When does exercise get easier?

mgobluetx12

I've been at this for just over two months. I do walking, elliptical and biking 3-5 days a week, but am exhausted after 20 minutes. Well, I can walk longer, but I just tire so fast. I am 41, 6'2 and 261lbs. I usually walk the dog for 25 mins and then do another more challenging form of exercise, but can't get beyond 15-20 mins.

How long does it take to start getting in better shape? Thank you in advance for your help.

KathyApplebaum

It took me around 6 months (and a 30+ pound loss) before I noticed a real improvement in how much time I could do, and about a year (and a 50+ pound loss) before I noticed a definite speed improvement. Some people I know made progress faster, some people make progress slower -- every body is different.

Witchdoctor58

Look to your nutrition. If you aren't eating enough, you won't have energy to make it through the day. Also, make sure you have eaten something an hour or two before, so the carbs are in place to fuel your muscles. If this isn't possible, at least have a small piece of fruit, about 50 cal worth, shortly before the workout, like half a banana. If caffeine doesn't bother you, you can also use a commercial pre workout supplement that will also have simple carbs, amino acids and creative. Read label before trying because ingredients vary.

mgobluetx12

I am eating about 1500 -1600 calories a day. I've tried to eat 1800 and don't lose at that rate. This is my third time on MFP and think my metabolism is messed up from losing and gaining so much.

runlong16

It will take a while, especially for cardio (from my experience). Just put your music on and forget you are even there. I went from throwing up jogging less than a mile to running a half marathon, but it took about a year for me to get used to exercising regularly. Don't give up.

Gallowmere1984

When it gets easier, it's probably time to up the intensity anyway.

DopeItUp

It never gets easier, unless you're mailing in your workouts.

MelissaPhippsFeagins

What @Gallowmere1984 said.

And it depends on your overall health as well. I grew up on a farm, so I had pretty good endurance even when I weighed 225 at 13. I could hike several miles with 10-15 pounds as long as I kept my inhaler handy (asthma is real) even before I lost to 157. Now I can do that with 30-40 pounds and can finish a 5k in roughly 40 minutes. If I liked running enough to practice, I could cut that time, but I don't. I like lifting heavy things, hiking, dancing and walking my dog.
I have family members with heart conditions who will never be able to walk more than 20 minutes. I have others who have fought in Iraq and could go all day every day without stopping to eat more than an MRE. I admire them.

Listen to YOUR body. It's the only one you can use. My guess is six months from now, you'll have seen significant improvement. Best of luck!

worsthorse

here's my advice... first, get a checkup and be sure that you don't have a cardiac problem, high blood pressure, or the like, especially if this is your first go at exercising regularly.

second, without knowing how hard you are working, it is, unfortunately, almost impossible to figure out why you tire so fast. it could be a capacity issue. it could be an endurance issue. it could be your definition of "exhausted" and "tired". to figure that out, get yourself a heart rate monitor and learn how to use it properly. do a little interwebs research or get a book on heart rate training and learn how track how hard you are working by your heart rate and perceived exertion. you'll end up with a structured program of measuring your capacity with a heart rate monitor and gradually increasing what you are able to do.

all that said, if you are training to improve your cardiac capacity and build endurance, you will have easy days but overall exercise never gets "easy" because you train harder as your capacity improves. a personal example: when i started exercising again after a year-long illness that culminated in heart surgery, i couldn't walk for fifteen minutes without needing a nap. my resting heart rate was seventy-five. a little more than two years later, i routinely walk four to seven miles a day and still get in a cardio workout. my resting heart rate now is forty-seven. and i am lazy, so i didn't really do anything more than keep at it, even when it is hard, which is pretty much all the time.

good luck!

Witchdoctor58

You might want to try zigzag dieting, where you switch up number of daily calories. I think you are way too low; at 6'2" your dry weight should be more or less 180 depending upon your frame so you should be at least at 1800 without exercise, just to maintain. I don't know how to attach articles, but look it up, because it can help you break plateaus and more importantly in your case, figure out your optimum calorie intake. You should be eating enough to energize you and keep you satiated. If you eat too little you will crash and your metabolism will go into starvation mode, and hold onto every bit of fat it can. It may seem counterintuitive but you have to eat enough to lose weight.

Also, go make sure you don't have a medical issue such as hypothyroidism that is affecting energy and metabolism. Get a full checkup.

happyauntie2015

I am 37 and just over 300lbs. I find exercise is easier when I blast music through my headphones and do something I enjoy. I have been at it just over 2 months and I've lost 9 pounds. Now that i have a food scale I have noticed the number on the scale heading south . I do know exercise is easier now because my joints hurt less than a couple months ago and I am up to about 45 minutes of cardio and plus I do strength training 3x a week. I keep telling myself I didn't get this way overnight and I am not gonna wake up healthy either. You are off to a great start keep it up!

baciodolce18

Are you going to fast? It's hard to tack on time if you're going to fast. If you're new to cardio start comfortably slow. Like you should be able to hold a conversation. And then add 2-5 minutes each work out or each week if you can.

Andrealorren

I like to have a pre work out or a cup of black coffee...makes a biig difference for me!

ArchangelMJ

To be honest, I constantly wonder the same thing. Whenever I try a new workout and people are like "Oh, it gets better after day 3 or 4 or 10 or whatever. I'm like, bish, WHERE!? 'Cause I swear I can do a workout that I deem challenging for myself for months and it doesn't appear to get any easier so I stay going at the same intensity for seemingly ever.

malioumba

It took me awhile - maybe half a year, maybe more. Also - I only started to feel "fitter" once I started doing a bunch of cardio, not just one type (so, I was swimming laps, running, doing elliptical, riding the bike for hours on very steep hills).

ROBOTFOOD

Never

Machka9

TheRootofGroot

When it gets easier you need to find new ways to challenge yourself.
You need to get it out of your mind that it will be easy.
Nothing of value is achieved with ease.
But you can learn to enjoy it.
Personally I look at it as I do any role playing video game I play, I'm leveling myself up, it's often a grind but the results or mine.

jessiethe3rd

Exercise should not get easier!

If it's not difficult, you aren't out of breath, if you are NOT challenged you are NOT doing it right.

You work the body out so you can live longer and get through life easier. For instance, climbing a flight or two of stairs can be challenging. Now it is quick and easy and with little heavy breathing thanks to being in better shape.

When your fitness makes life easier, more enjoyable, and more fulfilling is when you know things are working.

Forget easier. There is no effect without effort.
No magic pill. No it's simple road. No quick fix every advertiser tries to sell you.

It's hard work. Buckle up. Enjoy your new life.
You no longer have to dream about it...

You get to live it.