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Exercise Alert
Exercise ANGER
Exercise CHILD
Exercise LETGO
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 Tools for a
Balanced Lifestyle
A Program of Recovery from Weight Related Problems
Going for the 3 increases: Increase of Health; Increase of Happiness and
Increase of Energy
Chapter 2:
Exercise to Live
II.
Exercise ANGER Workout
The cavemen and cavewomen
most probably experienced times when they got angry with and because of the
exercise and activity involved in their fight for survival.
They may have become angry with their inability to spear their food
source targets on the first shot, which certainly would have ticked them off.
They may have been diverted from their food source search by inclement weather
which would most probably make them howl at the evil spirited "Weather
Source. " They may have stubbed their toes or wrenched their ankles which
could have drummed up some rage in those prehistoric bones. They may have been
diverted from their hunt activities because of the persistent harassment of
their rival mountain side community members. The continual put downs,
embarrassing comments or taunts might have gotten the best of these cave
dwellers and make them so angry that they focused more of their energy on
revenge schemes than on their hunt. Worse yet their source of food might have
been eliminated from their neighborhood forest due to natural disasters such as
fire or draught. They would most probably be filled with hate towards the
"Spirits of Nature", as they picked up camp to find more fertile
hunting grounds. What we do know about cavemen and cavewomen though is that if
they let their anger take them over and drain them of their emotional energy
they would eventually be in a bad space in terms of their survival. They could
not afford to remain angry too long or else they would slack in their hunting
activities and exercise and find it difficult to survive.
We like our cavemen and
cavewomen predecessors can not afford to be so angry at the concept of doing
increased physical activity and exercise that we sap our energy and never get to
doing it, thus imperiling our own survival. What we need to do is to rid
ourselves of our exercise related anger on a daily basis so that we have the
emotional energy and motivation to partake in our survival and life sustaining
activity and exercise.
You might be saying to
yourself at this point, "This is pretty silly. I am not angry at having to
do exercise. Why exercise is ok. I don't have anything against exercising. I am
not angry at exercise." If that is the case, then why is it that you do not
currently have a healthy level of exercise which can sustain a healthy
lifestyle? What is blocking you emotionally from motivating yourself to engage
in this necessary and vital act of life? What you need to do is to become honest
with yourself about anger in your life. You are angry at something related to
exercise, or else it would be an important part of your life at this time. Human
beings usually do not engage in activities about which they have anger in their
hearts. Anger blocks the emotional response to doing things which are healthy or
desirable to do. What you need to do is to rid yourself of anger related to
exercising, no matter what form it comes out in you. You need to do an ANGER
workout on a daily basis until a healthy routine of exercise becomes an habitual
part of your life.
First you need to Accept
that you are angry over exercise related issues or else you would have it as a
normal healthy part of your life at the present time. Get out of denial about
the role of anger in holding you back from accomplishing a balanced lifestyle
for yourself. It is normal and human to experience anger about the importance
and need for exercise and increased physical activity in your life.
Second you need to Name what
you are angry at concerning exercise and increased physical activity. What
follows are some suggestions of issues or subject matter which might arise
anger, hatred, rage, revenge or other forms of anger in you as you face the need
to implement a plan of exercise in your life to sustain a healthy, life
extending lifestyle.
Suggested Anger Issues Related to Exercise
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I hate exercising.
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It is so boring.
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I never get to see
immediate results, from exercise, in weight loss or reduced body size.
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It takes so long to get
and keep my body in shape through exercising.
-
I dislike the pain
involved in exercising when I first get started in it.
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I despise the notion of
"No Pain No Gain."
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I don't like to exercise.
-
I don't have enough time
to exercise.
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Exercise is so time
consuming.
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Exercising takes me away
from things I would rather be doing.
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I'd rather sit and think
about exercising than really having to do it.
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I hate that exercise is a
"have to do" in my life in order for me to live a healthy life.
-
I feel forced into
exercising.
-
I feel it is a plot of the
fit and shapely people in the world to reek revenge on us "fatties".
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I don't like the sensation
of having to breathe so hard while exercising.
-
I don't like having to
sweat while exercising.
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I hate that exercise is
so structured, routine and regimented.
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I dislike that exercise is
something that everybody else who is in on the "know" is doing it.
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I dislike that the need to
exercise is lifelong, continuous and forever.
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I dislike the fear that
something bad, like a heart attack, will happen as I exercise.
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I don't like that exercise
makes me sweat and stink.
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I hate when others can
look so great when they exercise.
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I hate that others look so
happy and have such big grins on their face when they exercise.
-
I dislike having to wear
different clothes to exercise in, it is so inconvenient to have to change.
-
I hate that there isn't
enough "bang for the buck" in exercising because there aren't enough
calories burned and that inches don't drop off of me immediately after I
finish exercising.
-
I hate that exercising is
so complicated when compared to reading and thinking.
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I dislike that exercising
has become so social so that the "cute" and "pretty" people
do it.
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I hate being asked to
exercise with thin or "in shape" people.
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I hate not being asked to
join in the exercise event because I am so fat or out of shape.
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I can't see a need to
exercise unless there is a point to it, like training for a competition or
marathon.
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I dislike this notion that
exercise is as vital to living as food, air and water.
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Exercise cuts into my TV
time, social time, telephone time etc.
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Exercising makes me feel
self-conscious cause I feel like others are looking at me.
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I hate how good others
look when they are exercising, they seem so good at it.
-
I hate that there is so
much sensuality and sexuality present in health clubs.
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I feel like I am at a
"meat market" or dating service when I am at a health club.
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I resent that all those
"in shape" and thin people crowd the health clubs leaving no place for
me to fit in.
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I hate the feeling, that I
will die early in life, if I don't exercise.
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Why can't there be
something else, than exercising, which I have to do to be healthy and live.
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Although I am doing it, I
still hate it.
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Why can't it be more fun,
interesting, less boring?
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I hate that my initiating
of my exercise program has become a joke to the important people in
my life.
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I hate that I used to
enjoy exercising and now that it has become a burden to me.
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I hate the thought of
others making fun of me while I exercise.
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I hate the taunts,
nagging, sarcastic comments, and prodding of others to get me to exercise.
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I don't believe that
exercise is necessary to maintain a healthy lifestyle and I object to this coercion I feel to exercise in this program.
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I would rather go on a
diet to lose weight than to increase the amount of
exercise or physical activity
in my life to get in shape and lose weight.
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It takes too long to
achieve my body size goal in exercising.
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It just doesn't seem that
to exercise would ever become enjoyable to do.
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I feel like I am being
forced to exercise in order to remain in this program and I feel it is unfair.
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I hate exercise because of
the people in my past who exercised and the horrible way they treated me and made fun of me for being so out of shape, uncoordinated or
fat.
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I hate people who have
a" better than thou" attitude and make me feel stupid for not
exercising, because
they have lost weight, gotten in shape and are maintaining a balanced lifestyle
by exercising.
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I resent people who
exercise and are healthy.
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I resent people who have
been successful by using exercise to reach their goals of good health.
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I resent people more
successful than me in achieving their balanced lifestyle.
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I resent personal
trainers.
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I resent experts in
exercise physiology.
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I resent this program's
emphasis on exercise.
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I resent the implicit
message that I am a failure in life if I don't exercise.
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I hate being forced into
doing exercise which I don't like and don't want to do.
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I am resistant to
exercising and I wish we could talk and read about something else.
Third, once you have named
what you are angry about, you then need to Get It Out by aggressive anger
workout activity. For this exercise workout, you are encouraged to do the
following:
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Purchase a 40 pound karate kick bag. You can get them at any sports store.
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Hang the bag from a rafter and use sparring gloves on it. Or lay the bag on a
coach, chair or floor and use a whiffle bat, an aluminum T-Ball bat, plastic bat
or a bat made from
rolling newspaper up and strapping it with plastic tape so that it is firm and
easy to hold.
-
Once you have your bag and anger workout implements, set aside at least five
minutes each day for the next few months to do an anger workout on exercise
related issues.
-
Take one of the issues listed above or any issue real to you which raises your
anger, resentment, rage, hatred, etc concerning exercise.
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Visualize the issue, and begin to look at the image of the person, place,
condition or situation related to the anger issue as if it is on the bag.
-
Begin to hit the bag while yelling and screaming out your anger and rage against
the person, place, condition or situation related to the exercise issue which
is the target of your anger.
-
Keep hitting and yelling until you feel your anger lessening or abating. It is
good to do this for at least five minutes. You can go as long as you want. Don't
stop until your time
is up or you feel your anger has abated.
This "getting out"
activity is exercise in itself. So you can get angry over the fact that to get
anger out of yourself concerning exercise requires that you to do some form of
exercise.
Fourth, once you have gotten
your anger out you will feel Energized and ready to Resume your
efforts at implementing a program of exercise or increased physical activity in
your life so that you will be healthier and more fit for life.
As you work at lessening
your anger you then need to go on and do some CHILD work to give yourself a new
healthier emotional response to the need to exercise.
Related Tools for Coping
Readings:
1. Self-Esteem Seekers
Anonymous
2. Tools for Anger
Work-out
3. Growing Down: Tools
for Healing the Inner Child
To proceed to the next
section in Chapter 2: Exercise to Live in the Tools for Balanced Lifestyle
click on the topic below:
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