Struggling to Stay Active? 3 Things That Actually Work (That Nobody Talks About)
You know you should exercise more. Your doctor mentioned it at your last appointment. Your fitness tracker keeps reminding you. Maybe you even paid for a gym membership you haven’t used in months.
But knowing you should move more and actually doing it are two different things. Especially when you’re exhausted from work, stressed about everything on your to-do list, and barely have energy to make dinner.
Here’s the problem with most fitness advice: it assumes you have unlimited time, energy, and motivation. It tells you to “just go for a run” or “find a workout you love” or “make it a priority.” That advice doesn’t work when you’re dealing with anxiety, burnout, or the mental load of managing a career and family.
As therapists in Ottawa who work with busy professionals, we see clients struggle with this constantly. They know exercise would help their mental health. They understand that movement reduces anxiety and improves mood. But they can’t seem to make it happen.
The truth is, staying active isn’t about motivation or willpower. Instead, it’s about removing the barriers that make exercise feel impossible. This guide will show you three strategies that actually work, that most fitness advice completely ignores.
Why Traditional Fitness Advice Doesn’t Work for Busy People
Most exercise advice is designed for people who already like working out. It assumes you have time to meal prep, energy to hit the gym after work, and motivation to push through when you don’t feel like it.
But if you’re dealing with stress, anxiety, or burnout, that advice is useless. Because your brain is already maxed out. Adding “exercise more” to your mental to-do list just creates more guilt when you don’t do it.
Here’s what actually gets in the way of staying active:
Decision fatigue: Every day you’re making hundreds of decisions. By the time you get home from work, your brain is too tired to decide whether to exercise, what type of exercise to do, and how long to do it for.
All-or-nothing thinking: You believe that exercise only counts if it’s a full workout. A 10-minute walk doesn’t feel worth it, so you do nothing instead.
Energy depletion: You’re running on empty. The idea of changing into workout clothes, going somewhere, and exerting more energy feels impossible.
Lack of immediate reward: Exercise benefits build over time. When you’re stressed and need relief right now, it’s hard to choose a 30-minute walk over scrolling your phone.
Traditional fitness advice doesn’t address any of these barriers. Instead, it tells you to “just do it” and makes you feel like a failure when you can’t.
Strategy 1: Remove the Activation Energy (Make It Stupidly Easy)
The biggest barrier to exercise isn’t laziness. Instead, it’s activation energy, which is the effort required to start something. The more steps between you and the activity, the less likely you are to do it.
Most people set up exercise with tons of activation energy. You have to change clothes, pack a gym bag, drive somewhere, find parking, check in, change again, work out, shower, change back, drive home. That’s exhausting just to think about.
What to do instead:
Lower the activation energy until starting feels almost effortless. For example, instead of planning to go to the gym after work, put on your workout clothes in the morning under your regular clothes. When you get home, you’re already dressed. Just walk out the door.
Or keep a pair of running shoes by your front door. When you see them, you’re more likely to use them. Don’t keep them in your closet where you have to search for them.
The power of micro-commitments:
Instead of committing to a 30-minute workout, commit to putting on your shoes. That’s it. Once your shoes are on, you’ll probably walk. But even if you don’t, you kept your commitment.
This works because your brain doesn’t resist small actions. It resists big, effortful tasks. By shrinking the commitment to something tiny, you remove the resistance.
Real example from our practice:
We worked with a client in Ottawa who couldn’t get herself to the gym. We had her commit to driving to the gym parking lot. She didn’t have to go inside. Just drive there. After a week of driving to the parking lot, she started going inside. Because once she was there, the hard part was already done.
Strategy 2: Stack Movement with Something You Already Do
You don’t need to add exercise to your day. Instead, attach it to something you’re already doing. This is called habit stacking, and it’s one of the most effective ways to build new behaviors.
Most people try to create exercise as a standalone habit. They schedule “workout time” and then feel guilty when other things take priority. But if you attach movement to an existing routine, it happens automatically.
What to do instead:
Look at your daily routine. What do you already do every day without thinking about it? Brushing your teeth. Making coffee. Walking to your car. Watching TV after dinner. These are anchor habits.
Now attach movement to one of these anchors. For example, every time you make coffee in the morning, do 10 squats while it brews. Every time you brush your teeth at night, do wall push-ups. Every time you’re on a phone call, walk around your house or office.
Why this works:
You’re not relying on motivation or creating a new time block in your schedule. Instead, you’re using momentum from a habit you already have. The existing habit triggers the movement automatically.
Examples of habit stacks:
- After I pour my coffee, I do 10 squats while it cools.
- When I’m on hold during a phone call, I walk in place.
- While I watch TV after dinner, I stretch on the floor.
- Before I sit down at my desk, I do 5 desk push-ups.
- When I’m waiting for the microwave, I do calf raises.
These movements add up. Five 2-minute movement breaks throughout your day equals 10 minutes of activity. That’s more than most people do.
Strategy 3: Use “Exercise Snacks” Instead of Workouts
This is the strategy that changes everything for busy, stressed people. Instead of trying to carve out 30 to 60 minutes for a workout, do multiple “exercise snacks” throughout your day.
An exercise snack is 1 to 5 minutes of movement. That’s it. Not long enough to change clothes or shower. Just a quick burst of activity between other tasks.
Why exercise snacks work better than workouts:
- They don’t require planning or time blocks.
- They fit into the gaps in your day.
- They don’t trigger the resistance that “going to the gym” does.
And research shows that multiple short bursts of activity throughout the day provide similar health benefits to one long workout.
How to implement exercise snacks:
Set a timer on your phone for every 90 minutes. When it goes off, do 2 minutes of movement. Any movement. Walk to the end of your driveway and back. Do jumping jacks in your living room. Dance to one song. Climb your stairs twice.
The key is making it so short that you can’t talk yourself out of it. Two minutes is nothing. You can do two minutes.
The compounding effect:
If you do six 2-minute exercise snacks throughout your day, that’s 12 minutes of movement. Do that five days a week, and you’ve hit 60 minutes of weekly activity. Without ever “working out.”
Here’s what this could look like:
Imagine you’re completely burned out. The idea of exercising feels overwhelming. While working with us, we have you set a timer for every 2 hours during her workday. When it goes off, you have to stand up and march in place for 60 seconds. That’s all.
After two weeks, you’d start doing it for 2 minutes. Then 3. Then you’d start adding arm movements. Within a month, you’d be doing 5-minute movement breaks and actually enjoying them. Technically, you never “worked out.” You just moved a little bit, many times a day.
Why This Approach Works for Mental Health
Exercise isn’t just about physical health. In fact, for people dealing with anxiety, depression, or burnout, movement is one of the most effective tools for regulating your nervous system.
But traditional workouts can actually increase stress if you’re already depleted. When you force yourself to exercise when you don’t want to, you’re adding more “shoulds” to your life. This increases guilt and shame when you inevitably skip workouts.
The strategies above work because they remove the pressure. You’re not committing to hour-long gym sessions. Instead, you’re just moving a little bit, in ways that fit your actual life.
How movement helps mental health:
When you move your body, even for a few minutes, you discharge stress hormones. You give your nervous system a reset. You shift out of the “stuck” feeling that anxiety and depression create.
Movement also interrupts rumination. When you’re walking or doing squats, your brain has to focus on your body instead of spinning in anxious thoughts. This gives you a break from the mental loop.
The difference between movement and exercise:
Exercise implies effort, sweat, and achievement. Movement is neutral. It’s just your body doing what bodies do. This shift in language matters because it removes the performance pressure.
You don’t have to “exercise.” Instead, you just need to move. That’s it.
Common Objections (And Why They Don’t Hold Up)
“I don’t have time.”
You don’t need time for exercise snacks. Two minutes fits into any schedule. You have time to scroll your phone. You have time to move.
“I’m too tired.”
Movement actually creates energy. But you don’t have to do high-intensity activity. Gentle movement (walking, stretching) can be energizing without being depleting.
“I hate exercise.”
You probably hate structured workouts and gyms. That’s fine. You don’t need those. Just move in ways that feel neutral or slightly pleasant. Dance. Walk. Play with your dog. Movement doesn’t have to look like “exercise.”
“It won’t make a difference.”
Multiple short bursts of activity throughout the day have been shown to improve cardiovascular health, reduce anxiety, improve mood, and increase energy levels. It absolutely makes a difference.
How to Actually Implement This Starting Today
You don’t need to overhaul your entire life. Instead, just pick one strategy and try it for one week.
Week 1: Lower activation energy
Put your workout shoes by the door. Or sleep in your workout clothes. Make the first step to movement so easy you can’t say no.
Week 2: Add habit stacking
Pick one thing you already do daily. Attach 30 seconds of movement to it. Do this every day for a week.
Week 3: Try exercise snacks
Set a timer for every 2 hours. Do 2 minutes of any movement when it goes off. That’s your only job.
After three weeks, you’ll have more movement in your life than you did before. Without joining a gym, without carving out workout time, and without relying on motivation.
FAQ About Staying Active with a Busy Schedule
Research shows that even small amounts of movement provide mental health benefits. While guidelines recommend 150 minutes of moderate activity per week, studies show that people who do just 10 to 15 minutes of daily movement experience reduced anxiety and improved mood. The key is consistency, not duration.
Multiple 2-minute movement breaks throughout your day can be just as effective as one 30-minute workout for mental health purposes. For people dealing with depression or anxiety, starting small and building slowly prevents the overwhelm that causes people to quit. At Therapy with Empathy in Ottawa, we help clients find movement strategies that work with their mental health needs, not against them.
There’s no universal “best” time because it depends on your energy patterns. However, many people find that moving in the morning (even for just 5 minutes) sets a positive tone for the day and prevents decision fatigue later. If mornings feel impossible, try a midday movement break when your energy naturally dips after lunch. Walking for even 5 minutes can restore focus and energy.
Avoid waiting until after work when you’re depleted, unless you’ve already removed all activation energy barriers (like keeping shoes by the door or sleeping in workout clothes). The best time to move is whenever you’ll actually do it. Start by noticing when you have even small pockets of energy throughout your day and use those moments for movement.
Short bursts of activity, sometimes called “exercise snacks,” absolutely make a difference. Research shows that accumulating movement throughout the day (like six 2-minute activity breaks) provides similar cardiovascular and mental health benefits to one continuous 12-minute session. In fact, for people with anxiety or depression, shorter movement sessions may be more beneficial because they’re less intimidating and easier to maintain consistently.
The magic is in the frequency, not the duration. When you move multiple times throughout your day, you’re repeatedly resetting your nervous system, breaking up periods of sitting, and interrupting stress response patterns. For busy Ottawa professionals, exercise snacks are often more sustainable than trying to find 30 to 60 minutes for traditional workouts. Therapy with Empathy helps clients develop realistic movement strategies that fit their actual lifestyle.
Stop trying to stay motivated. Motivation is unreliable and exhausting to maintain. Instead, build systems that don’t require motivation. Lower activation energy by making movement stupidly easy (shoes by the door, workout clothes already on). Use habit stacking to attach movement to things you already do without thinking. Try exercise snacks that are so short (1 to 2 minutes) that you can’t talk yourself out of them. Also, reframe “exercise” as “movement.” Exercise implies effort, achievement, and performance. Movement is neutral.
You’re not trying to burn calories or build muscle. Instead, you’re just helping your nervous system regulate. This removes the pressure and shame that make traditional exercise feel unbearable. If you consistently hate movement of any kind, that might signal burnout or depression. Therapy can help address the underlying issues that make self-care feel impossible.
For Ottawa Professionals: Support Beyond Fitness Advice
Struggling to stay active is often connected to bigger issues like burnout, anxiety, or depression. When your mental health is struggling, everything feels harder, including taking care of your body.
At Therapy with Empathy in Westboro, Ottawa, we work with busy professionals who are exhausted, overwhelmed, and stuck. We help clients understand why self-care feels impossible and develop strategies that actually fit their real lives.
Using approaches like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Internal Family Systems (IFS), we address the mental barriers that keep you from taking care of yourself. Because sometimes the issue isn’t about fitness at all. Instead, it’s about stress, perfectionism, or nervous system dysregulation.
If you’re struggling to take care of yourself, therapy can help. Book a free consultation or call our Westboro office to get started.