You say you can't find an activity that you like to do? Okay, make it
something you need to do. Housework may not be delightful, but you can
turn it to your advantage. Dust, vacuum, scrub the floors. Turn on the radio
and work to music. Improve your body and your environment at the same time.
What about maintaining your home? Do you have three bedrooms and a hall that
need painting? Paint a few walls per day! If you wish, get a companion with
whom you can visit while you work. Important jobs will get done, and you will
exercise.
Set yourself up for activity. When you go to work or have an appointment,
park your car far enough from your destination that you have to walk a few
blocks there and back. Often just a bit of thought can motivate you.
Of course, you should be careful and take the following steps:
1. Consult your doctor before starting any kind of exercise program.
2. Know your current physical state and stay within reasonable limits. If
ten minutes a day is too much, try five. Just keep at it. When you feel
comfortable with the time limit you choose, add a bit more time each day.
3. Be realistic. There’s TV commercial in which a man gets on a scale, runs
around a gym once and steps on the scale again, only to discover he hasn’t lost
an ounce. We laugh, but a lot of people think if it doesn’t work right now, it
never will. In fact, patience and persistence pay.
4. Understand that exercise is one part of your overall plan. You also need
a sensible diet, and, if you need medication, you must take it.
If I can use this approach, I think anyone can. The secret is to find some
activity that will get you up and moving. For most people walking is the
easiest activity, but simply becoming active at something will open the
door to better health.