By: Eric Hess

The number one excuse for not exercising is time. I find myself trying to find as many excuses as possible to not work out. We as students do have very busy days between going to class, doing homework and maintaining a social life on top of many other responsibilities we are held accountable for. Despite our exceptionally busy days, working out should be one thing that we make time for.

Working out has huge benefits to your health along with your physical appearance. Working out can help you sleep better, reduce stress, increase your energy, slow aging and has much more to offer to your health. You owe it to yourself to commit, at the very least, a 30 minutes a day to exercising.

Exercise doesn’t have to take place in the gym or last hours either. There are many alternatives and tips that help me fit exercise into my busy daily agenda.

Wake up earlier. Going to bed earlier and waking up earlier in order to get a workout in can make your day much better and healthier. Working out in the morning increases your energy for your busy day, improves your learning capabilities, reduces stress, enhances your food consumption choices and above all, it gets your workout out of the way, leaving the rest of your day up to you.

Make a workout schedule. Give yourself a reason to be at the gym or a time to be exercising. You are more likely to exercise if you have an obligation to do so. If you have a class time, chances are you will be there or will feel guilty if you miss it. Make yourself feel the same way about exercising. How about making a date with a fitness class or a friend who would also like to get a workout in?!

Cut back on video games, television and social media. Go ahead and record how much time you spend on Facebook, watching TV or playing video games every day. Chances are most of us could cut that time down in order to get our quick workout in. Better yet, do both! The Williams Center weight room and University Fitness Center in Wells have TVs in front of the cardio equipment!

Be active while on media. If you can’t cut down on the time you spend on facebook or have a TV show you must watch, multitask. During a commercial, do pushups, jumping jacks or whatever exercises you like doing. Make a small workout plan for every time your show cuts to a commercial. Those 5 minute commercial breaks can add up.

Exercise the way you like. You shouldn’t hate to workout. If you enjoy swimming find a place where you can swim. Listen to music while running or find a running partner. Whatever you enjoy, you should incorporate it into exercising somehow. Not only will you be more likely to go through with working out but you will have fun while doing so and add some fun to your life.

Become involved. There are plenty of options you have to be actively involved with the community. Join a club, an intramural team or simply get a group of friends together and throw a ball around. There are many opportunities to become actively involved around campus. There are 18 different intramurals you can join and even more clubs along with many group fitness class offered for free from the university with your fitness membership. Why not play a sport you enjoy playing while getting the exercise you need?

Exercise shouldn’t be treated as just another chore that gets put off and forgotten about. Not only is it important for your health to make sure to exercise regularly but it should be fun and something to help you through your long, busy day.

-Yesterday you said tomorrow

Until next time,
Eric Hess
Hessea20@uww.edu

Resources:
http://health.usnews.com/health-news/diet-fitness/slideshows/7-mind-blowing-benefits-of-exercise
http://www.askmen.com/top_10/fitness_top_ten/25b_fitness_list.html
http://www.boxingscene.com/exercise/1312.php