Question

Class, we all know that physical activity is important, so why aren't we all doing it? Why do we not meet the recommendations of 30 minutes per day most days of the week? What are some of the hinderances to meeting these goals? How can we get past these? (there are no right answers here, but the possibility of great discussion and learning more great ideas we can all use)

Answer 1

Since it is a topic for discussion, I’ll be happy to list out some of the hinderances for us not being able to engage in physical activity as per recommended: -

1.Most of us take our health for granted and do not find the absolute need to engage in any sort of physical activity until and unless we are required to do so under certain circumstances like for example, having a medical condition like Hypertension (High Blood Pressure) which require us to engage in some form of physical activity.

2.Even when we do understand that physical activity is essential for overall well-being i.e., mental and physical, most of us do not gather enough motivation to take out time from our hectic schedules or we are just too lazy to do so.

3.Low energy levels and tiredness after a long day’s work may force us to skip any sort of activities.

4.People may also be drawn to other activities like watching movies, catching up with friends which are less taxing instead of going through a workout session.

5.For some of us, not having accessibility to a gym or any such place could also be an excuse even though such facilities or any sort of fancy equipment are not absolutely essential for us to get started.

6.Even after getting started with some form of physical activity, people do give up midway due to lack of results. For example, a person setting out to lose weight may not be able to lose a substantial amount rapidly and in turn gets dispirited and tend to quit altogether without understanding that losing weight can take some time if it has to be healthy and long lasting

7.Quite a few of us give up too soon if we find the exercise regimen overwhelming so it is always better to take it easy initially so that we form a habit and then take it forward. For example, if we plan to go running from tomorrow, it is better to do it for 20 mins for the first few days and then once we form the habit of walking every day, we can slowly increase the duration