---

BY TAMAR LERER

In print | Published October 30, 2008 — Updated January 22, 2009 13:34

I hate going to the gym. Hate. More than I hate animals in sweaters or chunks of fruit in my yogurt or the fact that behavioral economics knows me better than I know myself. Regardless, I have to participate in some form of physical activity in order to graduate, as the Dean’s Office so kindly reminds me on a rather regular basis. This, I will now admit, is a good thing. We should all be exercising in some way for two reasons: Firstly, it is good for you, physically and emotionally. Secondly, to maintain your healthy weight or to lose weight in any sort of healthy way, you have to combine sensible eating habits with sensible exercising habits, no matter how much that sucks.

So how does one get him or herself to the gym under such circumstances? Even if the hatred isn’t present, laziness, time constraints and crappy gym hours come into the play. You need to understand your problem with the gym, find a (more) enjoyable way to work out, and incentivize exercise.

The first time I went to a gym was freshman year in college, having gained about 15 pounds and found out it had not gone unnoticed. After Thanksgiving my roommate forced me down to Mullan as I dragged my feet and wailed at her. What was I wailing? “Don’t make me go, they are going to laugh at me.”

The secret is that there is no “they.” While many of us nerd-folks have all sorts of inferiority complexes about physical activity, I will promise you that no one in the gym is looking at you. The whole point of going to the gym is to engage in self-improvement, and everyone at the gym is quite focused on the self. In addition, everyone looks pretty goofy at the gym. And Swatties are pretty nice, so it takes more than your pigeon-toed running stride to make them laugh at you. Also, put the damn clip on your shirt if you’re on the treadmill, because everyone will stare if you fall off of it. And it hurts.

The key to your reluctance, on the other hand, could be the pure physical costs of going to the gym. It’s a whole seven minutes out of your way, it’s cold outside, the gym tires you out, forces you to shower and hurts muscles you weren’t aware you had. This is where behavioral economics comes in.

In a nutshell, it goes like this: we all have self-control problems. This means that we delay things that have an immediate cost, such as going to the gym, and don’t hold off as long as we should on things that have an immediate benefit. We deal with this in two different ways. We either tell ourselves, naïvely, that even though we find going to the gym distasteful right now, we won’t tomorrow. Tomorrow, of course, going to the gym is just as distasteful, so we put it off until the next tomorrow, forever. It’s a pretty familiar story.

Others of us realize that we have self-control problems and so, when planning when this week we should work out, we realize that the gym’s pain does not disappear in the future. While this won’t make us perfect, realizing we have a self-control problem stops us from lying to ourselves, which is the first step in getting anything done.

Okay, so we realize that no one at the gym is interested in anyone but themselves (and the newest issue of Us Weekly) and that we have a self-control problem. Now what? Now you find a workout that works for you. Many women who are trying to lose weight think that the only way to do so is by running endlessly. This is not true. I, for one, never got a runner’s high, no matter how hard or long I ran, and so I was miserable. Then, one day, I discovered the elliptical and my life (and knees) greatly improved.

More than that, you officially have my permission to move away from cardio, or, as one friend put it, “the girlie workout.” There is nothing wrong, ladies, with lifting some weights or working those machines. It can make you feel powerful and it certainly makes you look toned. Don’t be intimidated by the bulky guys. Walk straight up to the leg press, put it on the minimum weight and start your slow process of strengthening (remember, unless you want to bulk up, use lower weights and more repetitions). Alternatively, some three or five-pound hand weights and Body By Glamour (at glamour.com), can help you begin a simple weight-training regime in your own room.

Take advantage of the wide range of physical education classes offered at Swarthmore. By that I do not mean “take bowling” because that does not count. I mean check out a dance class, try Pilates, or get in the pool. I myself am currently fulfilling my last two gym credits by taking ballet. It forces me out of my comfort zone, gets me thinking about my whole body and increasing the mind/muscle connection, is improving my posture, and comes with adorable accessories. It’s very hard, and I’m not very good, but I love it. And that, for me, is an exercise-related first.

Lastly, incentivize working out. Commit yourself to working out by going with a friend, promising yourself a small gift (like buying a new song for your play list on iTunes or buying yourself those cute new running shoes) after you go so many days in a row or a non-monetary personal reward (see my last column for suggestions). Alternatively, dock yourself something pleasurable if you don’t go when you promised you would. Make physical activity part of your routine, be it every day or 20 minutes three times a week (and always remember moderation), and eventually you will actually want to go. Strange, but true.

For those who are interested in further discussing the issues raised in this column, other body image issues, or finding running partners, come to Kolhberg 328 Sunday at 2 p.m. There will be some healthy snacks and perhaps the beginning of a real dialogue on campus; it’s all up to you.

Tamar is a senior. You can reach her at tlerer1@swarthmore.edu.

---

« RETURN TO LIVING & ARTS

« PREV ARTICLE | NEXT ARTICLE »