It absolutely can. I used to be pretty overweight. And I, too, had 17 appointments and 200 emails a day. So naturally, my excuse for not hitting the gym every day was, "I don't have time". I've heard that same excuse a thousand times from a thousand people. I went on a run every couple of weeks to make myself feel like I had done my fitness duty, but that was the most I ever did.
And then one day I took the plunge, I accidentally woke up early and decided to go to the gym (my family had a membership). I didn't even know what to do, really. I jogged on a treadmill for a bit, jostled around on a few weight machines, did a few dumbbell curls. I felt like a dumbass who didn't belong there. And I was sleepy. It sucked.
But then I woke up an hour and a half early the next morning and I did it again. And again. Every fucking day. It eventually started sucking less and less.
Two weeks later I had streamlined my gym visit (waking up -> changing -> pre-workout drink -> drive to gym -> workout -> home -> shower -> protein -> work) to 65 minutes and change. And I felt (and actually looked) better than I had in years.
Three years later, and my workout is now an immutable part of my day. It's on my calendar, whether I'm working or on vacation. In town or overseas. And nobody fucks with those 65 minutes that I never had time for back in the day.