Excuses.

We all make them.

We convince ourselves that our excuse is a really good ‘reason’. But all-too-often, these reasons are just attempts at explaining or justifying our choice to avoid responsibility.

Ouch.

When it comes to exercise and our fitness, there seem to be 3 main excuses that I hear constantly. Sadly, these excuses hinder you and me from achieving the level of fitness we need and desire. I know in different seasons of my own life, I’ve been guilty of all of them:

1. Not enough time.
2. Not enough energy.
3. Not enough motivation.

Nathan and I created BURSTClub in 2010 to help people just like you who might be struggling with one or all 3 of these “reasons” for not working out. The style of exercise we do is called burst training and it combined with our system helps to effectively crush ALL THREE of these excuses.

I don’t have enough TIME to work out.

I think this is the biggest one I hear and have personally battled. Schedules are full and there is a lot to do from the moment the sun comes up until the moment it goes down.

But with the efficiency of burst training type exercise, all you need is a little time! If you’ve never heard of or tried burst training, it’s high intensity, short duration – in other words, you go as hard as you can for a super short period of time rather than doing what most of us do – slow and steady for a looooong period of time. Did you know higher intensity (or giving it your 100%) is the key to getting maximum results like getting lean, losing weight, increasing energy, and getting stronger?  I love that I can get these benefits in LESS time than it used to take for me to drive somewhere to work out.

Another way we have saved you time is by designing all the workouts for you. How many times have you gone to the gym and wasted the entire hour (or more) putting around on workout machines, only to leave feeling like you did absolutely nothing? For this maximizer, wasting time is my kryptonite. So when I already feel at times like I don’t have enough of it, I have to make sure that I am getting everything I need out of the time I’m investing.

I don’t have enough ENERGY to work out.

Sometimes you have to give energy to get energy…use energy to receive energy. That’s the case with exercise. Because burst training is high intensity (which might sound scary but I promise it’s not) the short bursts energize and put pep in your step. Try it and see! It’s better than your morning coffee. 🙂 You’ll also get energy from how you emotionally feel about yourself after having done a workout.

To get this type of energy we are talking 10-15 minutes total in workout time. I think that energy payoff is worth the investment.

I don’t have the MOTIVATION to work out.

Some days we all need a little extra motivation. Maybe we had a rough night’s sleep or a hard day and you just plain don’t feel like exercising. I can’t fully fix this one for you because motivation is something that comes from deep within us, but here are a couple things you can do.

• Tell a friend the day before what time you are going to work out and that you are going to text them when you’re done.
• Set out your workout clothes the night before so you are ready to go.
• Don’t think. Just do. We are so good at talking ourselves out of everything that is hard or uncomfortable but it is primarily because we give ourselves way too long to think about something. The days I wake up with the least motivation, I literally stop thinking and mulling over in my head if it makes sense, if I’m able to squeeze it in, if there are other things on my to-do list that take precedence, etc. I stop thinking and just go get my shoes and go for it.
• Use the BURSTTraxx custom music we created for you in BURSTClub. It’s kind of like having a coach to motivate you throughout the duration of your warm-up, workout, and cool-down because the music tells you when to stop and start.
• Add a spouse or buddy to your member account and use the shared calendar to keep each other inspired!

I know there are a million reasons why you can’t exercise. And truly, so many of them are really valid reasons. But if you can begin to overcome these 3 “biggies”, you will be well on your way to creating consistency in working out. Let’s just all agree once and for all…

No more excuses!

What is your biggest exercise struggle?