Need motivation to exercise

Neds1980

Hi I have lost 37lbs. Start weight was 285lbs (20st 5lbs) and I am now 248lbs (17st 10lbs).

I feel I need to introduce exercise. Is appreciate I am still heavy but I would like to start toning and working out. Any others in the same position who have some tips? Or others who have successfully exercised when they were at my current weight.

I would appreciate any advice and welcome anyone who wants to buddy up! Thank you in advance!

Neds1980

Well I have lost another 1lb this morning. Taking me to 38lbs in total. I tried to go for a jog but could feel the pressure on my back and knees, so I am too heavy still. Instead O went for a walk which was great and I feel better for having done something!

Hope you are all having a good day! 👍🏻

GrizzledSquirrel

Well done on your journey so far.

If you just want to lose weight, I’d always recommend making sure your diet is nailed on. A mindless mouthful of a high calorie food, eaten in 5 seconds, can do more harm to your weight loss than an hour of intense exercise can do it good.

However, exercise is awesome and so good for overall physical and mental wellbeing. That is why I have found it easier to stick with when it is linked to positive goals that are aside from weight loss. If it helps speed your weight loss - take it as a pleasant bonus.

For example - don’t go fo a walk because it will buy you 200 more calories to eat later - and then feel all de-motivated because you haven’t lost weight for 3 days, so you chuck it all in....go for a walk because you want to hit a number of steps or because you want to enjoy time outside or because you love to escape the kids/work/stale air and appreciate some quality “me-time” with some music, a podcast or just the birds and the breeze. Or - maybe use it as a nice excuse to socialise with a friend (I appreciate that is tricky for some at the moment though). My point is - make exercise a positive experience in your life. Weight loss can be hard - so why attach everything in your life directly to it?

Not sure if that was the advice you were after - but it is a strategy that has helped me. And it doesn’t really matter at this stage whether you walk, run, swim or lift. Just move your body and put in some effort.

Final point - when you say “tone up” - the best way to do that at this stage of your journey is probably to lose weight. Your shape will naturally improve. You might have fabulous abs through hours of sit-ups, but you won’t see any of them with a layer of fat over the top.

x

1poundatax

Great job with the weight loss. You are right- you do need to exercise for your health in general. I keep my exercise totally separate from my weight loss- I track it in the exercise notes so I keep track of what I am doing, but I do not want it added back in to calories I can consume. That doesn't work for me.

There are many Youtube videos for exercise that I use. Depending on your fitness level there are some that are chair exercises. I currently use Leslie Sansone walking videos frequently. I also use Renew Active videos, Silver Sneakers and Paul Eugine among others. Some days I really don't want to workout so I will put on a short video. I almost always continue to do more once I have started. I am 62 years old and started at 228. I have lost 25 pounds. My body no longer hurts all the time and I feel stronger. I don't get out of breath as easily and my heart rate recovery is much faster since I have been exercising regularly.

Trish1c

For me one of the best motivators is that I can eat more when I exercise

girlwithcurls2

You could start with walking. As you lose more weight and become more fit, you'll get faster and go farther. Walking is underrated, IMO. It's a great exercise and once warmed up, I find myself more inclined to do something else.

Matty_Bowman

girlwithcurls2 wrote: »

You could start with walking. As you lose more weight and become more fit, you'll get faster and go farther. Walking is underrated, IMO. It's a great exercise and once warmed up, I find myself more inclined to do something else.

This is totally true on all points! Read this!

callsitlikeiseeit

great job!

I hate running.

tried it heavier. tried it lighter. I hate it, and I refuse to do things I hate.

Go for a walk. Find another activity you DO enjoy. a sport, a piece of gym equipment, weight work. Find what you enjoy.

podperson1

I think the biggest thing I've found is to try and find exercise you don't mind doing. I hate jogging and 'gym' workouts, which put me off doing anything for a lot of years. It was a lot about trying different things to see what I did like.

For example, I enjoy dancing so I do quite a lot of 'dance based' workouts like zumba or jazz classes. When I first started I struggled so much with the more energetic parts and my knees and back protested if I did anything too 'jumpy' so I just modified it a bit to work for me. The more you do it the easier it gets though!

I also enjoy swimming, which is great for low impact, though I can't get to the pools at the moment, walking (though like you the weather can be a big factor where I live), and will try things like pilates and yoga to get some stretching in and help improve my mobility/flexbility a bit.