Did you work out today? No? Don’t bother racking your brain for an excuse.
If you don’t feel like exercising, just admit it – or get over it.
The staff at your gym truly does not want to hear that you can’t work out because your cat stubbed its toe.
That’s only one of many silly excuses that would-be exercisers have given to fitness experts.
“Some people actually come straight out and say, ‘I’m just lazy’ or ‘I hate exercise,”‘ says P.J. Barrett, director of wellness and personal training at a Wichita-area YMCA branch.
But others aren’t nearly that direct.
“People will find any excuse that they can if they’re looking for one,” says Colette Gorges, fitness director at Fitness 2000. “They’ll use anything.”
Jessica Tarbell, metro fitness and health director at the Greater Wichita YMCA, hears a lot about the parking lot. People tell her they don’t feel like exercising because they have to park too far away at the gym.
“It’s like, ‘I want to park as close as I can to the front door, but when I get in here, I’m going to get on the treadmill and walk 5 miles,”‘Tarbell says.
Sometimes reality television gets in the way of a gym member’s reality.
“People will say, ‘I have to stay home and watch ‘Survivor’ or ‘American Idol,”‘ Gorges says.
Weather of all types can keep many people away from a workout. Others claim they can’t possibly exercise during holiday seasons, vacations or when the kids are out of school.
“I’ve heard the excuse that people are too old to exercise, and that’s completely ridiculous,” says Tracy Lerch of Lerch Personal Fitness. “The older people get, they really need to be doing something so that functionally they can take care of themselves on a daily basis.”
