I'm pathetic, did 3 mins on my exercise bike and dying :'(

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  • beautifulwarrior18
    beautifulwarrior18 Posts: 914 Member
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    3 minutes is a triumph over sitting on your *kitten* all day. Next week you'll be able to do 6 minutes. No one said it was going to happen quickly.
  • CleverClone
    CleverClone Posts: 45 Member
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    I agree with everyone else, 3 minutes is much better than no minutes! I was in your situation a while back and while I'm still not fit, I'm improving every day.

    DON'T hit is so hard .... warm up slowly and pace your self...

    Also, this. It's good to push yourself but not too much; if you do too much before your body can cope with it you'll only injure yourself.
  • wisteriafleur
    wisteriafleur Posts: 24 Member
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    If anyone said "I saw this obese person do 3 mins on a bike and they were dying, how pathetic" on this forum, they'd be utterly ripped to shreds. Saying it about yourself doesn't make it okay to say that.

    I totally agree with this ^
    After all the site is called myfitnesspal for a reason
    we are all on here to better ourselves through physical fitness/healthy eating/ recovery etc

    You are far from pathetic and are to be commended for taking your first steps towards bettering your health and life so be happy and smile, you can and will do this. I know it. :smile:
  • PearlAng
    PearlAng Posts: 681 Member
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    I'm sorry to hear that, and I'm sorry you're feeling upset :( but at least you had the mindset to even try at all! Simply getting up and trying is the first step to success. If you can work yourself back up to it, I think you'll be doing it in no time. Try not to feel discouraged.
  • mikes99mail
    mikes99mail Posts: 318 Member
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    DON'T hit is so hard .... warm up slowly and pace your self...

    Also, this. It's good to push yourself but not too much; if you do too much before your body can cope with it you'll only injure yourself.

    +1 for this. Slow down a bit.
  • Missjulesdid
    Missjulesdid Posts: 1,444 Member
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    You'll be surprised at how FAST you'll improve. Just start a little slower next time, decrease your resistance and don't go quite as hard. I found that lung capacity improves super fast when starting new exercised program. Once I got to the point where my LUNGS didn't quit on me, it took a bit longer to convince my MUSCLES not to quit on me but the lungs got back into shape within a matter of weeks. After that it was slow going to see improvement in my endurance based on convincing my muscles not to quit. For example: at 360 pounds I started doing the elliptical. At first I was like you and could only do a few minutes at a go... Within a few weeks I was up to 40 minutes and I was able to increase my resistance to the point where I couldn't go much over 40 minute because my legs were jelly but the LUNGS?? The LUNGS were still going strong. Now getting the LEGS to coorperate for me was a different story, once I got to the point where my fatigue issues were with my muscles and not my lungs, I had to work up slowly adding just a few minutes or resistance points a week.

    I wish you all the best. You got this!
  • hortensehildegarde
    hortensehildegarde Posts: 592 Member
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    If anyone said "I saw this obese person do 3 mins on a bike and they were dying, how pathetic" on this forum, they'd be utterly ripped to shreds. Saying it about yourself doesn't make it okay to say that.

    I think this may be one of the most brilliant observations I have seen on this site yet (and I hope it is accurate). Crap half the time I tire myself out trying to brush my hair (well., TBH that HAS gotten better lately with new efforts but it def did used to be an issue).

    There's nothing saying you can't do 2 mins repeatedly throughout the day. I think the point is to see what tests you and keep pushing that little bits at a time. If you haven't done this before I know it probably sounds impossible/improbable, but lots of people here are posting from experience that if you just keep chipping away at it, pushing it a LITTLE farther and giving it some time, you will SHOCK yourself at what you can work up to.

    Thank goodness we aren't defined by where we start :)
  • angieroo2
    angieroo2 Posts: 973 Member
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    Take it slow and work back up to the 20 minutes (and beyond). One day soon you'll be so impressed with how much you accomplished and how far you've come.
  • DawnieB1977
    DawnieB1977 Posts: 4,248 Member
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    Everyone has to start somewhere! In 6 months you'll be doing 30 mins and not even breaking a sweat :smile:

    When I first joined my gym a few years ago after a break from exercise I found 3 mins on the stepper hard. Now I can do half hour interval training on it at a much higher level. You will build up your strength and fitness.
  • MscGray
    MscGray Posts: 304 Member
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    We all start somewhere! Just keep after it!!! Pedal through out the day if you can/must, and don't be to hard on yourself. Instead of going all out when starting back up, maybe start at a more leisurely pace while your getting back into the swing of things....going to intense to quick will lead to injury or quit.
  • tapirfrog
    tapirfrog Posts: 616 Member
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    If anyone said "I saw this obese person do 3 mins on a bike and they were dying, how pathetic" on this forum, they'd be utterly ripped to shreds. Saying it about yourself doesn't make it okay to say that.

    You're not remotely pathetic. You're awesome because you made the effort to do something and you did it. Yep, you wish you'd been able to do more... that shows you have ambition.

    ^^^This is one of the best things I've ever read here. I'm going to repeat it to myself today whenever I need to.
  • tapirfrog
    tapirfrog Posts: 616 Member
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    Thank goodness we aren't defined by where we start :)

    AND THIS

    YES
  • englishrose1974
    englishrose1974 Posts: 5
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    Three minutes is a fab place to start. I remember my first 2-3 mins on the spot run on my Wii fit when I was at my biggest. I sat for 40 mins or so afterwards honestly thinking I was going to die. Now I am 2 stone lighter and can jog on the spot 12 mins at a time followed by more exercise including sometimes shorter additional jogs on the spot. I aim for 30 mins now and have recently started 60 mins walks too. It has been a gradually climb to increase my fitness from my first agonising few mins. I look back on those first few minutes with great positivity now - it as a beginning and the start of a whole new adventure. I hope one day you too will be able to look back and see it as the beginning it is and use it as a benchmark to see how far you have come. Well done - keep it up :).
  • WVmom24
    WVmom24 Posts: 266 Member
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    That kind of thinking is called a defeatist attitude---you bring yourself down so low with negative thinking that you actually make those thoughts come true. Give yourself positive reinforcement. Today you did 3 minutes, tomorrow try to do more, and the next day do more. Heck, just add 1 minute a day if that's the pace you want to go. It doesn't matter how slow you are moving as long as you are moving forward!
  • AlexiaLupis
    AlexiaLupis Posts: 27 Member
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    Those struggling three minutes means you're making your body work hard! That's not pathetic at all, it's a great thing. That three minutes will turn to four, four will turn to five. Soon that three will be 60 minutes and you'll be so happy with your progress.

    Remember that if exercising was easy for us all then we wouldn't be on this road in the first place. Take it on the chin and give yourself a minutes break, then jump right back on again after your heart rate is normal and you've have a drink.
  • derrickyoung
    derrickyoung Posts: 136 Member
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    Pathetic??? BS. How many minutes did you ride yesterday? How long did it take you to get to your current weight? 20 years.

    There is nothing more true than this. My last go around at weight loss this was the one lesson I learned. I could not erase 20 years of abusing my body over night. Keep at it, before you know it you will be at 5 minutes then 20.

    Maybe place a yoga mat by your bike. Start with a few minutes of stretching before you get on the bike, ride what you can, then end with a few more minutes of stretching/breathing. The benefits of stretching last beyond the immediate warm the muscles up. The increased blood flow to the muscles has a lasting effect on metabolism through out the day. Physiologically it can help you feel you are achieving more early on in your journey. This to me is the biggest bonus.

    Here are a couple of links for you to read through.

    http://theflexibilitycoach.wordpress.com/2010/05/15/4-ways-stretching-can-help-you-lose-weight-yes-really/

    http://www.theflexibilitycoach.com//Articles/Articles_Main.htm

    I have no affiliation with this person it just happened that when I googled this for you he was on page 1 ;-)
  • CallMeRuPaul
    CallMeRuPaul Posts: 151 Member
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    was that 3 more minutes than you did yesterday? all right! way to go! now try to do 5 minutes today and 6 minutes tomorrow. keep on keeping on!
  • Jason3589
    Jason3589 Posts: 734
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    A journey of a 1000 miles starts with a single step. Keep progressing and you will be amazed at how far you will have come x
  • quigz90
    quigz90 Posts: 44 Member
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    So many great replays on here :) its amazing.

    And don't feel bad OP, I'm 165ish, do between 4-8 hour shifts in my feet, in a kitchen or waiting tables and also do 1 hour strength training exercises. When I got on the exercise bike i done 5 mins before I stopped and it wasn't very fast (I hate Cadio haha)

    This post has made me want to get back on it and increase my fitness :)
  • tiggerhammon
    tiggerhammon Posts: 2,211 Member
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    Today 3, next week 5, next month 15!

    Take it one day at a time, one step at a time and allow yourself time to build up.

    When I first joined MFP I was unable to just run down the block! Literally, one side of one block - I would be having an asthma attack before I got there. I had to take the smallest of baby steps but I managed to get to where I could run 1/4mile without stopping. Yes, small progress, but it felt great! I have had to be so patient with my lungs, building their strength but I am confident that I will some day be able to run a 5k!

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