I’d appreciate some quick responses from as many people as possible. Please feel free to share brief or detailed information. Do you eat as healthy and exercise as you want, why/why not.
Also, think about your friends and family – what are their healthy eating challenges? It’s OK if the responses seem common like “not enough time”, “eating healthy is too expensive”, “don’t like to cook”. Finally, why do you think people you know (or people in general) don’t eat healthy or exercise – and is there anything you think would motivate them? What would you say to someone you cared about?
I am asking this because I am working on a project about healthy eating and exercise barriers and opportunities to motivate people.
Filed under: eating healthy, exercise, nutrition
Yes, i do eat as healthy as I want, although on a limited budget i often choose the healthy option over the super-healthy option, if you know what I mean. I’m also very happy with my exercise frequency.
My families are pretty healthy, i know some of my friends hate to cook, or think cooking is more expensive than cafeterias, and lot of my friends hate exercise. I don’t say anything to them, unless they bring it up, in which case i give advice and try to motivate.
[...] Barriers to Eating Healthy and Exercise [...]
I am eating well these days! It took me about six months to develop the tools and obtain the knowledge, but instead of a temporary change in habits, my life is permanently changed.
Before, my two main obstacles were a failure to plan ahead and a lack of the right tools/techniques. I’ve found that it’s not that hard to cook a good meal and eat good, nutritious foods, but if you haven’t thought ahead and gotten ingredients, or even planned your day properly, it’s much less likely to happen. Also, the tools and techniques are an invaluable foundation upon which to build.
In my own life, the time/money issue* was not as much of a problem as I thought it was. I think the underlying root of those things stem from a lack of knowledge, preconceived notions of what a meal “should” look like, lack of technique (i.e. how to cook healthily), and lack of planning. In examining my own former habits, and in talking with family members and friends, this is what I’ve found to be true.
*My husband and I are currently on a budget paying back student loans, but we eat well, mostly organic, etc.
Hope this helps,
Rebecca
I don’t eat as healthy as I would like, though I’ve made drastic improvements over the past year. The main obstacle remains time and effort to prepare healthy meals. I’ve found several quick and easy meal ideas that are *healthier* than total junk, but I still don’t feel that it is as healthy as if I prepared things from scratch. Cooking prep (washing, chopping, measuring, etc) and cleanup almost always takes me longer than recipes indicate.
Actually, so does working out. I know that for a half-hour workout, between finding parking at the gym, getting changed before and after, and driving home, I need to budget an hour’s time.
It’s not an excuse, but it just takes a lot more time to do healthy things than I used to realize and plan for.
Thes are some of the excuses I have heard from friends and family
Barrier to exercise: it hurts…, I can’t breathe…it’s not fun…my belly shakes too much…I am embarrassed….
Barriers to eating healthfully: vegetables taste gross (this was a 40-something yr old….it’s too hard to cook (every meal was prepared for them)….my body knows what it needs (trying to explain cravings for junk)…
I could go on and on and on….
I am dedicated to working out and pretty strict with my diet. So for me, I’m pretty happy with my choices: stay active 7 days a week and maintain a lacto-ovo vegetarian diet. Check out my blog – i’d love your comments.
As for my family, it just doesn’t seem important to them to eat healthy or be active. They don’t seem to have the energy I have and I have NO idea how to motivate them. It’s difficult saying something without feeling like you’re being cruel.
My idea this Christmas was to give a gift to one relative (who is very young and on the road to definate health problems if he doesn’t get with it) that is a 2XX in size. I hope it’s a bit big – if it isn’t, then I’m REALLY scared.
As a professional baseball player, I don’t eat as well as I should during the season. The travel is such that it’s hard to keep up the energy to find and eat the right things every day. I’m only slightly better in the off season, mainly because of the burnout from thinking about it so much during the season. Make sense?
I definitely find time to work out. That’s why they pay me the big bucks.
I’m eating better because I’m cooking more, counting calories and – this has been most effective – planning and preparing meals ahead of time.
I’m not exercising as much as I like because there’s just not enough time in the day. I work a couple of different jobs, so sometimes after a 12 hour day the last thing I want to do is work out. I have been trying to squeeze in 1-2 mile walks on my lunch breaks and 20-30 minute yoga session and that’s been working out a lot better. Another reason I don’t work out as much as I’d like is because I like walking, running, biking outside, but sometimes Michigan winters just don’t want to cooperate.
I have always tried to eat pretty healthy, but only in the last 2 years or so have I really tried to incorporate 5 servings of fruits and veggies in my daily diet. This requires a lot of planning and preparation. Sometimes that can discourage me, but I always remember how great I feel after I eat well. Also in the the last 2 years, I’ve become more active. As I enter my mid-30s, I really want to lose weight and be healthy. However, I have suffered a recent set back with eating well and exercising. I’m going through a very sad divorce, which makes me depressed, which in turn makes me eat poorly and not be active. However, I do have a great support system in my girlfriends who are also trying to get in shape. So, with them I’m slowly getting back on track with a good diet and exercise routine. One of my good friends gave me a book that talks a lot about health, healthy living and weight loss, which has helped me out during these sad times. So, depression is for sure something that can easily derail a good diet. Hopefully, it won’t take long for me to get back on track. Thanks for this blog – I’ve really enjoyed reading about other people’s eating and exercise habits. It doesn’t make me feel as alone and also gives me ideas. Thanks!
What’s the right activity for me?
Whoever you are, there’s an activity for you. And just as getting fitter doesn’t have to mean pushing yourself to the limits of your endurance, you don’t have to be technically brilliant at a particular sport to derive pleasure and health benefits from it. Whoever you are, there’s an activity for you. And just as getting fitter doesn’t have to mean pushing yourself to the limits of your endurance, you don’t have to be technically brilliant at a particular sport to derive pleasure and health benefits from it.
Rob
http://www.toshoppingtips.com