ADHD & Exercise (Part 2): How to Build a Movement Habit That Actually Works

This is Part 2 of my series on ADHD and movement. If you missed Part 1, don’t worry — you can jump right in here.

If you’re reading this, chances are you’ve tried the whole “just go to the gym three times a week” thing before. Maybe you’ve downloaded fitness apps, bought workout gear, or signed up for classes with the best intentions. And maybe, like so many of us with ADHD, those plans didn’t quite stick.

Here’s the thing: adulting is hard, movement doesn’t always feel accessible, and your brain might be saying “HA, nope” to even the best-laid fitness plans. But that doesn’t mean you’re doomed to never get into an exercise habit, it just means you need a different approach.

Today we’re diving into how to pick movement that actually works for you, how to build it into your real life (not your fantasy life), and how to track progress without the guilt spiral when you miss a day.

1. Decide What Kind of Movement You Actually Want to Do

This might sound obvious, but so many of us start with what we think we’re supposed to do. Running. Weightlifting. Yoga. Whatever your friend is obsessing over this week.

But your movement practice isn’t going to stick if you hate doing it.

Ask yourself:

• What kinds of movement feel good in your body?
• What have you enjoyed in the past, even if you were inconsistent?
• Do you want it to be quiet and grounding? High-energy and sweaty? Fun and weird?

You don’t have to pick the thing you’ll do forever. Just pick something you’re curious to try right now.

Not sure? Make a short list and go speed-dating with movement. Try a few things for 5 minutes each and see which one doesn’t make you want to rage-quit.

2. Figure Out Where It Fits in Your Day

Now that you have a what, you need to find the when. This needs to work with your actual life – not your fantasy life where you magically wake up at 5am to hit the gym.

Consider:

• When do you usually have a little time and energy?
• Can you piggyback this onto something you already do?
• Do you want it to be a midday reset or an evening wind-down?
• What are you doing before/after that might affect your plans? (Will you need a shower for work? Are you coming off a long shift with barely enough energy to drive home?)

Whatever you choose, start small. Test a time and see how it feels. You’re not locked in — you’re just experimenting.

3. Optional Boosters: Making It Stick

If you want to give your new habit a better shot at survival, try these ADHD-friendly supports:

• Use an anchor: Attach it to an existing routine. Like dropping your kid off at school and hitting the gym on your way home — it’s harder to talk yourself out of something when you’re already there and dressed to work out.
• Leave visual cues: Yoga mat on the floor, running shoes by the bed, resistance bands on your desk. Stuff like that.
• Set fun reminders: Whatever makes you smile. Maybe it’s a playlist that gets you pumped, or setting your alarm to your favorite movie quote.

These reduce friction — and with ADHD, friction can kill even our best ideas.

4. Track It from the Start (Even If It’s Messy)

Here’s the part we often skip: tracking progress. Not to be obsessive or shame yourself, but to give your brain a record of what you’ve accomplished.

Because inconsistency is a core ADHD trait and our brains love negative thinking, we forget our wins really fast. Tracking helps you remember that you’ve been doing the thing, even if it wasn’t every day.

Keep it simple:

Progress isn’t about unbroken streaks. It’s about patterns. And creating patterns starts with noticing what’s already happening.

When You Know It Helps … But You Still Don’t Do It

Let’s get real for a second. Even after you’ve chosen your movement, picked your time, set your reminders, and promised yourself a post-walk treat … you still might not do it.

You might avoid it. You might scroll instead. You might suddenly decide that reorganizing your closet is more urgent than that walk you planned.

And part of you is screaming, WHY am I like this?

You wanted to move. You know it helps. And yet … here you are, not doing it.

What’s Really Going On Under the Surface

There are some usual suspects we covered before:

• All-or-Nothing Thinking: “If I can’t do the whole thing perfectly, why bother at all?”
• The Guilt Loop: You’ve skipped a few days, activating the “I suck” script. The worse you feel, the harder it is to restart.
• Emotional Inertia: That heavy, sticky mental quicksand where even thinking about getting up feels impossible. The longer you stay in it, the harder it gets to break out.
• RSD & Self-Worth Issues: Sometimes avoiding movement isn’t about the movement — it’s about how we feel about ourselves. Maybe it’s fear of judgment at the gym, or carrying messages like “You don’t belong here” or “You’ll just quit again anyway.”

Those thoughts? They’re complete garbage. But they’re deeply ingrained for many of us, especially if you’ve spent years internalizing “failure” around self-care.

Why This Matters for ADHD Brains

We don’t always procrastinate because working out is hard. Sometimes we procrastinate because the feeling tied to working out is hard.

The fear of not doing it right. The shame of past inconsistency. The vulnerability of showing up for ourselves when we’ve spent so long criticizing that version of us.

This is emotional dysregulation in disguise. And we can’t “productivity hack” our way out of it — we have to care our way through it.

What Actually Helps

1. Recognize It (Out Loud)

Name what’s really happening:

• “I’m avoiding this because I’m afraid I’ll let myself down again.”
• “I’m not lazy — I’m carrying shame.”
• “I want to move, but my nervous system is stuck in low gear.”

Just naming what’s real can defuse the emotional landmine.

2. Shrink It Down (Again)

Even if you planned a full 30-minute workout, ask yourself: “What’s the smallest version of this I’m willing to do right now?”

Maybe it’s:

• One stretch
• A walk to the mailbox
• One squat or wall push-up

If that’s all you do, you still win. You broke the inertia.

Here’s some borrowed physics wisdom: an object at rest stays at rest, but an object in motion stays in motion. If we start moving — no matter how small — we’re so much more likely to keep moving, at least for a bit.

I don’t care if you stood up, turned in a circle, and sat back down. That wasn’t just tiny movement — it was tiny intentional movement. Everything in you was trying to stop you, and you said “screw it, I’m doing something anyway.” That’s incredible.

3. Talk to Yourself Like You Would a Friend

If your best friend said, “Ugh, I didn’t go for my walk today, I’m the worst,” you’d probably respond with: “Stop it. You’re doing your best. Take a breath. You can try again tomorrow.”

Now say that to yourself.

You’re Allowed to Take Care of Yourself

You’re not bad at self-care. You’ve just spent a long time believing it had to look a certain way — structured, perfect, uninterrupted. But ADHD self-care is messy, emotional, nonlinear, and full of restarts.

That doesn’t make it wrong. It makes it human. And it makes your effort matter, even when it doesn’t look like you pictured.

You’re allowed to take care of yourself. You’re allowed to struggle with it. And you’re allowed to keep trying — as many times as it takes — without shame.

You haven’t failed, because failure implies something has ended. Success is an open road, unwinding right in front of you, every moment of every day.

You’re Doing Better Than You Think

If movement has felt complicated, frustrating, inconsistent, or loaded with guilt … I hope this gives you permission to think about it differently.

To try again. To try smaller. To try with less pressure and more curiosity.

ADHD brains don’t do well with perfection. We thrive with progress, patterns, momentum, and wins that feel attainable.

You don’t have to earn the right to feel good in your body. You’re allowed to take care of yourself in the way that works for you.

A Pep Talk for Later

Here’s something you can tell yourself the next time you’re stuck in resistance:

“I don’t have to do everything. I just have to do something. My worth isn’t measured by how consistent I am. Every small step I take is still a step forward. I’m allowed to show up imperfectly. That still counts.”

Stick that on your mirror, your phone lock screen, or wherever your inner critic likes to hang out.

Remember: movement doesn’t have to be perfect to be powerful. Start where you are, with what you have, in whatever way feels manageable today. Your future self will thank you.