(Answering this questionnaire could help you discover your own attitudes about exercise. You could also copy it and administer it to your own clients.)
Most people know that exercise is good for one’s physical health, particularly as one gets older. What is less well known is that regular exercise also contributes to one’s psychological and emotional health, being an effective way of reducing depression and anxiety. There is recent evidence that exercise may help to ward off the loss of brain cells that usually accompanies aging. and even reverse the cognitive effects of aging by stimulating the growth of new brain cells.
What is not usually addressed are the reasons that about 67% of Americans don’t exercise at all and, of those who do, many don’t get enough in terms of frequency, variety, completeness or intensity. I am interested in exploring these reasons. In later blogs, I will discuss the best way to approach exercise and the types and varieties of exercise that are necessary for complete benefit. I will also attempt to suggest ways that people may approach exercise to make it enjoyable. Please feel free to comment on the questionnaire in the Comments section on my blog.
Age
Gender: M F
Your State of Physical Health:
Excellent: no health problems
Very good, some minor issues
Good: Some chronic, but non-debilitating issues.
Fair
Poor
Very poor:
Your build
Thin:
Just right; neither over or underweight:
Overweight:
Very much overweight:
Previous Sports Involvement
Were you involved in a sport as a child or young adult?
If so, what sport?
Did you enjoy it and do it regularly?
Parental Physical Activity:
Was either parent physically active? Was the activity in a sport? Or did the parental occupations require physical activity, such as running a farm?
Questions regarding your attitudes about exercising
I know that I should exercise, but dislike doing it and avoid the whole topic because I don’t want to feel guilty.
Yes
No
I exercise for awhile but then just seem to slowly lose interest and stop.
Yes
No
I never have gotten physical exercise and feel it’s too late in my life to start.
Yes
No
I get involved in exercise, do it for awhile, don’t see much benefit in terms of improvement in my mood, weight loss or energy level, and stop.
Yes
No
I find exercise very boring and that’s why I don’t do it.
Yes
No
I would like to exercise but I just don’t have enough time.
Yes
No
I am physically infirm so that I really can’t exercise
Yes
No
If you answered “Yes” to the previous question, in white way are you infirm?
I feel too embarrassed to be seen exercising out in public, for example, walking or running.
Yes
No
Exercising is inconvenient, I don’t live in the right neighborhood to be exercising and there is no close gym.
Yes
No
I don’t have the energy to exercise
Yes
No
My parents were not interested in sports or exercise and I didn’t develop an interest.
Yes
No
I don’t think about my health in the future because I’m healthy enough now
Yes
No
I would like to join a gym but it is too expensive.
Yes
No
In the past I exercised to reach some goal (e.g., becoming more buff, getting a slimmer figure, preparing for a long run) but, when I achieved my goal, I gave up and had trouble getting back to exercising.
Yes
No
I used to get a lot of exercise in my job but now that I don’t have it, I haven’t replaced it with exercise
Yes
No
When I have exercised in the past, I became very sore and that turned me off to continuing.
Yes
No
I don’t understand the benefits of regular exercise.
Yes
No
I get plenty of physical activity from dancing, gardening or other activity and don’t feel I need to exercise.
Yes
No
Experience in PhysEd as a child in school
Many people found PhysEd traumatic because they were not good at sports, and got picked last, which was humiliating. Or they had a mean PhysEd teacher. What was it like for you?
Please discuss any other reasons you have for not exercising regularly.