Former couch potatoes... how long did it take you to make your lifestyle permanently active?

AnnPT77

pondee629 wrote: »

Turning point? You're on a fools errand. It is an on going process, a day to day decision, if you're looking for that point in time where it will be an easy, reflex decision you're out of luck. Every day you have to draw on the dedication to get up and do it again.

Wow, that's really grim and pessimistic!

Good thing it's not universally true.

Why does working out for an hour every day require dedication, but (say) knitting or watching TV for an hour a day doesn't?

For some reason, a healthy way of eating and moving is so often seen as needing to be punitive misery in order to be good for us.

Nope.

cwolfman13

toxikon wrote: »

Wow, thanks everyone for sharing your stories! I really enjoyed reading everyone's experiences with being active.

It's nice to know that most of you are couch-potatoes who have managed to commit a daily hour to being active.

And I'm totally jealous of those of you who actually enjoy going to the gym!

I think my main issue is just being in the slump of a long winter. I'm sick of snow and feeling cold and I have little motivation to go outside - even if it's just to drive to the gym.

In the spring, summer and fall I love to walk. I desperately miss my outdoor walks in the warmth!

I think finding a sustainable plan for me, that I will actually enjoy, will be good. I have been doing a bit of yoga for the past few weeks and actually looking forward to it after a day in the office, so I think I will continue to do that every day and try to find longer routines on Youtube to get a better workout from it.

Then in the warm weather, I will return to my walking and maybe add a few weekly hikes too. And perhaps start C25k again (I've done it twice and had even done a few 10ks!).

I think I just get hung up on the idea that I HAVE to go to the gym, I HAVE to lift weights... but if I know I don't enjoy it and can't stick to it, what's the point? In the long run, it's better to find activities you enjoy, right?

Anyway. Thanks again y'all!

I think that's pretty normal, even for people who are fit and active.

And Yes...

suzantn

I am retired to in the winter it is hard for me to get motivated. I do workout 6 days a week without fail. Sunday is usually my rest day but even on that day I try to at least get in some cardio. I lift weights and I really prefer that to cardio. I am much more active in the summer because I love to be outside. The pool and sun are my thing so I love swimming and being outside. The winter is tough though.
My suggestion is to just do it. Make an appointment to workout at least 3 to 5 days a week. Set an alarm to get up at least once an hour and just walk around, if that is what it takes. Also a fitbit does help because it reminds you to walk and it becomes a competition to see if you can do better than yesterday. Also join a group either on facebook or in person where you need to check in everyday to keep you accountable. Eventually it will become a habit. Now I can't even imagine not working out and I even workout on vacation if I can.

bbell1985

I'm a coach potato and spend about 10-12 hours per week in the gym. I can't imagine sitting much more than I do...

I got a trainer. Realized I loved being strong. Then never wanted to be average ever again.

Ghostofachance

Still a work in progress. There are days when I have to talk myself into going to the gym, but once I’m there, it’s time to get my work done. What keeps me going is that I always feel like I’ve accomplished something when I’m done and I’m starting to see real results. For me, it’s a combination of habit and a positive mindset.

lorrpb

I started and never stopped. I keep increasing my activity as I'm able to, I was desperate for change then and I'm dead set on not going back now. I don't know when it became "permanent" but it was a lot more than 21 days. Nearly 4 years later I mostly feel like it's permanent, but some days I feel like it wouldn't be that hard to let it all slip away. I guess that's what keeps me on my toes!

zeldon919

So no idea, because I haven’t been to the gym in months. I was doing good for a month then life then winter and now I’m back at zero.

But my gym has wifi, and if you have a tablet you can download from Netflix to watch offline. Honestly that’s the only thing that makes a cardio machine tolerable for me. It helps if you find a show you really like that great for working out (you don’t have to pay too close attention to follow and is well paced), and then only watch while working out. Even if your walking on a treadmill at turtle speed.

And a killer workout playlist helps with the strength training. There are a bunch of options on Spotify, or make your own, but I find it helps a lot. Silently doing squats and leg presses and stuff is torture, but add a great playlist and it’s just unpleasant/annoying.

Also I hear you about winter - I live in a city that gets very cold and a lot of snow. My hope is that if I start now that it’s nice, by next winter fitness will be a routine enough part of my life (maybe I’ll enjoy it, but I’m not counting on it) that I’ll be able to keep it up when it’s -20 and there’s giant snowbanks everywhere. I think that’s reasonable and realistic.

baconslave

The more I moved, the more I felt like moving.

I can't go to the gym. Too expensive, I have too many kids, it's too far. So I workout at home. Walks, videos, treadmill, dumbbells, kettlebells. I make an appt with myself every day and do the thing. Weekends...depends on the season or how busy I am. But no matter the weather: rain, snow or shine, on the weekdays, I workout. Period. If I don't, I get antsy and crabby anyway. Because I NEED to move. If I'm tired, and I will thanks to Sjogren's, I move. Endorphins improve things for awhile. Exercise almost always makes me feel better.

Motivation is BS. Discipline is what carries you through when motivation loses steam. Find something you like and do it consistently until it's ingrained in your routine. Movement is contagious, IME, and breeds the desire for continued movement. Once I started walking in the beginning, I felt like playing soccer, baseball, and field hockey with the kids. I felt like bike riding again on camping trips. Then, I felt like seeing if I could strength train. Then I did YAYOG and dumbbells.

Just get started with something you don't mind (like even), do it consistently, and see where that takes you.

zmida

I'm a total couch potato and I'm back at it again after losing 30 pounds and gaining it all back. I heard something recently that really resonated with me, "self-discipline is self-love." I lack self-discipline so if I look at it as self-love hopefully it will help. Giving up what a want in the moment to have a happy and healthier future.

BeccaLoves2lift

toxikon wrote: »

Just a question I'm curious about. I'm a total couch-potato, I love watching movies, drawing, reading, crafting, playing games... not really physically active hobbies. The only active thing I actually seem to enjoy is going on walks with my audiobook.

Over the years I've started and stopped many different programs (lifting, running, biking...), never really getting into a good groove for more than a few months. I've started so many beginner strength programs at the gym I've lost count.

My brain says "Hey, you need to put on some muscle mass if you want to look good and feel great later in life! You'll feel good after your workouts! Endorphins! Just go do it!" then the other side of my brain says "Meh... but Netflix."

So what was the turning point for you, ex-couch potatoes? I know in my brain that I just need to MAKE IT a habit and go to the gym regardless of how ambivalent I feel about it... but I always just seem to slip back into old patterns.

I would say it was about six months of consistency. But what was more important for me for sticking to it was finding an activity that I love doing.

natruallycurious

My shift was when I found something I was passionate about (CrossFit), around eight months after I started. Before that, I did couch to 5k, and since I was training for something, I went consistently. After that I got a puppy, and played with him a lot, but my gym habits got worse. Switching gyms and starting a lifting program helped me transition into CrossFit, and now I don't see myself ever stopping.

Meaganinsardinia

Ive been active since October 2016. I moved from a house to a yacht, game changer. I didn't want to pollute the water in the marina so I started taking my shower every day in the gym. It was a small gym so I felt obligated to work out prior to the shower.

After that I started a half marathon training plan and swimming regularly and Ive found that really sustainable. I have a dog now too and if she doesn't get a daily run she behaves badly and seems anxious.

MikePfirrman

Mine started with calorie tracking and I like to eat. So I would hate working out but love more calories in my daily budget so it motivated me. I honestly started working harder and harder because I knew if I worked harder I could eat more. Then something just clicked. I tried jogging and spinning and liked them both. It took a devastating knee injury for me to get up off the couch and when I lost, I was initially just rehabbing the knee and trying to lose a few pounds. Once I found calorie tracking, I became obsessed with how many calories I could burn in an hour (most of my workouts are at lunch).

I used to die burning 400 calories in an hour. Now, it's pretty typical to burn 800 to 900 an hour and I'm in better shape at 53 than I was in my 20s, though that's not saying a whole lot! I went from the guy embarrassed to be in the gym to a guy that the trainers at the gym admit they aren't in the shape that I am. This was gradual over probably 5/6 years. Now I need my "fix" daily or I feel awful about not getting a hard workout in.

mamashakesit

I had quit drinking in June (3rd time in 15 years). I spent the first 3-4 months really wallowing in depression. The last time I had quit I had really started to organize my life, but it wasn't happening for me this time. I had tried exercising a few times in the last couple of years, but always stopped shy of 30 days. By late October, I felt over the initial quitting hump and started a workout video I had bought about a year ago.

I really knew something had changed in my attitude when I was able to take a day off without quitting entirely. I also realized I loved working with my dumbbells! About two weeks in, I quit smoking cigarettes. Three months in, I signed up for a women's weight lifting class at my local rec center and walked into a gym for the first time in my life at 40 years old. The night I did 45 minutes of running/walking intervals on the treadmills AFTER lifting in the weight room, I knew I had changed my lifestyle significantly. If you had told me 6 months ago I'd be running half of 45 minutes on the treadmills, I'd have told you to check your meds.

For me, I realized that it was about finding something I loved, and creating (small) new challenges and goals. And also variety. When I started, I thought that I HAD to do my home workouts or my gym workouts, or I would stop entirely and ruin everything I'd accomplished. Not true!!!! My workout a couple weeks ago was learning to cross country ski at the nearby state park with my 7 year old daughter...and we had a blast! As a "fat" thin person who lived off junk food, I still struggle with my diet, but I will slay that sooner or later, too. Good luck!

noblsheep

I suppose I got lucky.

I was pretty sedentary for the first few years after graduation. Couple of false starts of c25k. A wasted gym membership. Gained plenty of weight.

Then, I moved to a place in town with really bad traffic. Took forever every day to get to work and then another eternity to get home. One day when I was stuck in traffic for an abnormally long time across the street from a bicycle shop, I just said *kitten* this, jumped off the bus and bought a bike.

The fitness came slowly, but a few months later it had turned into a pretty pleasant commute. But then winter hit and I stopped. And I felt like *kitten*. Needed some other thing to do, if only to move my body around every day.

So... I got out some shoes and started again on c25k. Miraculously I was running 5k in no time. I was also lucky because my sinuses were acting up that year and waking me up at night. Running was the best way I knew of to clean them out and ease the congestion. So even if I wanted to give up due to laziness, lack of good sleep would by driving me to run again in a few days.

And then I got wheedled into a 10k race. Oh my good kittens that was fun. All of a sudden I started identifying as a runner. And that was that.

Rawr1978

usmcmp wrote: »

I'm still a couch potato, I just have a standing appointment with the gym. There are still days where I get to the gym, walk inside, then turn around and leave.

I thought i was literally the only one who has done this. "Oops, forgot something that isn't essential to my workout, but we'll say it is, can't workout now" and leave.