Ugh, I just want this journey to be over already

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augustremulous
augustremulous Posts: 378 Member
in Motivation and Support
It's such a sunny day and there are so many things I want to do, but I just don't possess the physical fitness to do these things.

When I started this journey in March I scheduled a weeklong solo camping/hiking trip in the summer as reward for my efforts. I bought a tent and outdoorsy equipment, and even pre rented a car. My plan was to take my dog down to Big South Fork and rent a horse and just chill out. I know I can still do some version of this, but to be honest I still huff and puff up the stairs to my fourth floor walk up and I can't imagine hiking uphill all day with my dog.

I know the journey is long and slow but I'm getting discouraged. My goal is to lose 75 pounds. I didn't expect to get anywhere close to that of course, but I did expect to feel much healthier and stronger than I do now.
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Replies

  • capaul42
    capaul42 Posts: 1,390 Member
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    You'll get there. Don't let your mind convince you otherwise. I know it took years for me to get this out of shape and that I won't get where I want to be in a few months. I remind myself of that everytime I feel down about my progress.
  • RoxieDawn
    RoxieDawn Posts: 15,488 Member
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    I am sure that everyone has heard, slow and steady wins the race? And the saying patience is your friend?

    You will definitely get there. I could barely walk around my block without gasping. Then I could barely walk the entire .98 mile stretch around my neighborhood. This was two years ago. I run now and I run a lot.

    I thought it would take forever and a day, but every time I went outside, I got better and better and better. I never imagined in my wildest thoughts that I would do what I do now.

    Your journey is just that! It is a life time life long journey. It takes time, diligence, patience and commitment. If you have all four of those things, nothing will stop you from success.
  • augustremulous
    augustremulous Posts: 378 Member
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    @Kerryatoon Whoa, I didn't say I had expected to lose 75 pounds in two months. You read that completely wrong. I said that I expected to be feeling healthier and having more energy by now.

    Thank you all for all the encouraging words.


  • astrampe
    astrampe Posts: 2,169 Member
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    How much are you eating? If you eat too little, you won't have any energy...What do you do for a workout? Again, eating too little might cause too little energy to do anything worthwhile.... Which will make you give up, and cause you to not be able to put the work in that is required to reach your fitness goals.....
  • dragon_girl26
    dragon_girl26 Posts: 2,187 Member
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    OP, just curious...rather than focusing on the things you wish you could do..are there things you have noticed you can do now that you weren't able to do two months ago?
  • brb_2013
    brb_2013 Posts: 1,197 Member
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    Well, if you're not where you want to be, what are you doing to get there? What sort of exercise are you doing to improve your fitness?

    I feel significantly stronger and healthier after just two months of dedication, and I only do about 2 hours of exercise a week. It's leaps and bounds more than I did before and I know by end of summer I could hike a mountain.
  • rankinsect
    rankinsect Posts: 2,238 Member
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    brb_2013 wrote: »
    Well, if you're not where you want to be, what are you doing to get there? What sort of exercise are you doing to improve your fitness?

    I feel significantly stronger and healthier after just two months of dedication, and I only do about 2 hours of exercise a week. It's leaps and bounds more than I did before and I know by end of summer I could hike a mountain.

    I actually was going to post exactly the same two questions.

    Losing weight is great for your overall health, but all the weight loss in the world won't make you physically fit. There are plenty of skinny people who aren't very fit either. To an extent weight loss helps your relative fitness because you have to move less body weight around, but the main thing to build fitness is a training plan.

    If you want to get good at hiking, go hiking a lot. When you can't, do things that will help you when you do hike - for example, endurance cardio, or intervals if you want to be better able to handle things like tough climbs.

    I definitely noticed physical fitness gains within 2 months, but I also planned my workouts so that I would get those gains.
  • Jackie_Paper
    Jackie_Paper Posts: 183 Member
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    :# unfortunately, it's never "over" even if you think it is...and if you start to act like it is you'll end up right back where you started, years later, and really mad at yourself. (i learnd the hard way. :c ) but keep up your work in the right direction!
  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,182 Member
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    Yep. I use a treadmill 5 days most weeks for 2.5 hours and I deliberately increase the speed of the program monthly just so that I can increase the challenge as the fitness presumably improves.
  • kjurassic
    kjurassic Posts: 571 Member
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    It took me a year and a half to lose 95 lbs. Patience.....patience....patience.....
  • vingogly
    vingogly Posts: 1,785 Member
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    March? That's only two months ago. I've been at this for a couple of years, and have lost almost 80 lbs so it *does* work. If you keep plugging away and forget about what the calendar says, a year from now you'll be amazed at how far you've gone!
  • bellabonbons
    bellabonbons Posts: 705 Member
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    Not a short term diet. A lifelong lifestyle change.
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,464 Member
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    Sometimes we need to readjust our expectations to reality. I accomplished some goals much faster than I expected while others take longer. Thus is one reason I like to have multiple goals in weight liss, fitness, nutrition, etc. That way, I have success in several areas all the time, but not necessarily ALL areas.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,215 Member
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    augustremulous wrote: »
    @Kerryatoon Whoa, I didn't say I had expected to lose 75 pounds in two months. You read that completely wrong. I said that I expected to be feeling healthier and having more energy by now.

    Thank you all for all the encouraging words.

    But it is only a couple months.

    I have lost 55 lbs and am pretty much finished, but it took me 4 months to lose the first 33 lbs and that whole 4 months before I started to feel more energetic.

    But meanwhile I gradually increased the number of flights of stairs I was climbing each day, the amount of walking I was doing, and the amount of cycling I was doing.

    You say you're still huffing and puffing up 4 flights of stairs ... well, start doing that twice a day. In another month or so, start doing that three times a day. In another month or so, start doing that four times a day.

    Find some local hikes and start doing them on weekends. You might start with some that are only 1 or 2 km and relatively flat, but after a few weeks take on something longer or more challenging.

    Just keep pushing.

    But you probably won't notice much of a difference for at least another couple or three months yet ... and then, all of a sudden one day you will.

  • EvgeniZyntx
    EvgeniZyntx Posts: 24,208 Member
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    When the journey is over we are dead. Enjoy the journey.
  • augustremulous
    augustremulous Posts: 378 Member
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    Thanks all for the encouraging words. I needed it.

    The stairs I climb each day is pretty varied. I live on a fourth floor walk up, and go up and down several times a day, often carrying stuff.

    I think what's really getting me down is that I'm socially isolating myself. I'm really afraid of social situations where I might be "exposed" for being in the terrible shape I'm in. I mean it's not surprising given my size, but it's super embarrassing to have a friend over and have her/him walk up my own stairs with me - the same stairs I climb multiple times a day - and I'm avoiding conversation or excusing myself to the bathroom or to get water because I don't want them to see me breathing hard.

    And it's not just the stairs. It's picnics, casual walks with friends, dancing, etc. I walk around feeling like I might be exposed. I'm afraid of being spontaneous.

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