I HATE strength training.....any non-lifting suggestions?

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  • geebusuk
    geebusuk Posts: 3,348 Member
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    hmmmm.....perhaps I will have to give this a try, as well. My problem tends to be that, regardless of how much I am lifting, I really find myself just not wanting to be there at all; I currently actually only do about thirty minutes of lifting at a time, and I spend almost every minute of it wanting to be somewhere else. I don't have the same problem with yoga, pilates, boot camp, etc, since I find it more engaging. But, I am open-minded and will certainly look into this one; maybe it will be a new approach for me!
    Thirty minutes, as above, is about ok.

    I don't particularly 'enjoy' lifting weights, but nor do I enjoy running or cycling on a machine to be fair - however, having started 'heavy lifting' in the middle of December I've found it IS the magic pancea for me to some degree! - Through most of January I've been eating pretty badly and not doing much other exercise (we're talking 3500-4000 calories often, I reckon), yet my body weight has stayed constant - but I've gone up from squatting 66kg to 102kg deadlift and still raising steadily.
    I'd been meaning to start before and certainly regretting I didn't now.

    I've taken to audio books recently - so stick the headphones in and listen to that. As I'm back to an overall calorie deficit I've gone to doing just 'the big three' - I'm doing two warms ups and three 'heavy' sets for squats and bench press, then two warm ups and one heavy set for deadlifts - so really not that much, but so far seems to be working!
    Never liked the idea as opposed to 'real reading' before, but being pretty busy it means I get to both take in a book as well be at the gym etc.

    And yes, do all sorts - including rock climbing 3x a week usually (which is certainly more fun than weights), but so far doing heavy compound lifts does seem to be working for me.
  • MoreBean13
    MoreBean13 Posts: 8,701 Member
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    You will like it when you start seeing results. Suck it up until then. Fake it 'till you make it, if you will.
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
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    lift heavier. you won't be bored
  • kaylinn9
    kaylinn9 Posts: 112
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    I play badminton and we do a lot of conditioning. Many of the girls on my team are really toned and they don't use much weights to keep their muscle mass up.
    Basically what we do is squats, planks, push-ups, running (sprinting a lot!), playing games and games of badminton (one of the most draining sports out there, but only if you play competitively and not backyard-style), stairs, and more running.

    They don't require weights, but they definitely help tone muscle and help build those abs. :) Good luck to you!
  • AggieFan2011
    AggieFan2011 Posts: 551 Member
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    I'm kind of the same way. I don't hate strength training, but it definitely isn't something I enjoy doing. Thanks for posting the topic! I'm hoping I can find some suggestions to help me as well. :)
  • Capt_Apollo
    Capt_Apollo Posts: 9,026 Member
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    there are other ways besides machines, dumb bells, and barbells to strength train.

    kettle bells are a great one that i know has been mentioned. classes like yoga, boot camp, body combat.
  • RECowgill
    RECowgill Posts: 881 Member
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    I do not like green eggs and ham. I do not like them Sam I Am.

    I will not eat them here or there. I will not eat them anywhere.

    I suggest you unlearn your hate of all activities that use a weight.

    Cardio and Zumba are good for you but will not make a whole new you.
  • DavPul
    DavPul Posts: 61,406 Member
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    If you enjoy doing yoga, do more yoga. It's a perfectly acceptable way to train your body. No one has to lift if they don't want to and I'm not here to drag people kicking and screaming to the free weight section.

    Do yoga, watch your calorie intake, enjoy your life.
  • CorvusCorax77
    CorvusCorax77 Posts: 2,536 Member
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    "Many people wait through their whole lives for the chance to be good in their own fashion"
    -Nietzsche
  • mockchoc
    mockchoc Posts: 6,573 Member
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    Bumping because I've been told I shouldn't do free weights so interested in other ideas.
  • Coquette6
    Coquette6 Posts: 158 Member
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    lift heavier. you won't be bored

    QFT. It's very hard not to be engaged while lifting heavy. If you're not engaged, you drop things and get hurt. If you're just doing endless repetitions with small hand-weights, yes, then you'll be bored. It also keeps you motivated because you're always striving to lift heavier than you did previously. Just my opinion though.
  • Capt_Apollo
    Capt_Apollo Posts: 9,026 Member
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    Bumping because I've been told I shouldn't do free weights so interested in other ideas.

    Who told you that? And why? Under what context?
  • BeachGingerOnTheRocks
    BeachGingerOnTheRocks Posts: 3,927 Member
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    If you enjoy doing yoga, do more yoga. It's a perfectly acceptable way to train your body. No one has to lift if they don't want to and I'm not here to drag people kicking and screaming to the free weight section.

    Do yoga, watch your calorie intake, enjoy your life.

    Agree with this.

    There's so much out there that you can do. I really love my strength training program now, but that wasn't always the case.

    Does your gym have a heavy bag? Get a pair of boxing gloves at the sports store and go beat the heck out of it. That is one serious total-body workout.
  • songbyrdsweet
    songbyrdsweet Posts: 5,691 Member
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    Check out www.fitnessblender.com. Plenty of bodyweight workouts that incorporate HIIT and plyometrics which use the same energy systems as resistance training. You don't need weights to get a great workout. I only hit the gym to lift heavy twice a week, and other than that I do a buttload of plyometrics and HIIT and functional strength work.
  • pannellkat
    pannellkat Posts: 709 Member
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    OMG...some funny responses on here.
  • BlueInkDot
    BlueInkDot Posts: 702 Member
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    I take classes - I'm in a yoga class that meets once a week for 1 hour, a circuits class that meets once a week for 45 minutes, and I also see a personal trainer once a week and she gives us a difficult lifting routine that lasts 30 minutes.

    Since these are group activities, the time flies by, and I know the workout leader is watching to make sure I have good form and I'm doing it right.

    It's hard to motivate yourself when you're doing it on your own, but in a group it's really fun.
  • BlueInkDot
    BlueInkDot Posts: 702 Member
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    Bumping because I've been told I shouldn't do free weights so interested in other ideas.
    Who told you that? And why? Under what context?
    I'm gonna guess a doctor? *shrug*
  • SteveJWatson
    SteveJWatson Posts: 1,225 Member
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    I find it mildly amusing that people cannot compute how somebody doesn't want to do weight training.

    If you don't want to do weight training there are a miryad of things to try - circuits, martial arts, plain old chin-ups on a bar in the park...LOADS

    I had a sequence of pressups to learn culminating in a handstand pressup somewhere, might be worth googling, I bet you'd build muscle doing that.
  • norcal_yogi
    norcal_yogi Posts: 675 Member
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    yoga. yes, yoga -- it's really all you will need.
  • GoTeamMeaghan
    GoTeamMeaghan Posts: 347 Member
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    I do p90x strength training workouts and love it

    ^^ me too-looooove p90x

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