Exhaustion: Tips to Overcome not Feelin’ Being Physically Active

Good Wednesday to You Interwebs!

Since one of the top barriers to physical activity for adults is feeling “too tired”, this week I’m going to discuss mental and physical exhaustion and provide some tips to overcome these two workout barriers. 

Before I begin, I will quickly review the current adult recommendations for physical activity in Canada;

Cardiovascular Activity (Biking, running, fast walking):

·         At least 150minutes per week,

·         Bouts lasting more than 10 minutes

·         For Example:  5 30 minute bouts, or 2 1 hour bouts and 1 30 minute bout

Strength Activities (weight training, yoga):

·         2 or more days per week

* The guidelines recommend the more exercise the better! (Source: www.csep.ca)

So, if you are not currently meeting the recommendations then there are reasons you are not doing so. As I’ve already mentioned, one of the main reasons adults aren’t meeting the guidelines is because they are exhausted.

So what is exhaustion? Well it can be broken down into two types

1. Physical Exhaustion: 

This is less likely to explain why people do not want to begin engaging or increasing their physical activity level when sedentary. You may be saying though “Robyn, I work long hours and when I’m done, I’m just physically exhausted”. 

However, this is a common misinterpretation of what exhaustion you are actually feeling.  The reason for this misinterpretation is likely because the feeling of being tired or exhausted physically or mentally can be perceived similarly in the brain. This is compounded if the person is “out of shape” or sedentary because they may not remember or know what true physical exhaustion feels like.

Take the example above, Fred works a desk job from 8am-5pm every day. By the end of the day he feels too tired to go to the gym. He may feel lethargy that he interprets as “I just don’t have the physical energy to go to the gym, I’m physically exhausted”. What Fred is actually experiencing in mental exhaustion, which generally is much more likely to be a barrier to physical activity initiation. 

However, physical exhaustion does have its place within physical activity. Physical exhaustion generally occurs to those people who are too physically active.  As I mentioned above, the mental interpretation of this type of exhaustion is similar (and can overlap) mental exhaustion. However, the person must be engaging in large amounts physical activity to be physically exhausted (unless they have a health condition such as myalgia).

The remedy for physical exhaustion is simple: you need rest. 

However, for the purpose of initiating and maintaining physical activity overcoming mental exhaustion is much more important.

2. Mental Exhaustion

Mental exhaustion is essentially feelings of lethargy and tiredness which occur without engagement in physical activity. There are many causes of mental fatigue, some of which are easy to change (e.g., diet) but others are harder (e.g, work schedule).

Some common causes of mental fatigue that may inhibit you from being physically active are as follows 

·         Poor nutrition: High sugar, low protein, low water, high chemical diets

·         Lack of physical activity: Less than 150minutes a week

·         Lack of sleep: Less than 8 hours of deep sleep/night

·         Long periods of sedentary work: Desk work, standing in one spot for long periods of times

·         Stress

·         Biochemical issues: Depression

Ironically, as powerful as mental fatigue is to inhibiting someone from becoming physical active, it can also be a main cause of overcoming these undesirable symptoms. 

So, you’re mentally fatigued often, and you know it is preventing you from getting the amount of physical activity you should. Well I have some tips to help you overcome this common barrier.

Tip 1: Identify When You’re the Most Mentally Fatigued

I think a good first step in overcoming this barrier is to identify at what points during the day you feel the most fatigued. Is it early in the morning, is it at 2pm (after lunch) or is it around 4-5pm?

Identifying when you’re feeling exhausted can be a good indicator of why you’re experiencing these problems. For example, if you are tired in the morning, you are probably not getting enough quality sleep. If you are tired around 2pm, your diet is probably to blame.

Once you have identified when you are the most mentally fatigued you can prepare to combat against it. Some trainers will tell you that you should work out when you know you have the most energy. I disagree with this since people have lives, jobs, and responsibilities. 

However, I think this information is important for lifestyle changes and overcoming this barrier.  For instance, say you have access to a gym on your lunch and you know you become mentally fatigued around 2pm. Join a noon class and your energy will increase. Alternatively, say the only time you can work out is at night and you “hit the wall” around 5pm. You can acknowledge this an plan to overcome it.

2. Friends Always Beat Fatigue!

This is one powerful way to overcome the barrier of mental fatigue to stay physically active. Find a friend (preferably one who is already active) and let them know you want to start biking/climbing/swimming/working out with them. 

Also let them know that you want them to make sure you come by expecting you to be there and calling you out when you don’t. I find this works well for people who have tiring jobs and the only time they have to work out is in the evening. 

*Note: This usually does not work with spouses/partners. The reason for this is something called emotional reactance. Your spouse is too emotionally close to you, which causes encouragement to be viewed as nagging/criticism in the majority of people. I recommend finding a friend you know well, but not too well, to help you with this tip.

3. Recognize Your Internal Negotiator 

Another way to overcome mental fatigue involves stopping the internal negotiation you have with yourself regarding doing your physical activity of question when fatigued.

Take the following scenario. Brenda can only work out after work. However, about an hour before work is done she starts coming up with reasons of why she can’t go to her bootcamp class that day.

“I had a long day”, “I need to pick up food”, “I’m too tired”, “It’ll be ok if I just miss the class this one time”. Sound familiar? Read on...

Instead, Brenda can recognize this internal negotiation and stop it. If this is hard for you at first, come up with alternative negotiations such as...

“Well, I’ll go to this class just for today”

“I’ll drive to the gym and see how I feel”

“I’ll drive to the gym and go inside and see how I feel”

I often hear from people trying to overcome mental fatigue “You know, if I just get to the gym, I’m fine”.  Acknowledge this phenomenon and know that once you do some form of physical activity the better you’ll feel.

4. Just do 10 minutes

My final tip is to “do just 10 minutes”. This involves working with your internal negotiator. When tired, say to yourself “I will just do 10 minutes on the treadmill at the gym” or “I’ll just go for a 10 minute walk”.

Likely, once you’ve been moving for 10 minutes your mental fatigue will diminish and you’ll be able to do more.

So there you have it! I hope these tips can help you overcome those times you’re just not feelin’ the gym.

Stay Strong,

Byn