You don’t need more time

You just need to decide

I am a sports physician. This means that a large part of my job involves motivating and encouraging people to exercise more. Good cop, bad cop and prophecies of doom; I’ve tried many methods of persuasion over the years. Here’s the excuse that comes up more often than any other:

“Sorry doc, I just don’t have the time.”

Scientific research seems to support my observation. A 2023 study of 947 adults enrolled in an exercise intervention for health reasons looked at why some people did not complete the program:

31% of participants failed to complete the 6-month program and of those, 40% cited a lack of time as their reason.

Interestingly, most of the dropouts quit early on, even before getting to the first month of the program. But those who got through the initial ramp period were likely to go on and complete the program.

For years, I struggled to counter the “no time” excuse. I know how busy life can be and how precious time is. But then I stumbled upon an entry in marketing genius Seth Godin’s blog:

“You don’t need more time

…you just need to decide.”

February 9, 2011

It has to be one of the shortest posts he has ever published and I’m sure he was referring to productivity rather than regular exercise, but it was a lightbulb moment for me.

You can’t have more time. 24 hours in a day is all you will ever have.

And so, you need to decide.

• Decide that you will live a long and healthy life.

• Decide that daily exercise is a top priority for you.

• Decide on a form of exercise that appeals to you.

• Decide to plan and schedule time for your exercise every day.

• Decide to start small, and grow from there.

• Decide to push through the first few months, no matter what.

If you need help to decide where to start, Strove’s No Time? No Problem! post might be just the tool.

You aren’t getting any younger. It’s time to decide.