I'm too tired... understanding and overcoming one of the most common barriers to exercise.

Have you ever felt too tired to exercise even though you haven't done anything physical in your day? Maybe it's just been back to back meetings, sitting down all day, but you still feel like you just can't muster the strength to change into your gym gear let alone do a whole workout. In our bodies, there are two types of fatigue, central and peripheral. Understanding how these interact and influence our behaviour can help you stay motivated and consistent with your other healthy habits.

Peripheral fatigue is in our muscles, at the synapses between our nerves and muscle fibres, and in the muscle cells themselves stored as glucose and ATP. When we move we use these resources and as they get depleted, like in a workout, and we feel fatigued. But why do we feel fatigued when we haven't done any strenuous? Central fatigue happens in our brain and spinal cord and can be affected by a number of things like stress, sleep, and critical thinking. It's the expenditure of neurotransmitters and the accumulation of metabolic waste from these processes which causes us to feel fatigued. If we then consider that everything we do starts in our brain, it's easy to understand why even the simplest tasks can seem insurmountable under central fatigue. Research has shown that, under central fatigue conditions, people will forgo significantly higher reward tasks if it requires more effort, instead favouring ANY reward for smaller effort.

So what strategies do we have when it comes to exercise and central fatigue?

1. Exercise in the morning. Don't let your day get in the way before you even have a chance to start!

2. Have options. If you normally do something intense for exercise or something which requires a lot of preparation or thought, have a replacement ready to go. For example, swap a gym workout for a light jog, or turn up to a class instead of having to plan your own workout.

3. Understand that exercise CAN HELP recover central fatigue. You might need to start slow but getting your body moving will help restore your energy levels and stimulate your nervous system to clear some of the metabolic waste.

4. Understand the different loads you have in your life. If you know you're coming into a stressful work period, don't try to start a new habit.

5. Take a mini break. Even stopping, closing your eyes, relaxing for just 10mins can be enough to relieve central fatigue to get you where you need to be. Then once you start moving, the body will take care of the rest.

6. Diet can help too. We know that our brains burn more glucose than almost any other part of our body during the day, particularly under stress, so a carbohydrate snack can help replenish or prevent central fatigue.

Implementing these strategies takes time and practice but the more you try, the more accurate you will get at assessing your fatigue and doing what suits you for your health and fitness goals. Start with the lowest hanging fruit and celebrate creating momentum in the right direction.

Tim Douge AEP