Exercises for lazy people?

dlpnrn2b

The wii fit has a large variety of exercises that are fun and once you get your heart rate up, you start to burn those extra calories. I've done them using a hrm and was surprised by the workout it gives. It can also be purchased fairly cheap now that a new system is out.

ames105

Walking, its easy and free. Its a place to start. As he has more energy and starts to see some of the weight come off, he may find an interest in more.

That being said....a person who finds something wrong with everything isn't really that serious. I think we've all been there. Exercise is 'too hard', 'not fun', 'I don't want to sweat', 'I don't have time'...etc. Excuses mean they aren't ready.

Good luck!

Sedna_51

I think it's all about him finding something active that he likes to do...most likely something that doesn't seem like exercise. He has to truely enjoy what he's doing. Maybe nature walks, ballroom dancing, bowling, flying a kite, swimming, roller skating, kickball, gardening, trampoline...anything to get him moving. He's going to have to think outside the box. How great of you to help him out!!

Yup! This this this. There are a lot of things (like washing cars, gardening, cleaning the house) that get you moving without fitting the exercise label. And you can do them at your own pace.

Also: I am/was lazy (though I prefer to think of it as "efficient") because, in large part, I felt uncomfortable with my body, and I refused to work out with friends and family because I felt so uncomfortable about slowing them down and/or being jiggly in public. I started to work out a little bit by doing it alone at home so I could get used to grunting and sweating and doing all those things that happen when you exercise. Now I'm doing crunches on the floor while I watch baseball and feeling a tiny bit like a badass. (Tiny bit!)

ETA: Finally, he's not going to change until he's ready to. You can provide support and encouragement, but he's the one who has to decide to live a certain way. And sometimes the more you press, the more he'll press back.

ncmedic201

What does he like to do as far as hobbies, entertainment etc?

AJinBirmingham

You may not be able to get him to agree to any "workout" at this stage. Try getting him to agree to walk to the end of the road and back (or somewhere just five minutes away.) Then, once you're out, walk just a few more minutes . . .

Do that a couple of times, then bet him lunch that he can't make it out for a walk, just to the end of the road and back EVERY DAY for a week. Once he's out of his chair, he probably won't stop at five minutes . . . and the snowball starts rolling.

WARNING BASED ON MY MISTAKES: If you're in shape, don't try to get your own workout in while you're helping someone else - they won't be able to keep up with you and get frustrated and you'll getting frustrated because they're slowing you down.

FasTnSloW

There could be some things you could do, you can find a sport that you really like, and get some friends who can play it with you, if you are too lazy, you could play some sports that aren't that vigorous.

If you are looking for something you can do by just rolling off your bed are...

1) Bicycle Crunches
Considered one of the most effective ab exercises, this move really works the obliques. Here's how:

-Lie flat on the floor with your lower back pressed to the ground (pull your abs down to also target your deep abs). Interlace your fingers and put your hands behind your head.

-Bring your knees in toward your chest and lift your shoulder blades off the ground.

-Straighten your right leg out to about a 45-degree angle to the ground while turning your upper body to the left, bringing your right elbow toward the left knee. Make sure your rib cage is moving and not just your elbows.

-Now switch sides and do the same motion on the other side to complete one rep (and to create the "pedaling" motion). Do this exercise with slow and controlled motion.

-Do 10 to 20 reps.

2) Plank With Donkey Kick
Kick your planks into high gear by adding a small leg lift. This move requires extra strength, as it will challenge your core while toning your booty and hamstrings. Here's how:

-Begin in an elbow plank with elbows directly under shoulders, abs engaged toward the spine. Don't let the pelvis sag down or pop up.

-Lift right leg off the ground, bending your knee so the sole of your foot is toward the ceiling. Keep your pelvis square to the floor.
Don't let your pelvis twist.

-Press your right heel toward the ceiling as high as you can without moving your pelvis or lower back. The motion will not be huge but rather concentrated on the booty and hamstring.

-Lower the bent leg slightly and repeat for a total of eight to 10 repetitions. Then switch sides.

Those are just 2 detailed examples, other exercises you could do are...
-Single-Leg Bridge Lift- -Pilates Side-Lying Leg Lifts- -Mat Swimming- -Scissor Abs-

Hope I helped you in some way

Kyllosis

I was exactly the same. He needs a bit of a push to get him going Why don't you ease him in to it slowly? Then, if he wants to get serious, he'll be able to manage it himself.
Show him the ropes! Tell him you really don't care about him getting all stinky and you know exactly how he feels. It gets better,
Take him for a 10 minute walk every day. Once he can manage that easily, bump it up to 15 and repeat. Start slowly so he doesn't get scared off.

Lesa_Sass

I started out by walking 2.2 miles a day. I would walk to get a lottery ticket, the whole way there and the whole way back home I would dream about what I would spend the money on. It worked for me. Now I am a runner and far far far from being lazy. It takes energy to make energy. Start small and work up is always my recommendation.

RunnerElizabeth

I am both extremely active and extremely lazy. Once I'm out of the house, it's go, go, go, run, run, run. But I don't want to leave the house. I want to sit on my couch, watch tv and eat cookies. So forcing him to do something other than sit on the couch is up to him.

As far as what he should do once he's ready to do something, I agree with walking. I don't own a car on purpose, they are bad for the environment so I walk or take public transportation everywhere or even run if it's feasible. I also do body weight strength training at home. I use the You Are Your Own Gym app so I can watch tv while doing it and it just prompts me on what excercise to do and for how long. I would recommend it because you can do it while watching tv. And the program is progressive, you start at your own level and go from there.

Tony_Brewski

I am dealing with this with a good friend. He always mentions my successes and asks if he can come with to the gym. Whenever I go I ask him and get no reply no response or some lame *&* excuse like "No I have to do the dishes" ... :noway:

emlee01

ETA: Finally, he's not going to change until he's ready to. You can provide support and encouragement, but he's the one who has to decide to live a certain way. And sometimes the more you press, the more he'll press back.

^^^
This! My ex used to encourage (push) me, and I resisted. It wasn't until I found something that motivated me internally that I got off my butt and started moving. If your cousin is competitive, you might try one of the many walking challenges that pop-up online and often in the office. It's summer time now, so activities in the pool might be a inviting way to increase activity levels. Ultimately, it's all about motivation and being "creative"...

LaDonnaF

It sounds like you have tried very hard to find different activities for him to do...... where is HIS trying!?

I think you should talk to him - reiterate to him that this is HIS life and HIS journey and, unless he is paying you, it isn't your job to find things he'll like to do to get off his butt.

I'm sure he'd say walking is boring... he changes the games so that he can sit instead of being active with the xbox? Self-sabotage. You will get worn out trying to motivate him when he needs to find that motivation on his own.

You didn't get where you are by someone else doing all the work.

There are a lot of good suggestions in this thread but sometimes you have to take a step back and let them find the motivation on their own and then be there to help support them. Once they're doing the walk on their own you can offer to go when you see they're struggling with getting out the door, etc.

Good luck! I hope they can commit to getting more active and increasing their health and fitness.

melindasuefritz

walking
kickball
playing catch
Frisbee

JustJennie1

There's only so much you can do. When they are ready to make the change they WILL come up with something that they are willing to do.

I have a friend who came to me because she said she was getting fat and wanted to start going to the gym with my husband and I. I was down with that. She got a membership and for a week and a half she was meeting us at 5:30 and working out with us. She was crabby, complain-y and was (from what I saw) doing a half hearted job. She had an excuse as to why she couldn't do "as much" (too sore to ride her horse) and I haven't seen her at the gym since last Tuesday -- MAYBE. I did all I could do to get her there, texting her the day before to make sure she'll be there, letting her know if we were taking a rest day in the morning etc. but aside from my going to her house, dragging her *kitten* out of bed and forcing her to the gym there's nothing I can do.

When she is 100% serious about it she'll come around and I'll be there to help her out again.

The point is that while your family member has said they want to start getting in shape the reality is that they don't. Laying down on the couch is easier than getting up and moving. When they decide that they're serious they'll come around.

Good luck!!

El_Cunado

Try something that gets them moving, like walking or swimming to start out.

CyberEd312

You may be looking for more, but people really underestimate the power of walking, even slow walking over time with produce results. I know for me I hated to exercise, would never have stepped foot in a gym, but just started out with some slow walks in a local park and once it gets easier you can up the pace and distance.

agreed when I first started at 560 lbs, I could barely support my own weight so I got a script from my doctor for aquatic therapy so I could use water displacement to allow me to stand long enough to be able to exercise.. The majority of the time I was in the water I walked in the therapy pool from one side to the other.. I did this the first 17 months and lost 170 lbs... so yeah walking is good........

Sedna_51

ETA: Finally, he's not going to change until he's ready to. You can provide support and encouragement, but he's the one who has to decide to live a certain way. And sometimes the more you press, the more he'll press back.

^^^
This! My ex used to encourage (push) me, and I resisted. It wasn't until I found something that motivated me internally that I got off my butt and started moving. If your cousin is competitive, you might try one of the many walking challenges that pop-up online and often in the office. It's summer time now, so activities in the pool might be a inviting way to increase activity levels. Ultimately, it's all about motivation and being "creative"...

Exactly this. I have wonderful, supportive friends and family who've (gently) encouraged me to eat healthier and get more exercise for years, but it didn't stick until I found my own sources of motivation. You can provide the spark, but he's got to keep feeding the fire.

deksgrl

No such thing. You have to want to do it.

Former "I hate exercise of any kind" person here.

After you begin to want to do it and begin doing it, you still have to make yourself do it most of the time, even if you know it is necessary and want to have success. Eventually it starts becoming something you want to do.

TechOutside

Getting them out of the house and away from the hypnotizing aspects they are currently accustomed to, to have fun is always a good start. Don't call it exercising, call it something else.

For example, disc golfing is fun, requires little effort, (some skill) and gets the blood moving. They are outside and away from the TV, the refrigerator, and the things that keep them being a sloth. It's fun and doesn't seem like exercise, (what little it is) but it is a start. Some people lack the drive to accomplish something or they don't want it that bad yet. They haven't woken up to a visual in the mirror that offends them yet. They haven't had enough internal ridicule to actually do something about it.

It's like trying to tell an alcoholic to just quit, or a smoker to just stop. It doesn't work like that. They have to WANT to be sober or clean, they have to desire the goal, in this case of fitness. You won't be able to change the habit, what you can change is their environment. Little baby steps are the key to getting someone off the couch IMHO.

Once you can get them away from their element and have some fun, then you can add little motivators, incentives and goals. After that, they will begin to create their own goals that you can help them with. It will take some time to actually get them to "workout" with you. From my experience, people like your friend have been conditioned to be in a constant state of comfort with little to no effort, without a need to step outside of their existence. Something has to trigger them into wanting to change and if you can find the small incentives, then you have a chance, otherwise you'll be hitting your head on the wall frustrated with them.

This is all just my humble opinion, but opinion based on decades of working with people with zero motivation in all aspects of life.

Teardrop81

Sounds like he doesn't want to exercise. When he really wants to start exercising, he will bite the bullet and stop making up excuses. That's really all there is to it.

^This. It sounds like he may be in a contemplation stage, which is a step above pre-contemplation, but he still has some emotional and mental challenges to overcome (that you can't do for him) before he'll progress to an action stage. Don't do more work than he's willing to do. It'll only frustrate you. Just make suggestions and be there when he's finally ready to take action. Be straight with him, too, in a polite manner letting him know that you've made suggestions and he doesn't really seem interested, but that you'll be there for him when he's ready.