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What Gets You Moving?

This morning I woke up at 6:30am, thought "I should get up and run", rolled over and went back to sleep for 30 minutes.  Maybe I needed a reminder call?

A new study shows that people are more likely to exercise regularly if they receive a call or e-mail from their friends or family reminding them. From a recent Wall Street Journal article "The Power of a Gentle Nudge":

"Unable to push herself to exercise, Ruthanne Lowe joined a research study aimed at motivating the sedentary with a surprisingly simple technique—an occasional telephone reminder. "It really did work," says Ms. Lowe, a 66-year-old housewife in San Jose, Calif. Three years after the study ended, she says, "I'm doing more exercise than I ever did in my life." The study, conducted by Stanford University, belongs to a growing body of research showing that small amounts of social support, ranging from friends who encourage each other by email to occasional meetings with a fitness counselor, can produce large and lasting gains against one of America's biggest health problems—physical inactivity."

Everyone's motivated by different things.  I'm not sure anyone can force me out of bed no matter how nice or harsh their phone call is.  For me, knowing i'll be getting more energy, will feel a lot healthy, and that I'm doing the body I've been given good helps push me off the couch.

What motivates you to exercise?

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