Congratulations! You’re meeting the recommendations for physical activity and are racking up both immediate and long-term benefits! Additional health benefits accrue as you do over 150 min of aerobic activity per week and more than 2x per week of strength training. Use your I-SSEE self-coaching skills to get those additional benefits!
(This page is a follow-up link from the article 2018 Physical Activity Recommendations. It will make the most sense if you start there.)
You may decide your level is fine for you for now. If you want to go for the greater health benefits of a from a bigger dose of exercise, then move to Step 2:
Step 2: Seek reliable information
The 2018 Guidelines for Physical Activity are themselves a reliable source of information. You can read the complete document here.
The guidelines specifically address when to consult a physician before increasing your habitual activity level:
“No evidence is available to indicate that people who consult with their health care provider receive more
benefts and suffer fewer adverse events than people who do not. People without diagnosed chronic conditions (such as diabetes, heart disease, or osteoarthritis) and who do not have symptoms (such as chest pain or pressure, dizziness, or joint pain) most likely do not need to consult with a health care provider about physical activity….
A person who is habitually active with moderateintensity activity can gradually increase to vigorous intensity without needing to consult a health care provider. People who develop new symptoms when increasing their levels of activity should consult a health care provider.” p. 93 2018 Guidelines for Physical Activity
Another useful tool to help you think through when it is important to contact your physician before changing your activity level is the 2018 Par-Q+ Questionaire
When in doubt, consult your health care provider.
Step 3: Set some SMART goals!
Plan 1 or 2 SMART goals and start to improve your health today!
Examples of SMART goals at this level of fitness:
- Add an additional strength-training session for 3 sessions per week, 3 out of 4 weeks per month.
- Try a new form of strength-training or a new program
- Add an additional 30 minutes of aerobic activity per week.
- Add an additional segment of 10 minutes of aerobic activity T, Th, & Sat
- Increase intensity by adding three 1-minute intervals of vigorous activity such as sprinting to a moderate workout
- Add intensity by signing up for a 5K . Plan a schedule for ramping up so that you can jog or run the entire course.
- Pick a new class or activity to try to add some variety to your routine.
Remember: these are just examples to get your own thinking flowing! You know what is right for you!
Step 4 Experiment with strategies:
Ask yourself these questions to help choose the kinds of strategies that will be most helpful:
- What are some ways I can keep WHY I want to make the change at the front of my mind?
- What are some cues I can use to remind myself to engage in the actions I’ve chosen?
- What obstacles are likely to get in my way? (Examples: you feel tired, you are going out to eat, other things in your schedule may crowd it out) What are some ways I can eliminate– or at least minimize—those obstacles?
- What are ways that I can increase my sense of reward for achieving my goal? (Examples: noticing how I feel during or after doing the action, remembering how this action ties into my greater goals, something concrete such as a new piece of athletic wear, recruiting a friend to exercise with)
- What is the best way for me to track my efforts and practice self- accountability? Tracking will give you an extra “pop” of reward when you meet a goal and the possibility to tweak your strategies Will you write it down, keep a spreadsheet, use an app?
Examples of strategies
- I will remind myself of why I really want to renew my health in this way by__________________ (post-it note where I will see it, repeating it to myself, creating a vision board, journaling about it)
- I will reduce the obstacle of being too tired by packing a bag with exercise clothes and changing before I leave work (whether I am going to workout at home or elsewhere)
- I will reduce the obstacle of being too tired by sleeping in my workout clothes and leaving my shoes by the bed so I can work out first thing in the morning.
- By the end of the week, I will ask a friends if they would like to join me during exercise. If they do, I am increasing my reward for exercising.
- I will try one new type of aerobic activity by the end of the month.
- I will try one new muscle-training exercise by the end of the week.
- I will pay attention to the reward of feeling of energy or feeling strong after exercising.
- I will track my goal by ____________________ (keeping a notebook, using a spreadsheet, using an app)
Step 5 Evaluate how well your strategies worked to accomplish your goal; revise if needed
Some goals need to be evaluated at the end of a day,and others at the end of a week or month.
For each time you accomplished your goal, ask yourself:
- How did I do at keeping in mind the WHY for this activity?
- What strategies did I use for cueing that were successful?
- What strategies did I use to reward myself? Is there anything I can do to strengthen my internal sense of reward or to increase external reward?
- What strategies did I use to overcome any obstacles that threatened to get in the way? Is there anything I can do to make those strategies even more effective?
- Can I apply similar strategies to another health goal?
If you were not able to accomplish your goal:
Don’t give into the temptation to go back to old strategies and false narratives such as “I was just too lazy to work out after work” or “I didn’t have the self-discipline to get up earlier and do my exercise” or “Things kept coming up and exercise got squeezed out.”
Instead evaluate. Ask yourself questions like these:
- Am I sure my goal is reasonable? Do I need to scale back and take a smaller step? Don’t let “ideal” or “perfection” get in the way of progress! Keep your new goal SMART.
- If my goal is reasonable, had my “WHY” drifted to the back of my mind? If so, what can I do to keep myself strengthen my connection with my deepest motivation?
- Did I forget or was I not able to work this into my day? Do I need a cueing strategy to achieve this goal? If I used cueing, was it effective in getting me to remember to do the activity (even if I didn’t follow through)?
- If I remembered to do an activity, did an obstacle interfere with my goal? What strategies to get around that did I try? How could I revise those strategies to make it more likely that I am successful tomorrow? (or next week)
- Are there strategies that were effective in helping me achieve another goal that I could possibly apply to this one?
Now, make the adjustments that seem best to you and start a new experiment. You will have some trial and error. Each time you try, whether your plan works or not, is a learning experience, moving you toward effective ways to reset and renew your health!
