Women's Misguided Motivation to Increase Fitness



Today I read an article in Whole Living that highlights womens underlying motivations to exercise.  The article titled, "The Dirty Little Secret about Feel Good Work-Outs," discusses a study conducted by motivational psychologist, Michelle Segar, PH.D., of 266 full-time working women.  The study concludes that more women felt motivated to work out for immediate reasons like quick weight loss, stress reduction, social image, or quality of daily life.  When presented with the choice of excercising for healthy aging, women were less likely to fit exercise into their hectic daily schedules.  This study sheds a lot of light on why it is so difficult for women
 to stick to a routine of being healthy for life.

If health doesn’t motivate us to exercise regularly and we allow social views to dictate how we think about our own health, there is no wonder why 33.8% of all Americans are obese.  35.5% of all women in the US are obese and the numbers go to a staggering 47.2% for black women between the ages of 20-39.  In comparison, white women of the same age have an obesity level at 31.3% and hispanic women, 37.6%. 

What does this say about women and health.  What this translates to me is, if I am a young black woman between the age of 20 - 39 (Which I am.), the only motivation I have to be healthy is because I want to impress a man, possibly to impress my friends so that they will think more of me, but not because I have a fear of diabetes or serious cardiovascular disease. 

Although the article, "The Dirty Little Secret about Feel Good Work-Outs," was intended to be a motivational piece about no matter what motivates you to excercise, as long as you do it you will be ok; it was a sobering article that pointed out how much we as women - black, white, or hispanic, don't care enough about our own health to be healthy for us!  We all need to seriously reevaluate our own health situations and make sure that we take back our self-image and do what counts in areas of our own health so that we will be around to raise our kids, run our corporations and lead generally happy, stressless lives!!


As always, I want to hear from you!  What is your motivation to increase your excercise and overall fitness level?  If you aren't currently exercising to be fit and healthy, what will it take to motivate you?

Sources of information for this article:
http://jama.ama-assn.org/content/303/3/235/T2.large.jpg
http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/adult.html
http://wholelivingdaily.wholeliving.com/2011/10/the-dirty-little-secret-about-feel-good-work-outs.html?utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pulsenews


Ms. Me