Rebelling against exercise
KBmoments
Posts: 193 Member
I've been working out as long as I can remember...and not really for fun - just because I felt I had to, to maintain or lose weight... I honestly hated it, but did it anyway. Now that I truly understand CICO, I have been dialing back intense workouts and focus on eating at a deficit. I actually never want to workout now - almost like I am rebelling against it b/c I've hated it for all these years. Now, my workouts are walking during lunch or maybe 15-20 minutes on the elliptical. It's all that I care to do now, but still am losing weight..and happier! Anyone else like this? Or finding that lower intensity workouts- like just walking with some toning routines- are still giving you good results? Hopefully I'm on the right path...
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Hey, it's working! That's the most important opinion.
Me, my revelation is the best exercise is doing whatever I love. You will only find me on the treadmill if it is a run day and it's -30C or hailing outside. And I'll NEVER attend a SPIN class. I've found activities that I love to do, so it's sustainable and un-hated.0 -
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If you are happy and getting results then win win, but people would have told you that before. Exercise is also for health. Maybe you should have stopped letting it be torture by finding soemthing you enjoy. Anyway you seem to gave found a happy place now.0
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As long as you are doing some exercise you will be fine. You are still losing weight so don't worry about it!0
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Rule number one in fitness is finding things you enjoy to do. If it feels like a punishment or a chore you wont want to stick with it.
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This. Last time I lost a significant amount of weight, I overestimated how much exercise would help me lose weight. I was working out 2 hours or more 6 days per week. It was practically a second job and I didn't really enjoy it. This time, I'm much more relaxed and not killing myself in the gym AND I insist on only doing activities I enjoy. Makes life so much happier!0
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I've been working out as long as I can remember...and not really for fun - just because I felt I had to, to maintain or lose weight... I honestly hated it, but did it anyway. Now that I truly understand CICO, I have been dialing back intense workouts and focus on eating at a deficit. I actually never want to workout now - almost like I am rebelling against it b/c I've hated it for all these years. Now, my workouts are walking during lunch or maybe 15-20 minutes on the elliptical. It's all that I care to do now, but still am losing weight..and happier! Anyone else like this? Or finding that lower intensity workouts- like just walking with some toning routines- are still giving you good results? Hopefully I'm on the right path...
I lost the weight with NO exercise at all, just ate at a calorie deficit. I became interested in exercise as I started transitioning into maintenance but it progressed naturally and I've never forced it. I also go through periods where I don't feel like doing any, so I don't. I've been successfully maintaining for two years now, still focusing on CICO
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Yes, you can do that. The key to losing weight is to eat at a deficit.
I'm sorry to hear you don't enjoy the activities you chose.
The key to a healthy and probably longer life is exercise and becoming physically active. Research shows, that virtually any chronic condition is improved by developing a habit of movement. Usually the answer is in finding things to do that you like.
For example, I'm not a big fan of working out in the gym by myself, so I do mostly fitness classes because I like the social atmosphere. On the other hand, I do like riding my bike alone, so I use it for transportation (which also saves me money) and if I go on a group ride, I usually spend part of the time riding by myself - fast.
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I have the same sort of attitude towards exercise (It's a pain, I don't really need it) but that actually sort of keeps me going. Before, when I thought the only way to lose was to bust my hump in the gym, it just made me not want to bother. Now that I can take it or leave it by focusing more on my intake, I don't feel like I'm a slave to it anymore, so it doesn't seem like such a chore.0
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PaulaWallaDingDong wrote: »I have the same sort of attitude towards exercise (It's a pain, I don't really need it) but that actually sort of keeps me going. Before, when I thought the only way to lose was to bust my hump in the gym, it just made me not want to bother. Now that I can take it or leave it by focusing more on my intake, I don't feel like I'm a slave to it anymore, so it doesn't seem like such a chore.
Very true!!0 -
I took a bit of a break from it recently. Had a bunch of bad things happen, then I got a dog and he took up a lot of my time. It was nice not to work out for a few weeks, and I think I felt so relieved because I was just over doing it before. Now I take the dog on a walk or two every day, and am starting to lift weights again. I think I'm just going to lift twice a week through the summer, and that will help me to enjoy it again. Every other day became too much.0
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Sarasmaintaining wrote: »I've been working out as long as I can remember...and not really for fun - just because I felt I had to, to maintain or lose weight... I honestly hated it, but did it anyway. Now that I truly understand CICO, I have been dialing back intense workouts and focus on eating at a deficit. I actually never want to workout now - almost like I am rebelling against it b/c I've hated it for all these years. Now, my workouts are walking during lunch or maybe 15-20 minutes on the elliptical. It's all that I care to do now, but still am losing weight..and happier! Anyone else like this? Or finding that lower intensity workouts- like just walking with some toning routines- are still giving you good results? Hopefully I'm on the right path...
I lost the weight with NO exercise at all, just ate at a calorie deficit. I became interested in exercise as I started transitioning into maintenance but it progressed naturally and I've never forced it. I also go through periods where I don't feel like doing any, so I don't. I've been successfully maintaining for two years now, still focusing on CICO
That is really good to hear 0 -
Hey, it's working! That's the most important opinion.
Me, my revelation is the best exercise is doing whatever I love. You will only find me on the treadmill if it is a run day and it's -30C or hailing outside. And I'll NEVER attend a SPIN class. I've found activities that I love to do, so it's sustainable and un-hated.
Yes, finding activities that are enjoyable I think are key, too... It's just hard when every other article you see is "burn belly fat by HIIT" or "Only lift heavy for results" or whatever workout is trendy at the moment. It gets me confused and makes me question whether walking or whatever activity I choose is enough! So annoying...
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stevesample76 wrote: »Rule number one in fitness is finding things you enjoy to do. If it feels like a punishment or a chore you wont want to stick with it.
I so agree with this.
I do find that exercising makes it easier for me to stick with any fitness plan--I just tend to eat better when I'm exercising and care more--but that only works if I generally enjoy the exercise and it doesn't feel like a huge burden but instead something that makes my life better.
I realized this over the winter when I was struggling to run on the treadmill because I'd planned to do a half marathon in mid March to force myself to run over the winter. I wasn't having fun (I love running, hate the treadmill) and was missing out on the exercise I was really enjoying and interested in doing. I ended up just giving myself permission to do the fun stuff I wanted to do and kind of half-a**** the half marathon, which I wasn't really adequately trained for, although it turned out to be fun anyway.
That said, I'd wait til you are feeling less burnt out and then maybe think whether there are some fun activities you'd like to add to those you are doing now.0 -
stevesample76 wrote: »Rule number one in fitness is finding things you enjoy to do. If it feels like a punishment or a chore you wont want to stick with it.
Truth. There are a lot of things you'll never find me doing simply because I just don't like them. HIIT is not my thing. I do intervals, but that stuff? Not me.
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What is your rate of loss without working out to compared to adding exercise?0
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Yep. I still lift, because that's my life. But I haven't put on a pair of real sneakers in 6-7 weeks. Cardio is the poops.0
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What is your rate of loss without working out to compared to adding exercise?
Last year when I hired a PT and had a structured workout plan, I actually ended up gaining weight and fat % (3 months)! I didn't understand about calories.. didn't know my TDEE, etc... I was only trying to eat clean..(oh so misinformed!!) .. so, the past 6 months or so, I just focused on eating a deficit and have lost almost 9 lbs.
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insearchofcheese wrote: »This. Last time I lost a significant amount of weight, I overestimated how much exercise would help me lose weight. I was working out 2 hours or more 6 days per week. It was practically a second job and I didn't really enjoy it. This time, I'm much more relaxed and not killing myself in the gym AND I insist on only doing activities I enjoy. Makes life so much happier!
That's awesome!
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No, I am exactly the opposite. I love to move.
Get off the elliptical and find something more productive and interesting to do. Weight loss aside, you need to be active for a larger portion of your day just for general health. 15-20 minutes does not cut it.0 -
azulvioleta6 wrote: »No, I am exactly the opposite. I love to move.
Get off the elliptical and find something more productive and interesting to do. Weight loss aside, you need to be active for a larger portion of your day just for general health. 15-20 minutes does not cut it.
I'm glad you're not talking to me.0 -
azulvioleta6 wrote: »No, I am exactly the opposite. I love to move.
Get off the elliptical and find something more productive and interesting to do. Weight loss aside, you need to be active for a larger portion of your day just for general health. 15-20 minutes does not cut it.
Yes, it's important to interact frequently with gravity throughout the day.
The OP is also walking during lunch.
I get up and down all the time throughout my workday.
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I've eaten at a deficit and only walked for exercise for many months before. Obviously it works for weight loss and if your only goal is weight loss, then it's fine. However, I wanted to improve my muscle definition as I lost weight, otherwise you end up looking pencil thin. In hindsight, it would have been better to do strength exercises while eating low calories, but still with a high percentage of protein. Then you will have some sort of muscle tone later instead of just being a smaller version of your current self.0
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azulvioleta6 wrote: »No, I am exactly the opposite. I love to move.
Get off the elliptical and find something more productive and interesting to do. Weight loss aside, you need to be active for a larger portion of your day just for general health. 15-20 minutes does not cut it.
For you maybe, but that's not true for everyone. I just got done with 15 minutes of playground body-weight strength training exercises, and that's all I've done today besides my normal day to day stuff. Tomorrow I'll walk for 2 miles, which takes around 20 minutes. That's plenty of extra activity for me and I'm in fantastic health
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I only like exercise if it feels like play - hence hiking, kettlebells (especially ones with faces), jump rope. I go back & forth between liking running & hating it - running in the snow is fun or on a shady trail. Everything else makes me stabby.0
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I am very reluctantly taking it easier with exercise. I miss higher intensity stuff a lot for a bunch of reasons. I'd rather eat a lot and work out a lot, but it's out for now. Changes are coming going slowly because I used to rely on workouts for a burn, and I haven't (until now) adjusted my eating. Also I can't lift, either. We'll see what happens with my very modified routine and a different way of eating.0
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But it's good that you're feeling happy about what you're doing and where you're going with it. That's really the main thing.0
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I've eaten at a deficit and only walked for exercise for many months before. Obviously it works for weight loss and if your only goal is weight loss, then it's fine. However, I wanted to improve my muscle definition as I lost weight, otherwise you end up looking pencil thin. In hindsight, it would have been better to do strength exercises while eating low calories, but still with a high percentage of protein. Then you will have some sort of muscle tone later instead of just being a smaller version of your current self.
Thanks for your advice; I am trying to add in more weight bearing exercises for this reason, too!
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azulvioleta6 wrote: »No, I am exactly the opposite. I love to move.
Get off the elliptical and find something more productive and interesting to do. Weight loss aside, you need to be active for a larger portion of your day just for general health. 15-20 minutes does not cut it.
I'm not saying I don't like to move...just not long amounts of time spent begrudgingly at the gym. I do take 30-45 minute walks during lunch at least 3 times a week and sprinkle in the elliptical about the same. I'm just taking an easier approach to exercise (not cutting it out completely) and seeing if anyone else had good results doing so.0
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