“Whether most people know it or not, a lot of what happens in the gym is an ego thing. I doubt most people would work out at Carleton’s gym if they were to remove all of its mirrors,” says Aaron Brook, a recent Carleton graduate.
Brook says he used to be one of those people.
“I struggled through muscle dysmorphia for a while and did everything I could to try and ‘fix’ myself. I was never good enough . . . and the shame and misery is pretty hard to comprehend until you experience it. I have many friends struggling with the same issues.”
People should focus on the intrinsic benefits of exercise such as sleeping more soundly, being more alert, and improving productivity, according to Jill Cressy, assistant manager of fitness and instruction at the University of Toronto’s faculty of physical education and health.
“Over-exercise is not as extensive a problem as not exercising enough. About [two-thirds] of the Canadian population does not get enough exercise. One study in the U.S., [Factorial Validity and Psychometric Examination of the Exercise Dependence Scale], that looked at almost 900 college students [found] that the rate of excessive exercise was relatively low,” says Kimberley Gammage, an associate professor at Brock University, in an email.
Gammage says there are many benefits of exercising, including improved physiological functioning, reduced risk for many chronic illnesses, better sleep and improved recovery from injury and illness.
There are also psychosocial benefits, such as reduced risk of depression and anxiety, better body image and overall quality of life, according to Gammage.
Brook says he gains a psychological benefit from exercising as well.
“I used it as a way to burn off frustration and stress whilst promoting a healthy mind and balance in life,” says Brook, who exercises at least four times a week.
But as exercising that often isn’t that easy for many, there are several different ways to get motivated, Cressy says.
“Finding a ‘workout buddy’ or participating in fitness, dance, martial arts or sport classes in a group can help increase motivation. It also helps create a sense of belonging and provides a social support system,” Cressy says.
Gammage recommends people make exercise more fun and less intimidating.
Inessa Rizvin, a former fitness trainer at Carleton, says the biggest challenge for “most would be knowing what exactly to do, [and] how to train those areas effectively.”
Some beliefs that are no longer backed up by science still persist today, as Gammage explains.
“Probably one of the biggest is the belief that people need to work until exhaustion all the time. This is reflected in the popular ‘80s saying ‘no pain no gain’, where people believed that if they didn’t work out until they experienced pain or felt sick, there would be no benefits,” Gammage says.
Pain is the body’s way of saying ‘stop’, she adds.
It’s sometimes a challenge to find the right exercise, but it is possible. Rizvin says she recommends trial and experimentation. Brook agrees.
“Trial and error. And a heck of a lot of reading. Thousands of pages,” he says.
Both Cressy and Rizvin say they agree the most common mistake people make is concentrating only on one type of activity. They both suggest a varied exercise routine. Gammage, on the other hand, says she believes the most common mistake is believing they have to be perfect.
“Something is always better than nothing,” she says. “Just don’t quit.”
