Why Your Gym Plans Don't Work Out

Scott LaFee
Tue, 10 Feb 2026 21:00:00 -0800
Lifestyle

University of Michigan researchers have an idea why so many people who make ambitious plans and goals regarding physical fitness ultimately give up on them — more specifically, why planned daily exercise doesn't happen.

Blame it on an all-or-nothing mindset, said behavioral scientist Michelle Segar, who, with colleagues, just published data on four different age groups of adults who tried to exercise but couldn't stick with it.

"Exercise-related all-or-nothing thinking occurs when a specific exercise plan becomes unworkable," Segar said. "At this moment, when people cannot perfectly adhere to their plan (the 'all'), they choose not to exercise at all rather than modify the plan."
Updated: Wed Feb 11, 2026

University of Michigan researchers have an idea why so many people who make ambitious plans and goals regarding physical fitness ultimately give up on them — more specifically, why planned daily exercise doesn't happen.

Blame it on an all-or-nothing mindset, said behavioral scientist Michelle Segar, who, with colleagues, just published data on four different age groups of adults who tried to exercise but couldn't stick with it.

"Exercise-related all-or-nothing thinking occurs when a specific exercise plan becomes unworkable," Segar said. "At this moment, when people cannot perfectly adhere to their plan (the 'all'), they choose not to exercise at all rather than modify the plan."

The all-or-nothing approach consists of four components:

— Rigid criteria for what constitutes sufficient exercise

— A tendency to find excuses, such as "exercising hurts" or is "too hard"

— A belief that exercise is expendable compared to other daily priorities

— An inability to see immediate, positive effects from exercising

"Most people are tired and overwhelmed," said Segar, "so in the moment of decision, the immediate costs of exercising feel much bigger than the benefits, making it a low-value choice. This makes doing 'nothing' a prudent choice and desirable exit strategy.

"Decisions to not exercise are often made outside of awareness — so people are likely unaware that choosing to forgo their exercise plans could be related to having an all-or-nothing mindset."

Body of Knowledge

Everyone dreams multiple times per night, typically four to seven dreams totaling one to two hours, mostly during REM sleep. People who claim to not dream are simply not remembering them since more than 90% of dreams are forgotten by morning.

Though the purpose of dreaming isn't definitively known, researchers have linked it to memory consolidation, strengthening of neural connections, emotional processing (especially negative) and creative problem-solving.

Get Me That, Stat!

Approximately 15 billion to 17 billion cigarettes are smoked daily worldwide. Consumption rates vary by region. Nauru, a tiny island nation in Micronesia, Oceania, has the largest share of smokers at 46.7%; Nigeria has the smallest at 2.8%. The percentage for the U.S. is 23.6%, according to World Population Review.

Doc Talk

Pandiculation: The act of stretching, often accompanied by a yawn. It is often involuntary, a way for the body to release muscle tension and "wake up" the nervous system after inactivity or sleep.

Mania of the Week

Gamomania: A now-obsolete or rare term for an obsession to be married or to make marriage proposals. The Guinness World Records record for the highest number of marriages in the male category is 29; in the female category, 23. Perhaps coincidentally, the female recordholder was married to the male recordholder at the time of his death. (It was her last marriage too.)

Food for Thought

Polydimethylsiloxane is a silicone-based anti-foaming agent commonly used in soft rubbers, cosmetics, electronics, lubricants and medical devices due to its thermal stability and biocompatibility. It's also added in small amounts to cooking oils, soups and beverages to prevent oil platters and foam.

Best Medicine

Patient: "Doctor, you've got to help me. I can't stop thinking I'm a goat."

Doctor: "How long have you have this problem?"

Patient: "Ever since I was a kid."

Observation

"In 1969, I gave up women and alcohol. It was the worst 20 minutes of my life." — Northern Irish soccer player George Best (1946-2005), who was celebrated/notorious for his play, on and off the pitch

Medical History

This week in 1902, French surgeon Eugene-Louis Doyen of Paris performed a successful operation on 14-year-old Indian female twins Radhika and Dudhika, who were conjoined at the chest. The effort was made to save the life of Radhika because her sister was severely ill.

The operation, deemed by some to be the first of its type, was technically successful, but Dudhika died a week later from an embolism in the pulmonary artery and a pus-filled abdomen caused by a perforated tuberculosis-infected appendix. Radhika recovered and lived another 21 months before succumbing to tuberculosis. Doyen was among the first physicians to document medical surgeries on film.

Self-Exam

Place these terms in order, from top to bottom on the human body: kibe, philtrum, thrapple, oxter and popliteal space.

Answer: The philtrum is the vertical groove connecting the bottom of the nose to the median line of the upper lip. Thrapple refers to the throat or windpipe. (The term may be a Middle English contraction of "throat ball," a word for Adam's apple.) Oxter is the hollow beneath the junction of the arm and shoulder, i.e., the armpit. Popliteal space is the lozenge-shaped space at the back of the knee joint. Kibe can simply refer to the heel, more specifically to cracked or swollen sores caused by exposure to cold, especially on the heel. These sores are also known as ulcerated chilblains.

Last Words

"Will somebody please get this f—ing cat off my chest!" — Puerto Rican novelist Filencio Salmon (1932-1996) on his deathbed