Exercise<\/a> doesn\u2019t always make a good first impression. Often, the opposite is true.<\/p>\n A recent survey<\/a> found that unpleasant experiences in PE lessons put 28 per cent of people off exercise \u201cfor life\u201d.<\/p>\n In the UK, if you didn\u2019t take to football, rugby, athletics<\/a> or netball like a duck to water, there\u2019s a high chance you came to believe that sport<\/a> isn\u2019t for you.<\/p>\n Then, as an adult, someone stresses the importance of exercising for your health<\/a>, so you do what everyone else seems to be doing and go for a run. That invariably feels horrible because your body isn\u2019t quite ready for it, so you stop.<\/p>\n The thing missing throughout this process is choice. It\u2019s hard to develop a healthy relationship with something you feel forced into. But exercise becomes less of a chore if you can find a form of movement you enjoy and actively choose to do on a regular basis \u2013 whether that\u2019s swimming, pickleball, home workouts<\/a>, qigong, Nordic walking or something else.<\/p>\n That is the theme of this week\u2019s newsletter<\/a> \u2013 making exercise work for you:<\/p>\n This probably isn\u2019t the first time you\u2019ve been told to enjoy exercise. That\u2019s easier said than done \u2013 and far harder for some than others. Simply running more or pressuring yourself to go to the gym every day isn\u2019t going to work. But that doesn\u2019t mean it isn\u2019t possible.<\/p>\n Anne Dockery, a 77-year-old champion runner and triathlete from Bristol, demonstrates this point beautifully. Her bulging medal cabinet would turn any athlete green with envy, yet she only started running at 52.<\/p>\n \u201cI thought running was really boring at first,\u201d she tells me, laughing. \u201cNow I don\u2019t know what I would do without it.\u201d<\/p>\n So what changed? She joined a club.<\/p>\n Anne became part of a diverse group of runners who hit the trails and tarmac every Sunday. They chatted, they ran, and she soon found herself covering up to 18 miles in a day. But it didn\u2019t feel like exercise \u2013 by adding a social element, she found a way to make it fun.<\/p>\n There\u2019s a lot more to Anne\u2019s story, including her fight for fitness brands to represent over-45s fairly, which I\u2019ll be diving into in next week\u2019s newsletter. <\/p>\n This is not an isolated case. My uncle joined a volleyball club in his sixties. In the past decade, my mum and several friends have discovered the unbridled joy of Cornish pilot gig rowing. Another friend found a dance class she loves and hasn\u2019t looked back. <\/p>\n Few of these activities feature in school curriculums or exercise guidelines, but they are all forms of movement. And as World Health Organisation guidelines from 2020 state: \u201cEvery move counts towards better health.\u201d<\/p>\n I\u2019ve experienced this personally, too. After growing like a weed during my sixteenth summer, I joined a new sixth form as a gangly teen in a foreign-feeling body. I felt awkward and uncomfortable \u2013 bulking up in the gym felt like a straightforward solution.<\/p>\n So I went along, lifted a few weights to the best of my ability, then spotted people sniggering at my efforts and promptly left. The gym was clearly not for me. <\/p>\n Fast forward to 2026, and I now write about fitness for a living while teaching people how to lift weights outside of my nine-to-five. What happened in between? I made lifting weights work for me and regained exercise autonomy in the process. <\/p>\n I don\u2019t think anyone enjoys being sniggered at (although I\u2019ve since found most gyms are supportive environments). But what I do love is learning.<\/p>\n So I went to a discount store, picked up a cut-price set of spinlock dumbbells and a barbell, then started inhaling every piece of strength training-related literature I could get my hands on.<\/p>\n I proceeded to pump iron in my garden shed over the coming months. My body changed, my mindset changed, and I grew to love it. Later, I was able to return to the gym with a pep in my step and a self-made exercise plan in my back pocket.<\/p>\n One of the best ways to build confidence is to start exercising with a coach. Once you\u2019ve learned how to perform five to 10 fundamental full-body exercises (think squats, lunges, presses and rows) with good form, you have everything you need to build a robust body.<\/p>\n If the gym environment feels intimidating, accessible home workouts \u2013 like the one featured in The Independent\u2019s strength training guide<\/a> \u2013 are a great, time-savvy alternative.<\/p>\n Or you can increase the enjoyment factor by heading outside with sessions like coach Dan John\u2019s favourite kettlebell workout<\/a>. There are extra health benefits if you can rope in a few friends too \u2013 an ongoing 80-plus-year Harvard study<\/a> has highlighted the importance of strong social connections in living a longer, healthier life.<\/p>\n Of course, these two examples only cover strength training. From all the reading and interviews I\u2019ve done, the optimal exercise mix (on paper) involves regular strength training, challenging your heart and lungs at least a couple of times per week, and a good dose of general movement (ie walking). <\/p>\n But the more important takeaway from this newsletter is that any movement is better than none \u2013 and fun is invaluable. Combine the two and you\u2019ll be laughing.<\/p>\n Get the Well Enough newsletter<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/TGG-x-Independent-18.jpg\")
The Independent\u2019s fitness writer Harry Bullmore performing a plank shoulder tap at The Gym Group, Wood Green The Mall (The Gym Group)<\/p>\n![\"Fitness](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Fitness-writer-Harry-Bullmore-after-trying-Olympic-silver-medallist-and-world-champion-BMX-rider-Kie.jpeg\")
Fitness writer Harry Bullmore after trying Olympic silver medallist and world champion BMX rider Kieran Reilly’s go-to rowing machine workout (Harry Bullmore \/ The Independent)<\/p>\n![\"Get](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Well-Enough-Harry-3_2.png\")
Get the Well Enough newsletter with Harry Bullmore (The Independent)<\/p>\n