5 Tips on How to Exercise With ADHD |
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Exercise helps with ADHD symptoms.
Exercising with ADHD may be challenging.
Not everyone is ready to start a gym journey right now.
Numerous studies have demonstrated that regular physical activity and exercise can help alleviate attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms, make them more manageable, and enhance overall quality of life. The issue is that many people with ADHD find that the act of exercising is a challenging endeavor. Between the distraction, difficulty getting started on tasks, and sensory issues that may arise through gym music and sweat, moving one's body can be riddled with obstacles. So here are a few things that can make exercising easier to achieve, but most importantly, easier to maintain.
1. The Process Is the Goal
Individuals with ADHD tend to have a decreased activation of dopamine networks when it comes to delayed reward. That means that we can't go ahead and go to the gym with the idea in mind that we will achieve the perfect body. On one hand, motivation based on results eventually fades, even in non-ADHD brains, but we have an additional challenge that when we don't see results within the first couple of weeks, we get unmotivated. What helps is to change the goalpost. The goal is the process. That means that success is achieved when you get to the gym, or to the dance studio, or to whatever you choose to do as your physical movement activity. You don't have to achieve a number of repetitions, or weights, or a result in particular; the goal is just to get there. In my early days at the gym, I would tell myself that even just going was enough, and if when I got there I just took one Gatorade and headed home, that was fine. But what happened is that every time I got to the gym, I ended up working out, because deep down, that's what I wanted to do.
2. Do Something You Enjoy
Exercise can look different for many people. I found my happiness at the gym lifting weights, but others run, climb, ski, or dance. Any physical activity is beneficial for ADHD; the form it takes is less important, but you're a lot more likely to stick to your routine if, when you go, you're happy about what you do. If it is an effort and every day it feels like a battle with your brain, eventually it's bound to fail. So make life easier for yourself, and go through the path of least resistance.
Body doubling is arguably one of the most effective accommodations for people with ADHD, and exercise is no exception to this rule. Studies show that couples who exercise together are 600 percent more likely to stick to their goals, and that training with a gym buddy improves results and adherence. With ADHD, it's no different, and it's easier to share the burden of motivation than carrying the dumbbell alone to Mordor.
4. Exercise With Music
Studies show that music helps people with ADHD attain a state of flow more easily. Going to the gym, listening to your favorite tunes, whether it's video game music or heavy metal, can help filter out distractions and boost your motivation.
5. You Don't Have to Do Everything at Once
It may be tempting to optimize everything and deep dive into the literature of creatine and muscle growth, but with ADHD, the best is to tackle one challenge at a time. Attain some stability before moving on to the next step. The truth is that for many people with ADHD, the alternative to training without optimization is not training at all because it all feels so overwhelming. So start small. One small step is better than none. Even just 60 seconds of exercise a day is better than zero. Even the best athletes started somewhere, so wherever your starting point is, progress just means showing up one more day.
Bonus: Get an ADHD-Friendly Coach
When I first started my gym journey, I was overwhelmed by the number of machines and exercises. Everyone on the internet seemed to have an opinion on what I was supposed to be doing with my glutes. So, I hired a coach who tailored routines to how I wanted to exercise. I changed things up regularly to avoid boredom, had sessions with my trainer to improve consistency, and had someone show me the correct positions and exercises so that I didn't hurt myself. Thanks to my coach and to these tips, I still exercise to this day; it became a part of my routine and my identity, and I never felt better with my ADHD brain.
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As a parting note: Not everyone is ready right now to start on that journey. I didn't start to exercise until after my Ph.D., because I didn't have the space for it before, and that's OK. Not everyone is in a place to start the journey, but whenever this post finds you, know that you now have some easy tips that can help you along.
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Achuthan K, Khobragade S. The role of music in ADHD: A multi-dimensional computational and theoretical analysis. PLoS One. 2025 Aug 1;20(8):e0324369. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0324369. PMID: 40748879; PMCID: PMC12316199.
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