JUST GET STARTED….

I am asked, (almost daily) what is the best exercise. My short answer: The exercise that you will do. My long answer is, well longer. I have my favorites and I have my least favorites. The problem with exercise is keeping at it. Exercise has to be ever so convenient or ever so enjoyable/fun. If you can put both of those together you’ll have it made. I honestly think in today’s busy world putting that together is more than difficult. Case in point: Horseback riding. Really fun, really good exercise. You have to be either wealthy or own your own farm, (or both) to pull that off. Same thing with swimming. To do that easily takes a major commitment and time. Don’t get me wrong. If swimming is your thing, go for it! It’s great exercise and easy on most parts of your body. I have more than a few patients who make the commitment to swim. Some of them have busier lives than most of us. They are just committed to getting to the pool. I think like most things they just have it as a priority and after time it has become a habit.

This goes to my point about getting started. It doesn’t matter what you want to do for exercise, especially if you never get started. I always fall back on walking. If you don’t know what to do for exercise, just start walking. I know that in Maine right now, 2/14/19 walking in certain places is an invitation to some broken bones. If you wanted to get started walking outside, you would have to be deliberate about where and when. If you can’t figure out what to start with, start walking in a gym. Borrow or find a free treadmill. If you get started walking at the gym, you will have the habit of going to the gym. Then when you decide to start spin class, yoga, strength training, etc you will already have the habit of going to the gym.

Don’t make this hard on yourself. Start with three days a week. Dust off whatever exercise equipment is in your basement, check out your free or low-cost community exercise classes. Call my office if some type of pain or dysfunction is keeping you from the exercise you’d like to do. The point is to just get started doing—anything.

Believe me, I had patients start their exercise program by just parking their car further from the office each day. If you don’t get started with something easy, something now, you may not have it when you want to train for something big. People start training for marathons by walking, it’s that simple. I believe in you and have seen too many people overcome over the years.

They did it, so can you. You just have to get started….with something.