Why don't we exercise more? The gap between intention and action.
Instead, leisure time is increasingly being occupied by sedentary activities, especially "screen time." Children used to have to cycle to visit friends, but now they communicate more by phone and the internet. Exercise, such a powerful and effective therapy recommended by the American Medical Association, the American Heart Association, the World Health Organization, and every other medical organization you can think of, is not being utilized.
However, if you ask people about their exercise, it seems they do make use of it, but this could be misleading. According to one national survey, about 43% of adults achieve 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise per week. In another survey, 60% of adults claimed they met the recommended level (an average of 324 minutes of exercise per week). However, when researchers in the second survey had participants wear sensors to measure their physical activity, the results showed that only about 8% met the recommended level (an average of 45 minutes of activity per week). It's hardly surprising that people overestimate their exercise levels, but what surprised me was the sheer discrepancy between their claims and the sensor measurements. Regardless of which measurement method we use (and the truth is almost certainly somewhere in between), there is significant room for improvement.
Why don't we exercise more?
It's not that people don't want to exercise, or lack the awareness to exercise. The problem is that there's always a gap between our plans and our final actions (and this isn't just limited to exercise). In 10 studies on people's exercise plans, about 36% of participants expressed a willingness to exercise but didn't actually follow through. We join gym memberships, but then rarely show up. In fact, 67% of people with gym memberships never use them. We buy yoga clothes, but end up wearing them at home. Why is planning so difficult?
There are so many things between the intention to exercise and the act of exercising that I sometimes find it astonishing that anyone can actually exercise. For example, some people (especially new mothers, I think) may not be able to find enough time to exercise in their daily lives. Or it might be on their schedule, but something comes up at work, or they miss the bus and need to pick up their child, or they forget their workout clothes, catch a cold, or have been injured while exercising before. People may not be able to find safe places to exercise, can't afford the equipment, or have no indoor space when the weather doesn't allow for outdoor exercise. These are all examples of external obstacles-things outside ourselves that prevent us from exercising.
There are also internal barriers that prevent us from exercising. We might lack passion because we feel completely incapable of it, or that it won't be "useful." We might notice that exercise isn't making us lose weight or improve our mood, or even doubt whether it will make us healthier. Or perhaps we can see ourselves becoming healthier, but our real concern is still losing weight. Maybe we don't genuinely believe we love exercising, so it's easy for other things-things that more easily influence how we perceive ourselves-to become obstacles. Maybe the people we care about don't fully agree with our health plan, or they don't think we should prioritize exercise. It could also be that certain emotions are preventing us from exercising, or making us want to exercise even more.
Some people simply dislike exercise. It's hard for them to convince themselves to do things they don't enjoy. Others love exercise and feel restless if they don't exercise for a few days. Such people are often less likable, but we shouldn't oppose them because of this. Research on twins suggests that our motivation to exercise is partly determined by biological genetic factors. While we can't know exactly what these biological factors are in humans, some interesting clues have been found in studies of mice. Researchers raised mice that automatically engaged in a lot of wheel running together, breeding them to create a highly motivated group of mice. Comparing these mice to ordinary, slightly less active mice, researchers found that the neural responses in the reward and pleasure-related parts of the brain were different when faced with exercise. When they were prevented from running the wheel, their neural activity was very similar to that of mice that refused morphine (previously addicted to morphine). So, for some mice, the power of exercise is extremely strong-even potentially addictive.
How to stop avoiding exercise
For someone who isn't like a rat, sticking to an exercise plan can be difficult. Believe me, nobody's better or more cunning at finding excuses to skip exercise than me. But most of the time, I manage to control my lazy side, using the strategies we discussed earlier regarding changing my food-related behaviors.