Exercise Anxiety?

If it works in your schedule, try a bootcamp. Groupon.com & LivingSocial.com ALWAYS have discount coupons for them here that run like $35/unlimited month. There are usually morning & evening classes you can mix and match up. Here, there are 5-6 really good bootcamps that get you in shape - it's basically group training w/ a personal trainer. It takes all the guesswork out of it, it's social & something different.

During the workout, I hate every minute. I keep telling myself I can't do this and I want to stop.

After the workout, I feel great. So happy to be done, but already dreading my NEXT workout.

While I don't actually dread working out next (anymore, I used to, but now that I'm seeing major fitness improvement I get excited by it), I often hate almost every minute of the actual exercise. I have said "I can't do this" but I always force myself to say "NO! I CAN do this!" each time that happens. I always want to stop, but I just repeat sort of mantras sometimes to get through.

I tell myself Sweat is fat crying, then I keep saying "CRY FAT, CRY!" over and over. Sometimes I'll say "Small girls run, thin girls run, fit girls run" over and over to keep myself going. Sometimes I will count "1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 2, 3, 4" or something like that because I find time goes faster that way. I also have been watching Boy Meets World (Hello nostalgic guilty pleasure) while running on my treadmill and sometimes I can get absorbed in the show and it helps.

Lastly, I find it helpful to me (and others will disagree) to count down to the end, or figure out what fraction of exercise I have left. I try not to do this until the halfway point, but then it is like a countdown and because in the last two months I have gone from barely able to jog one minute, to today running 25 min straight, I also feel so thankful for the increase in fitness. The closer you get to the end, the more you know you CAN do it.

If you can't find something you enjoy while doing, maybe try to find something that works toward a concrete, measurable goal that you workout toward. I find trying to complete the C25k has been a goal that has kept me going and gets me to get on that treadmill even when I really do not want to. You could make it a race, or doing a certain number of laps at a pool, or being the best dancer ever, or lifting a certain amount of weight, doing a certain number of push ups, chin ups, sit ups, completing an obstacle course or fun run.. Anything that makes it feel like the workout is moving toward something more concrete than just health or weight loss in general.

After I get through this C25k (almost there!) I am going to go back through and improve my speed so 30 min jogging will actually get me through a 5k and then start running outside and get through 5k there. Then I'm going to sign up for a 5k that has a real meaning to me (Run for the Cure, as my mom has Stage IV breast cancer) and KICK *kitten* at it. Hating every moment of the exercise is easier to forget and push through if there is something short/medium term you are working toward.

You do not have to like exercise. I know people say to find something you like, but sometimes there are people (like me) who only like impractical things like ice skating (no rinks nearby in the summer) or dancing all night at a club (not monetarily feasible). You just need to find a way to do it, in whatever way works for you.

Don't feel guilty about not exercising!! For exercise to work it has to be enjoyable. I wasted a ton of money on gym membership, hated going and always dropped out. I,ve lost more weight by being careful about how much I eat. I exercise by walking or cycling when I used to use the car.