Commit to 15

Having a hard time pushing yourself to get to (or back to) your workouts?  Why not make it a little less overwhelming and commit to just 15 minutes a day.   The first 15 minutes of any workout is usually the hardest.  It requires getting yourself ready for and then to either the gym, the park, the garage, the streets or wherever it is you are planning to get in your daily exercise.  Then, often, it’s just getting the body in the groove that is the hardest (for example, the first mile of a run/jog).  If you commit to just that 15 minutes, chances are really good that you will do more than that.

I use this formula when I go out jogging.  I always aim to accumulate between 6 and 7 miles a week (as part of a much bigger weekly fitness schedule).  Jogging (I can never go fast enough to call it a run) is very hard for m, as I only do it outdoors and it is often oppressively hot by the time I get outside.  Additionally, I just don’t have the right muscle twitch to be a fast runner… Anyway, I always set out for just 15 minutes, accumulating as much distance as I can in that time.  Most days I can push another 5, 10 or sometimes even 15 minutes out.

In the gym, you can do this by committing to 15 minutes on one (or several) pieces of equipment, or taking just the first 15 minutes of a class.  Just remember if you are leaving class you may need to stretch out on your own, depending upon what type of class you stepped into.  As an instructor I am NEVER bothered by people that leave class early.  Again, better some, than none.  I would not advise jumping into a class after the warm-up, unless you warm up on your own, or make sure to take the first few minutes at your own slow pace.

Even if all you get is the 15 minutes.  It’s 15 minutes more than you would have done if you didn’t make the attempt.  Do that every day and you have accumulated almost 2 hours of working out.  But again, odds are good you will do more than the 15.

Everyone has 15 minutes in their day.   Stop making excuses and get moving!