a programme with shorter sessions. 
  • Work Commitments - Leading on from the Lack of Time, a work deadline popping up can sabotage your available time, increase stress and ultimately impact your exercise programme! Plan ahead, set up a schedule to make sure you meet the work deadline, but still have time for exercise. 
  • Stress - Find ways to limit your stressors, however this works for you! You may like to enjoy a massage, or go for a walk. Or, one thing I found, was turning off work emails when I wasn't at work meant I was able to completely separate from work. 
  • Injury - Injuries can easily stop you from exercising. The best plan would be to prevent injury as much as possible - recruit the assistance of a qualified instructor to check your form, and make sure you wear proper safety gear in dangerous situations. If an injury happens, then its best to get a fresh set of exercises from a Doctor or Physio so you can continue with some sort of exercise normality! 

 

Let me know your barriers to exercise and your plans below! 

 

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