Barriers

Barriers

Barriers often appear in two general ways. Some are physical ones, such as illness, injury, lack of transportation, or even safety. Others are based on perception; this includes instances when someone might not think they have enough time or energy to exercise. There are instances when these perceptions are real. For example, a single parent might not have the time to allocate, because they are working several jobs while trying to take care of their children. Even in this situation there is still time that can be fit in, it is just a matter of being creative with our time throughout the day. We might not be able to get to the gym, but we could find ways to exercise here & there. A little something is far better than nothing.

Time

Some people like to say that we all have the same 24-hours in a day, and that if such-and-such person can do it, so can you. I’m not a fan of this kind of banter, it lacks empathy, insight and an understanding of how challenging life can be. Sure, we do all have the same twenty-four hours, but we all have different days and responsibilities. For example, teenagers have a lot more time than an adult would have. Sometimes I think back to my youth about all the personal time I had to enjoy. Every weekend was so much fun, I had no genuine responsibility, and I could do pretty much whatever I wanted to with reason. Sure, as a kid we have the restrictions placed upon us by our parents, and we had to get our chores and homework done, but those responsibilities pale in comparison to what an active adult has. A single person without children typically has more time than a parent or business owner would have. Even then, those generalities don’t account for the individualized life experiences of each person. I have met many twenty-somethings single people who have two or three jobs and barely have enough time to sleep, or enjoy leisure, let alone enough time to get to the gym to work out. Ultimately it is not about making exercise a priority, it is about looking at our lives to see if we can manage our time better.

For many, time management is not a perfected skill. Many of us do the best we can with what we have and wing it. A lot of people have never been taught how to take an eagle’s eye approach to their life to see how much time is squandered. I think that if we actually took the time to document what we did throughout the day and objectively analyze it, we could fit more leisure, family time, rest, and exercise into our day.

Unfortunately, this task takes effort, and everything in our society saps us of our precious life energy at every turn. We are saturated by so many negative influences at every second and hour of our day it fills us with dread until we feel lifeless and out of breath. How in the world can we find the might to muster a documented manuscript of our daily lives? We just do. Like any challenge you have ever faced, you have found the might to fight through it. Perhaps you don’t realize it, but your record of success is incredibly high, and every setback you faced raised you to greater heights. What you see as failures made you stronger and taller and able to take on greater challenges. You are a force to be reckoned with. I am certain that you have what it takes to start your journey, you have the discipline and drive to document your life and look at where you might be wasting your seconds. This perceived barrier is an illusion. Once you realize this you will find the time to enrich your life, and once you do, you will embark on a quest that tests every negative thought you’ve ever had about yourself. You will emerge as your own champion, you will be your own inspiration, and a beacon that inspires others to make the most of their moments.

Unrealistic Goals

You must have realistic goals. Even the universe was not created overnight. I believe goal setting is rooted in humility. Humility is our ability to effectively assess where we exist within the universe. It allows us to know we are not the worst, nor are we the best at everything. It is acknowledging others may be better, equal to or less than us. It is the willful act of loving who we are and where we exist within the universe. It tells us we could be better, we can strive for more, but we need to be patient, kind and reasonable with ourselves in the process of improving our lot in life.

When our goals are unrealistic, they can become a barrier. They can make our exercise expedition seem impossible and as a consequence it will frustrate us. If the frustration grows too powerful it will lead us to quit. Arnold Schwarzenegger did not become a hulking man of muscle after a week, month, or even a year of exercise. It was a commitment of time with a series of important milestones. If you expect to completely transform your body in an unreasonable period of time you will burn out and potentially injure yourself in the process.

Instead of creating unnecessary barriers for yourself, set an outcome goal and some process goals. An outcome goal focuses on an end result, while a process goal offers milestones in the pursuit of an outcome goal. This method allows you to enjoy success along the way. An example of an outcome goal could be finishing a two-mile run in under sixteen minutes. While a process goal could be jogging for 30-minutes after work five days a week.

If you choose to set a goal for yourself, it must be measurable. You must have a metric of knowing if you are making progress. Burnout is one of the worst outcomes we can experience in the pursuit of our goals. If you want to avoid going out in a blaze of frustration, you must establish a means for you to assess your development. Without a means to measure our progress it leads us to grind in place. This is a phenomenon that causes us to feel like no matter how much we put into something it appears to yield nothing. If you plant a seed and judge it on whether it immediately yields fruit you will never enjoy the miracle of its growth. You will miss the magic of it sprouting from the dirt, revealing itself as a vulnerable little twig, growing leaves and one day offering you its bounty. Transformation takes time, energy, and patience, so be good to yourself and set reasonable expectations.

Many times, even our reasonable expectations reveal themselves to be too much, too fast. In these instances, we need to reign in our goals, reassess and slow down. When your progress isn’t happening as quickly as you like, adjust your process goals. Give yourself more opportunities to win. It is essential to feed your heart the Scooby snacks it likes to eat. Nurture and nourish your spirit with obvious progress and it will provide you with the motivation to continue.

Social Physique Anxiety

I think most people have felt this at one time or another, especially when we haven’t exercised for some time. We stroll into the fitness center, look around and immediately start comparing ourselves to the people around us. And… it doesn’t feel good.

We get it in our mind that people are staring at us with judgement. We assume they are saying negative things about us in their mind, and it makes us want to flee. If we do stick around without leaving, we start walking on the treadmill or lifting weights and suddenly we start thinking people are criticizing our performance with the belief that we are weak.

Thoughts enter our mind, searching for excuses to do something else. Without anyone even saying a word to us we think

• “I’ll start working out once I lose some weight or get a little stronger.”
• “I don’t feel comfortable in my clothes, I will come back when I have the right clothes.”
• “I feel way to self-conscious right now to work out.”
• “I feel like everyone is staring at me.”

This is a challenging barrier to overcome because it is rooted in our self-perception. Unfortunately for many that self-perception is tied to our perceived state of physical fitness. We want to work out, but being in the presence of so many others who have invested more time in their wellness often causes us to belittle our bodies. The reality though is there may be some people who are judging you, but most aren’t. There is a good chance some of the people you think are judging you are criticizing themselves and are feeling social physique anxiety too.

Convenience

When you are getting off work and you just spent eight or more hours sitting at a computer, or running around the hospital, or lecturing to a class of rambunctious kids, you just want to go home and relax. Driving an extra five or so miles to burn more energy you just don’t have feels like the worst idea ever. Maybe you would like to workout before work, but they don’t have showers. Maybe they have showers, but they are gross, or you forgot a change of clothes, your towels, or even soap. When something feels like an inconvenience it is a powerful barrier and it will easily derail your desire to exercise.

The key to overcoming the convenience barrier is by searching for ways to workout without having to feel inconvenienced. This is achieved by finding ways to motivate yourself to go to the fitness center. This may mean looking over the calendar to see if they are running any group activities you like or have certain amenities you would enjoy using. When you have something to look forward to when you arrive it will increase the likelihood you will actually go. However, if this cannot be done, search for alternate ways to exercise that don’t require a facility. There are plenty of exercises that can be performed at your computer desk, in your living room, or anywhere for that matter.

Ambivalence

Ambivalence is a tricky barrier because it is what occurs when someone has mixed feelings about something. When it comes to exercise it usually results in a lack of interest and an unwillingness to integrate it into their regular routine. This happens for an array of reasons, and when it happens to us, we need someone else to help us see the light. This is where a personal trainer shines. We need them to inspire us. They need to show us ways in which we have not seen how regular exercise could improve enrich our existence.