Exercise is an important part of living a healthy lifestyle.  Unfortunately, dieters look at it as a way to negate calories and as a way to legitimize eating larger amounts of food.  Or they “punish” themselves with a difficult workout because their eating was “bad” the night before and they need to “undo it.”  Exercise bulimia is also a problem in our society, where people “purge” their calories by over-exercising to burn calories.

It is unfortunate that something as beneficial and positive as exercise can have negative connotations as well.  The problem is how you choose to look at exercise.  Many people see it as something they have to do as opposed to something they want to do.  When fitting in exercise becomes synonymous to fitting in housework, it turns into something stressful, instead of an activity that can take away stress.

Instead of adopting a diet mentality when it comes to exercise, remember all of the benefits it can bring to your health.  Physical activity fights against disease.  Whether it is to better cardiac health, protect against cancers, boost your immunity or maintain bone and joint health, the physiological effects of getting up and getting moving make a trip to the doctor much less likely.

Besides the physiological effects seen, exercise boosts your mood as well.  Feel-good hormones are secreted during exercise which can lift you up and make you feel better.  The results you achieve from consistent exercise also raise your self-esteem and make you more confident to achieve your goals.  Not to be minimized, exercise is also a lot of fun!

While I encourage my clients to fit exercise into their daily routine, it is not for the reason of weight loss.  If you continue to think of exercise as a way to burn calories, then you will dread it and have trouble motivating yourself to go out for that walk or hop on the treadmill.  Instead focus on the positive benefits noted above and you will find that you are exercising not because you have to but because it makes you feel great.

Your turn to take action: How do you view exercise?  As a part of your “diet” or part of your healthy lifestyle?