Health INSIGHT
The Daily
Hurdler
by Cody J. Robinson, MS, MPH, CSCS
W
ho knew that when you made the decision to change your lifestyle behaviors that you would begin training
like an Olympic hurdler?! True, I’m not saying
that you mark a 60 meter lane on your neighborhood street and start sprinting. I’m referring to the fact that we all have barriers in our
paths that cause us to stumble. When trying
to lose weight there will always be temptation. Oftentimes a nap seems more appealing
than lunges, and a sleeve of Oreos is more attractive than carrots with hummus. Stop for
a second and think on your temptations. Jot
them down on a scratch sheet of paper and
think on what you can do to avoid each hurdle
in the future. You’ll be surprised how by simply
thinking on each one will lead you to make the
conscious decision to overcome each barrier.
Yes, some battles will be lost, but the end goal
is the when the war (i.e., lost of 10 pounds).
As health coaches and personal trainers we
take each person and help them identify exactly what gets in the way of achieving their
goals. In addition to that, we take a long look
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at the environment (i.e., social support, physical environment, external stressors, etc.) and
help you surround yourself with a positive environment that allows you to maintain a consistent stride toward reaching your desired
“finish line” of change.
Last year I began compiling a list common
barriers to regular exercise and important
steps for overcoming each one. Below you will
see the breakdown of what I consider the two
main hurdles we all face at some point in our
lives:
1. Time - The pace of today’s society has accelerated to a point where it feels nearly impossible to complete all items on our daily
checklist. We simply have to choose what are
the top priorities and work intently to mark
them off. Unfortunately, when it comes to
taking care of our bodies the priority level is
often marked as “-Low” or “!Normal” rather
t [