by Michelle Wilkinson

Created on: May 13, 2009

There are people who find exercising a real chore and will do anything to avoid it. Exercise for a lot of people conjures up images of trudging through the streets early in the morning or late at night listening to their iPod whilst gasping for breath and sweating profusely. Perhaps they envisage entering a gym where everybody has perfectly toned bodies only to look down at their own flabby bellies and feel disgust and embarrassment. It hardly comes as a surprise, then, that so many people are prepared to make excuses for the lack of physical activity in their lives. Exercise doesn't have to be laborious, though; it can even be fun, as long as people take a more positive attitude towards the whole process of exercising.

The trouble is that it is fashionable to be lazy. Despite seeing the slim, toned bodies of celebrities, ordinary people prefer to joke with their friends about how they would rather spend their spare time eating or sleeping than being more active. This negative attitude colours people's perception of exercise and makes them more reluctant to try to get fitter, even though there are a variety of options open to them. Exercise doesn't necessarily have to involve a lot of pain, sweat and embarrassment, as people can build their fitness levels and stamina up gradually, choosing an activity which they can slip into their daily routine and which they are able to vary, and hopefully increase, the intensity of.

Walking is a good way to get started as it doesn't require a great deal of fitness to begin and offers individuals the chance to exercise with their friends and family. Some people prefer to exercise by themselves whilst others find that engaging with others brings out their competitive spirit and keeps them motivated. There are lots of team sports played at a community level, and so anybody who wants to get involved can do so.

As well as finding an activity that people like to do which they can do alone or with others, according to their preference, exercise can also be more fun when people mix it up a little bit. If someone chooses to run the same route day-in, day-out, the chances are they will become bored before long and possibly give up. They therefore might find it useful to vary where they exercise, the period of time they exercise for, or even the activity they do. If they engage in a range of activities they will be using and toning various different muscles as well as keeping their mind focused on taking enjoyment out of what they are doing, rather than simply looking at it as exercise.

Exercise can be fun, but when people decide to get fitter and incorporate more physical activity into their lives they have to take a positive approach, as a negative attitude will simply undermine their willingness to commit to exercising regularly.

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