Exercise - How do you do it??

loe_loe23

I have a hard time finding motivation to workout as well. Some days I kick *kitten* and get in a crazy good workout and other days (when my depression acts up) I don't feel like working out at all! That's usually when my diet suffers as well. I try to at least do SOMETHING every time I don't make it to the gym. Like, I use youtube workout videos so that way I'm at least moving and doing something and it feels like I'm "watching tv" too. Maybe try that to start off.

cwolfman13

I can't edit my post, but I also wanted to add that I didn't step foot into a gym for a few months when I started and I didn't start with all kinds of crazy workouts and whatnot. I stated by walking my dog...at first if was just a few days per week for 30 minutes...then 5 days per week...until eventually I was walking most days for about an hour.

Once I was there I started a C25k program...did that and signed up for a few 5Ks to keep me interested as it wasn't my favorite thing to do. Along the way and doing numerous different things I eventually found and fell in love with cycling.

Basically, just get going...ease into things...try different things.

mrsloganlife

Like others say--it is a habit builder. I started going to the gym before work because that was the best time. As much as I hate mornings and my 5:25 am alarm even more, I kept with it. Were there days I wanted to hit snooze and roll over? Yep. But then I thought about how I would feel later in the day knowing I skipped the workout, and that motivated me to jump out of bed--because I knew the feeling of guilt and just 'blah' from not working out would be way worse than the few minutes of pain as I got out of bed and blindly walked into the bathroom to change.

It has now been 4 months and has just become a part of my routine. It also helped that I set an alarm to go off at 5:25 am every weekday, so I am not even touching my phone (and give myself the opportunity to turn it off).

Also as one of the very fit gym regulars told me one day "Everyone starts somewhere," and by walking into the gym you are starting somewhere. You will look back a couple of months from now when you were getting out of breath fast and go "man look at how far I have come!" I had one of those moments today myself

RoxieDawn

I hated exercise so much when I started, I could barely do 20 minutes and dreaded the next day I had to exercise for another 20 minutes. I hated going outside in my neighborhood to walk, I felt embarrassed. I did this three times a week for months. I finally kept getting better, and it became a challenge to get better at it. The challenge kept me engaged and I was having fun and enjoying it. I do all my working out (lifting and running) at home very early in the a.m., I like having quiet and space all to myself.

I also use exercise to eat more and this is a pretty important part of all of it as well. The trick though is to find something you love and enjoy or at least love the benefits enough you get from it to keep doing it!

I exercise 6 days/week if I skip a day my day entire day off. Some of it is because I create a morning routine to get ready to exercise, but all of it has become a habit and a good one to have. If you will get your gear on, that's half the battle, you will most likely stick with you exercise plan.

HoneyBadger302

I'm not a morning person. I HATE getting up in the morning.

I still get up in the morning to go to the gym before work - because - if I plan to go after work I'm really likely to skip it from being too tired/worn out/beat/whatever.

Since I'm not a morning person, however, I had to take it in steps. I started by setting my alarm 15 minutes earlier than normal (so not a big jump) and did some push-ups, sit-ups, and a couple other little home exercises with that extra time. Then, after a couple weeks, moved my alarm back another 15 minutes, and did a little longer home workout. Then I did another 15 minutes, and now I had 45 minutes - enough time to get to the gym and do a 20-30 minute workout. Then another 15. After that it was a little easier to move it in 30 minute increments.

I now get up at 4:30am to be walking in the gym by 5 (I take a little more time getting going in the am now than I did at first - at first I set everything up the night before since getting up was so hard).

I have one day a week when I can sleep in an hour longer, and on weekends I definitely sleep in longer. Now I tend to wake up around 4:30, but have no problem going back to sleep on weekends LOL.

faythe621

lightenup2016 wrote: »

You don't have to work out in a gym to get exercise. Is there any way you can take a good walk during your lunch hour at work? Or do some sort of walking in place or other exercise in front of your TV shows in the evening? I found that as I've gotten older and my life has gotten busier, it's just not practical to get to the gym. I have a running treadmill, I walking treadmill, and a portable stationary bike I can use at home, plus dumbbells and a barbell. And there are plenty of work out videos available on YouTube or DVD. Or you can just do your own bodyweight exercises in your living room or bedroom. I've found this to be much more amenable to working out rather than having to motivate myself to get ready (and take the extra time) to go to the gym. Good luck!

ETA: Look up Leslie Sansone walking workouts--these are mostly workouts were you walk in place, with knee lifts and other movements along with it. I got to where I could do this pretty much on my own while I was watching TV. There are different levels, so it's really a great place to start, right in your own home! I found several on YouTube.

I used to do Leslie's walk at home videos - I'm sure I still have them somewhere. I don't have any home gym equipment unfortunately, but I could definitely do videos that use bodyweight exercises. Just a matter of doing it! Thank you!

JeromeBarry1

I do not have a gym membership. I have three different cardio stations in my living room, another in my bedroom, and a bicycle, as well as a basketball hoop and a heavy rope. I can get a good cardio workout while watching tv, whether I want to pay attention to the show or not. I can get a very good cardio workout when the weather is nice. I do simple maintenance on my cars and log that as exercise. I do yardwork and log that as exercise. I also have a nearby linear city park with a long paved trail that I can walk, ride, or run.

concordancia

I literally put one foot in front of the other. I am currently doing a minimum of 8500 steps a day, a little stretching, occasional yoga and squats and counter level push ups 3 times a week.

I am working at making the 8500 steps faster before I up the minimum.

zyxst

I found something I enjoy doing (Leslie Sansone walking videos). I built up the habit of doing 4 miles every other day (3-4 times a week).

When you find something you really enjoy doing, you'll make time to do it.

Francl27

I watch most of my TV shows on the treadmill. I walk my dog. I go for an extra walk (sometimes with a friend) when it's nice out. Hoping to go hiking again soon.

When I started working out again, I did some Beachbody programs. Started with Slim in 6, which was not bad, except I couldn't get through the warm up for like a week, and I was so sore I couldn't walk for 2 days after I tried (I was THAT out of shape). Then I started walking, longer and longer walks, so now typically when I go for a walk it's for an hour (3.5 miles - I walk faster outside than on the treadmill). I did a bunch of Beachbody programs but got bored of the same workouts all the time, so I just walk now (with some push ups 3x a week).

I did the walking videos as well then figured out I could just run in front of my TV shows, lol. Really, the treadmill I got was a great investment.

Timing-wise, I don't mind working out in the evening if I didn't get it done in the morning. Again, I'm just going to watch TV anyway, might as well burn some calories while I do it... I NEED those extra calories or I'm miserable and wouldn't be able to stick to it.

jo_nz

Once I accepted that the best exercise is the one you actually do, I stopped trying to make myself to go to the gym and do various other things.
I hate the gym. I am not a good swimmer. Running is not my thing. etc etc.

I like walking. Plain and simple. I like hills and beaches and being out in nature. I also like wandering around suburbia and looking at what grows in other people's gardens.

To make extra sure I keep going regularly, I also got a dog (that's one of a million reasons we got a dog, but she sure makes me go for walks when I don't think I would otherwise).

I also took a couple of short training sessions on photography so I have another purpose for going for some of my walks too.

It also helped that my kids have gotten a little older - we can now go for fairly substantial weekend hikes which we all enjoy. Trying to fit a few more good ones in before ankle surgery in a few weeks - will have to take a short break from walking then!

All small things, but it has added up to me being overall much more active.

And I have also started doing Tai Chi - not a high intensity or particularly calorie burning exercise, but good for me in lots of other ways.

Courtscan2

I used to do a lot of workouts during my lunchtime, either a walk or a swim or even would duck home to do a quick video. Now I force myself to get up early to do it. The beauty of doing it early in the morning is that my brain usually hasn't switched on yet, and doesn't supply me with all the excuses to not do it that come later in the day. Maybe get yourself a few weights, they aren't too expensive until you start getting in to the heavy ones, and get some home workouts going.

bbell1985

I have a goal and a program. It hurts me more NOT to go to the gym. Plus a lot of caffeine.

aokoye

How did/do I get the motivation to exercise? I "found" a type of exercise that I like, or various types really. I put found in quotes because I already knew that I liked cycling and swimming. I don't swim very much right now because I simply don't have the physical energy (wanting to fall asleep in classes the entire day after I swim in the morning isn't acceptable). I ride my bike three days a week inside on my trainer because my goal is to not have a hard time on the century ride that I'm doing in June (really it's the climbing I worry about) and because I want to be strong when I'm able to ride outside again (surgery plus injury means I'm inside through basically the end of March - I've only been able to ride outside once since mid November).

Essentially the only reason I do strength training is to be a better cyclist and for physical therapy. I don't enjoy it a whole lot but I like getting stronger and it's part of my physical therapy exercises (both at PT and at home/the gym). That and I want to run by the end of the summer if I want to and there's only one way I'll be cleared for that.

In short, my advice is to find something that you like and do that. It doesn't have to be doing anything in the gym, running, biking, swimming, etc. I have a friend who runs but also got into rowing as an adult and loves it.

plain_lemon

I had a gym membership for years. Gyms are good, but the last year or so I just lost motivation there. Then I found activities I liked. Riding my bike, for example.
Also, just squeezing in a 15 minute workout in my bedroom makes me feel like I did something— and often leads to me wanting to push a little more... the motivation kinda builds as you go.

You might like the Nike training app. It’s called NTC and there are so many great guided workouts! And it’s free. They did a good job.
I think just about everyone can find a Workout or two in their library that would be fun and fit them. Highly recommend it.

estherdragonbat

I started with 25 minutes of walking each day. Once a week, I was already taking a long (2+ hour) walk to do the grocery shopping; getting on a bus with a hand-cart in rush hour is difficult, so it had to be on foot. Once I committed to weight-loss, though, I stopped 'rewarding' myself for that long walk with ice cream or a bakery treat for the walk home. Meanwhile, the other six days, I was pretty sedentary. So, I decided that, no matter what, I was going to get up and move around. On days when the weather didn't permit, I had/have a Gazelle Edge glider in the basement. I used that instead.

Over time, I increased the length of my workouts. Now, I shoot for 2 hours of walking (not necessarily all in one shot) each day. If I hit at least 90 minutes, it's good enough. Otherwise, I do 70 minutes on the glider.

Three days a week, I do a strength training workout with dumbbells and other equipment.

For me, it's been as simple as finding activities I like doing and—this is the hard part—fitting them into my routine, no. matter. what.

I've never been athletic. I've got some motor coordination issues. Not enough to be considered a disability, but enough to make me a lousy addition to any sports team. Maybe the stuff I do doesn't get my heart-rate up that high, but it still burns calories. And it's still helping the weight come off. Plus I feel great.

Machka9

faythe621 wrote: »

I have a gym membership I haven't used in I don't know how long. Every month I pay and every month I don't go. I'm so out of shape I'm almost afraid to start going because I'm embarrassed by how easily I get out of breath now. I work a desk job from 8:30-5, and I'm not a morning person by nature so getting up early to go to the gym probably won't happen. By the time I get home in the evening I'm so tired I don't want to do anything else except eat dinner and watch TV.

How do you motivate yourself to exercise? I want to get back into an active lifestyle but I don't know where or how to start.

Walk.

Walk as part of your commute.
Walk at lunch.
Walk after work.
Walk while watching TV.

LivingtheLeanDream

How I do it? I made a promise to myself when I wasn't long an MFP member that I would set my alarm early and do the 30 day shred for starters. The exercising habit stuck - I committed to that back in 2013 and since then I still get up early to workout.

evileen99

As some others have said, start small. There are lots of 10 minute workouts on YouTube--you can squeeze in 10 minutes, and 10 minutes is better than no minutes. Exercise gives you energy, so the more you do, the more you'll be able to do/want to do as time goes on.

jgnatca

The truth is exercise can revitalize you in the evening and help dissipate the stress from work. Truth.

Still, if you have trouble taking yourself to the gym ask yourself if the old routines are doing anything for you any more.

Besides helping you maintain your weight what else does it give you? Stamina for one, which you are already missing.

I motivate myself for signing up for a run. Then I have to train to get myself ready for it.