you are not too tired

The more committed we get to working out and eating better, the more I notice lame excuses for eating junk and being lazy. I wouldn't really call us disciplined - I spend way too much time on Facebook and watching Arrested Development for that to be true. And it's not like we don't have cravings or get tired. We do. But we've decided it's important to us and really, we just feel really amazing when we work out consistently, and who doesn't want to feel amazing?!

So, on your quest to be amazing, let me render your excuses lame.

I don't have time to work out.

Even though the exercise recommendations can be intimidating, every little bit helps. Walking on your lunch break, taking the dog around the neighborhood to do his business rather than right outside the front door. Bonus: He pees on someone else's grass! I'm a strong believer in creating a routine, and for us that's worked out to be 5:45 a.m. - 7 a.m. is exercise time. What would we be doing otherwise? Going out with friends and seeing movies? Working? I don't think so!

A gym membership is too expensive.

Luckily God created the outside. And exercise DVDs. And Wii fits. And magazines and books that tell you workouts you can do in  your living room. Then there are the walking trails, swimming pools and backyards. Plus, large bouncing balls. Often gym memberships aren't that bad. We pay $35/month for two of us. I know people who pay less than $20. If you're cutting out the chips, crackers and cookies anyway, there's your membership fee!

I work hard enough in my everyday life.

You probably don't. Even with our amateur running routine, we struggle to create the calorie deficit needed to lose weight, and we run 45 minutes five days a week, at least! The American College of Sports Medicine says you need at least 50 minutes of exercise five days a week to lose any weight. If you're just looking to maintain, you still need 30 minutes each day, and that's only if you're eating the right amount of calories. Which, you're probably not. (more on this tomorrow) The Institute of Medicine actually recommends 60 minutes per day. That's moderate exercise, which means at least walking, and it doesn't count if you're walking toward a candy aisle. Bottom line: going about your daily life is probably not enough unless you've really worked at creating exercise in your normal activities. The guidelines change every year but you'll never hear that you actually need less exercise. You can stop waiting for that one.

I'm too tired!
Perhaps valid, but Mayo Clinic (the royalty of health care) would tell you that exercise actually gives you MORE energy and makes you sleep BETTER. It's true for me. When I don't work out, I want to sleep at my desk. Sleepiness makes me want to eat things like Doritos. And since I don't have Doritos, that would require me to go to a gas station to buy some, which is a waste of money and gas and calories. And when I don't work out, I watch TV til 11 p.m. because I am not tired. And then I am too tired to work out the next morning. Then? I get fat.

It hurts too much.
Yep! But then it won't as much and then it won't at all. And when it does, you'll actually like it. Unless you have old running shoes like me and your toes won't uncurl. Reversible don't worry. Running shoe store here I come! If running hurts, then start by walking fast. If walking fast hurts, then walk slow. If walking hurts, then swim or bike or lie in bed and kick your legs up in the air. 

I just need to go on a diet.
What you eat IS more important than what you do for exercise if you're trying to just lose pounds. But, dieting alone won't do it. A study done this year showed that combined with a good diet, exercise was a key factor in weight loss. When you reduce calories but don't work out, your body actually slows down to conserve energy because it thinks there is a potato famine. This study was done on monkeys not the usual rats. Totally more legit.

See you on the other side of lazy ;)