My work ethic is questionable, and I’ll devise any excuse, real or imaginable, to get out of what I must be doing. Procrastination is the name of this game, and if it were an Olympic sport, I’d be on the podium every time.
We all have excuses, and when it comes to exercise or ‘working out,’ being a personal trainer, I’ve heard my fair share of excuses for missing a training session. Things like
“I set my alarm for PM instead of AM.”
“I’m double booked because of a doctor’s appointment.”
“I need to take my cat to the vet.”
And my all-time favorite is “I’m not feeling well. It must be something I ate last night.”
Once, a client called me from a bar to say he was getting hammered and not coming in tomorrow morning. At least he thought ahead. We will have excuses, and I heard my fair share from my inner voice to those of my clients. But before going any further, let’s differentiate between an excuse and a reason.
Excuse Vs. Reason
Here’s the thing: a reason is a legitimate explanation for why something happened. It’s based on facts or circumstances that are usually beyond your control. Maybe you couldn’t get to the gym because your car broke down, or you had a family emergency—that’s a reason. It’s real, and it makes sense.
An excuse is different because it’s more about dodging responsibility. It’s when you say you “didn’t have time” to work out but spent an hour scrolling on your phone. Excuses are more about avoiding what needs doing and shifting the blame. A reason explains what happened; an excuse is often just a way to avoid accountability.
When referring to excuses not to exercise, it’s something to justify oneself to make them feel better about missing. And I’m not putting myself above this because I’ve also done it.
Here, I’ll give you a few real-life examples of previous clients who had every reason and excuse in the book not to exercise, but they did anyway. Hopefully, this will motivate you to do better if needed.
He Had Plenty Of Excuses & Reasons
Around ten years ago, I had an amputee client. His leg was amputated below the knee due to an accident many years ago. This client, let’s call him John, wanted to get ready for his prosthetic leg, and he used a wheelchair. Not only was he wheelchair-bound, but he had significant scarring at the surgical site.
Even before we trained, he was in pain, some days a lot, and some days a little. His scar would weep and bleed during the session, and his wife or I would have to change the dressing. John had plenty of excuses and reasons to stop, but something kept him going.
Getting out of the wheelchair and walking again without pain is one reason.
John wasn’t a difficult person to train, but his condition and my lack of experience made it difficult. We had to set up exercises while he was in his chair, and he had to get in and out of his chair to use the exercise machines. Because of his lack of core strength and endurance, I got creative to improve his balance and posture.
But you know what he didn’t do the entire time we trained together? He never once complained or made excuses and fought the good fight—all the while going through immense pain.
Whenever I devise a flimsy excuse NOT to exercise, I think of John and go.
Can I Get An Excuse
While working at the YMCA, this guy came into train like clockwork. He had low body fat and good definition and pushed himself hard but was missing most of one arm. This guy was always smiling and sweating without care.
During one of these sweat fests, he attached a Velcro leg strap around his amputated arm, hooked it on the cable machine, and got after it. Here I was, avoiding squats because my knee hurt, and this guy was putting me and everyone else with an excuse to the sword.
Whenever I devise a flimsy excuse NOT to exercise, I think of this guy and go.
Wrapping up
You all have excuses not to exercise, and I occasionally come up with some lame ones, too. But whenever I feel like that, I overcome my lameness with the two examples because they inspire me. It reminds you that movement is a gift and exercise is not something you must do.
It is something you get to do.
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