3 Simple Rules For Exercising with ADHD

What is Executive Function?

One of the differences people with ADHD often have is a debilitating issue with executive function.

I first became aware of my own ADHD when I noticed the difference between my son and my daughter.

I could ask my daughter to clean her room and she could handle it without being told that cleaning her room involved making her bed, putting away her clothes, picking toys off the floor, and emptying the trash can. My son would stare blankly, puzzled where to start. And it wasn’t that he was lazy. He can put in hours of hard work when he wants to.

It’s not laziness

I came to understand that he didn’t have the ability to break down “clean your room” into steps and then execute on that plan. In other words, he has debilitating executive function issues. So I started giving him a written plan for cleaning his room. Now he keeps his room spotless. But in working with him, I remembered that I, myself, had been diagnosed with ADHD as a teenager.

No one treated it or gave me special accommodations for it. I completely forgot until I had my own kids.

So, for the past several years I’ve been dealing with a child with ADHD. But I’ve also been dealing as a parent who has ADHD. Because of my executive function issues, consistency is incredibly difficult for me. Yet as of today I’ve exercised 492 days in a row, which is the most consistent I’ve ever been with anything in my life.

Here are my 3 simple rules that helped me come up a plan that works for me:

• Find exercise you enjoy
• Track small goals daily
• Simplify

Find things you enjoy

This is the most important. I’ve come to realize that I enjoy Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, walking, and yoga. In that order. So those are the forms of exercise I engage in. When I was younger I used to think “I should run” or “I should lift weights.” But the truth is I hate running. And I hate lifting weights. And life is too short to use my limited supply of will power forcing myself to do things I hate.

Side Note: I won’t claim that everyone who does BJJ has ADHD. But the Venn diagram of people who do BJJ who also seem to have ADHD has a lot of overlap. If you have ADHD and you haven’t tried BJJ yet, there’s a high probability you will like it. Or rock climbing. Anything with constant small puzzles to be solved.

Track easy small tasks daily

With ADHD tasks often seem overwhelming.

Since getting started is often overwhelming, I find it best to have small, easy goals and to check it off a list.

For example, I really want to walk at least 5 miles a day. Intellectually I know my body and mood are much better when I walk a lot. (And walking helps me recover from BJJ). But I know from experience that I can’t maintain big goals for long periods of time. So my goal is simply “walk 5 minutes.” Often when I start for 5 minutes I find I can go much longer. But if I think “I’m going for a half hour walk,” I find ways to put it off. However, I know that I can make myself do anything for 5 minutes, so that’s what I focus on.

Another trick my ADHD plays on me: it likes to tell me “you can do it tomorrow.” All the plans I’ve tried that involved exercising 4 days a week eventually fail. My ADHD tells me I don’t need to do it on Monday, I can do it on Tuesday. When Tuesday comes it tells me technically, I still have one more skip day in the week and I can do it Wednesday. Then Thursday comes around and I give up because the week is ruined.

So I make sure the tasks I do are ones I can do daily. No skipping, but no need for rest days because they are small tasks.

I’ve found that tracking my progress with the Everyday app is what works for me. Because it’s simple.

Edit: here’s what it looks like for me. All easy stuff I enjoy doing for a few minutes a day. I enjoy doing it and I enjoy checking it off. But if 5 seems like too much, start with 1 task. It can be as dumb as “make coffee” or “eat breakfast”. Absolutely don’t let it become a chore. You need to think “prime the pump for productivity to flow” not “oh geez, another complicated set of things to do.”

I’ve found for me, 5 items is my maximum. When I add a sixth I start to have problems.

But I’ve also spent enough time on ADHD forums to know that each of us is different. You may find a different tracking system that works for you.

Keep it simple

In line with “small daily tasks” is the tasks have to be simple. With executive function issues, we often find ourselves struggling even with things we love because there are too many steps involved and we feel overwhelmed.

So by simplify, I mean “eliminate steps.” I love Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Once I get on the mat I can literally stay all day. I usually leave only after everyone else has gone and there is no one left to train with. But a few years ago, I was finding myself avoiding BJJ class. I was only making it to class once every month or two. Why would I avoid something I love?

I didn’t realize the problem until after it was solved. When COVID hit I took a break from training. When restrictions lifted, I decided to try a different gym. One that was 5 minutes away from me. And now I’m back to training 5 days a week.

What happened? It was only in retrospect that I realized it wasn’t BJJ I was avoiding. It was all the steps involved with making it to and from BJJ, especially the commute. I did not like sitting in traffic for 45 minutes to train, to then drive home sweaty and exhausted for 30 minutes after rush hour, knowing that I had to shower and do laundry once I got home.

My current gym is closer. My current gym has a shower. I can show up. Train. Shower. Go home. The number of steps involved and the amount of time to execute those steps have shrunk and I’m a lot more likely to do it.

With my executive function issues, when I was avoiding training I wasn’t able to break it down to analyze why I wasn’t going. I only knew that I wasn’t going.

This is one reason I built MzFit. I realized one reason I wasn’t doing yoga every day was because there were too many steps for me.

• launch YouTube.
• search for a yoga workout.
• well, ok, i found Yoga with Adriene, and it’s a 30 minute workout I’ve already done.
• search again but now it’s showing me BJJ videos instead of yoga videos.
• search again but I think I did that video and why is it showing me 15 minute yoga videos when I want 5 minute videos.
• etc.

I built MzFit so I could launch an app and immediately see my favorite channels, with new workouts, in the duration I wanted (usually 5 minutes) without having to put in mental effort. So in addition to walking every day, I also have a nearly 500 day streak doing yoga. Most days it’s only 5 minutes of yoga. But sometimes once I get started it feels so good I do more. And it also helps with my recovery for BJJ: the things I spend time doing knock down the barriers for doing the other things I enjoy doing.

Conclusion: Start Small, Keep It Simple

If you have ADHD, please work with your doctor to come up with the right plan for you. If you suspect you have ADHD, see a professional.

That being said, my experience with my own ADHD is that I suspect most of us can accomplish a lot more than we think we can, whether it’s exercise, chores, or just basic life skills, just by following my 3 guidelines:

• Find things you enjoy
• Track small daily habits
• Keep it simple

But also remember that most of us with ADHD tend to be different each in our own way. You’ll have to try different things to see what works for you.

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