Let's face it, managers will always tell you they have no time to sport, they work!
It's very right they work, they have responsibilities and deadlines to respect. It's the call of duty and comes with the job.
However, let's try to put things into perspective.
In 2020 we had a credit of 8.784 hours to spend. I used 499 of those to practice some sport and consider I exercised a lot in 2020. Compared to my available time it's 5.68% of my time walking, hiking or cycling (I do almost nothing else as sport and skiing wasn't possible due to a nasty little virus) leaving me with 94.32% of my time for work, sleep, eat,...
Let me share my favorite tips and tricks to allow you to have a healthy proportion of sport in your busy diaries.
Blend your agenda
I use my corporate Outlook agenda to plan my sports activities too. This way my team sees I reserve time on Sunday morning, Wednesday evening and from 12 to 13 every workday. Sunday and Wednesday it's for cycling and the lunch break is for a 25 minutes walk and 35 minutes lunch. Only customers come first and my make me move my schedule. On occasions, maybe once a month I have to reschedule because there's no other option, but at least everybody knows I prefer to keep those slots for my business/wellness mix.
Adapt your holidays
Whichever holiday we talk about, a short break, or a week off, I always take my bike with me.
My wife loves to read and I can always sneak away for 2 hours to bike in a new surrounding. We once shared a vacation home with two couples of friends and nobody, except for me, was a biker. So I just woke up early in the morning, 6:30 AM, and went biking while all the others were still enjoying their beds. Returning home for breakfast was my only constraint and nobody was annoyed by my biking habits.
Wake up
I need about 7 hours of sleep but can easily do with 5 or 6 once in a while. A great way to bike is to wake up and start your tour while most other humans are still sleeping. A very calm atmosphere with the joys of seeing the sun rise and life emerging during your ride. I also did this before going to work which is a bit more tricky as you need time for breakfast, a shower and to change clothes. I then limited the activity to 1h but it was very rewarding as I had twice the energy of all the other employees on those mornings. A question of discipline!
Be Selective
You can't do it all. Other hobbies may take a lot of time too. Think about golf, 4h on the track, 2h at the bar, some commute and gone is your day! The social and business aspect of any sport can be debated. I speak regularly with my biking companions while we ride. It can be about business and with my HPE outfit I'm sure to advertise well, but it's often about bike stuff or unrelated things. When I golfed I spoke with C-level executives, now that I bike I do too...
Go Green
My last tip is about your car. Just don't use it when it's less than 5 km. Walk or bike and help the planet get greener. On my Strava you will see Bakkery or Laundry or Groceries as tour titles. I could have taken the car but didn't and obviously those km and min count too!
In summary I don't buy the "I don't have time excuse". I understand you don't take time or have other priorities and that's a conscious choice. To optimize my available time for sports I plan for it, optimize my holidays, wake up early, stopped other hobbies and try to leave my car standing when I can. Each time I walk, hike or bike is registered in Strava and you will see that 5% of your time is no big deal!
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