Fitness for the average person

Social media for the fitness industry seems to give the impression that this is where you should be:

• Young, already fit.
• A bodybuilder with huge muscles and a huge PR for bench press or whatever.
• Doing flashy movements.

None of those are requirements for the average person. You can exercise and be healthy and fit without being young, having huge muscles, or doing flashy movements.

Reasonable level of fitness

For the average person, we have things we need to be able to do, things we would like to be able to do, and things that we should be able to do:

• Need - Daily tasks like carrying groceries, cleaning house, picking up children's toys.
• Like - This might be something general like having more energy, feeling stronger, being able to go up a flight of stairs without getting winded. Or it might be something more aspirational like running a marathon.
• Should - These are usually the things that we know we should do but it's inconvenient, "won't happen to me", or that we don't we put off until we have to deal with it:
  • Improving our balance and strength in challenging positions to reduce our chances of falling.
  • Being able to get up off the ground by yourself.
• Cardio, healthy diet, getting enough sleep, etc.

Working on these requires an exercise program, motivation to do the exercises, a place you can do the exercises, and a block of time to spend doing them.

What's stopping you?

Exercise programs are a dime a dozen. You can get them for free on YouTube and various other sites, so this shouldn't be a blocker.

I'm going to assume you're motivated to at least start, otherwise why have you read this far down the page? 😅

Time though, that's the big one. As an adult, I understand that. Most folks think you have to spend an hour a day, five days a week. The reality is that you can make progress with just fifteen minutes a day. You may not make progress as fast as someone who can dedicate more time, but some progress is better than no progress.

Where to start

Darebee is a great place for free workout programs. However, it's up to you to decide how to modify them to fit within the time that you have.

GMB has several paid programs that offer guided videos, and many of them allow you to set the time that you want to spend exercising.

Be sure to check the program description. For example, the Elements program specifically calls out that you can scale it for fifteen minutes. Note that the time that you select doesn't include the time you spend watching the video, or if you have to take additional breaks.

If you'd like to work with me on an exercise routine customized to your needs and goals, with weekly check-ins and feedback, fill out the form to schedule a free consultation. I'll schedule a call so we can discuss your goals and how I can help you.