Question about exercising for those of you who hate it. (or

Try different exercises and you might find one that's more interesting. For example I get totally bored running on the treadmill, even with ipod or TV, it's just mind numbing and hard to stay motivated to keep going.

But running outside I don't have this problem at all, maybe because you have different landmarks that you can focus on. I also like bicycling outside or indoor rowing.

Hiya, I am with you there...but I joined a gym last summer and I have to admit the hardest part was actually getting there! Once I was there I enjoyed working out and felt good afterwards, but it was just so easy to not go that my determination soon wavered and before I knew it I was at home eating crisps in front of House rather than working out.

I think its three things that change it, one is variety - if like me you dont mind running but hate the treadmill, dont use the treadmill! I used the cross trainer, bikes, rowers, steppers, weights. Also as previously posted, make use of the classes...this brings be to the second thing...socialising...if you go on a tuesday night with Brenda and Lisa to Bums and Tums youre more likely to keep going than if youre at it alone, partly because of the good company as you hop unbalanced along the back row, but partly due to ompetitive human nature, you would all want to be a bit better, lose a bit more or sweat a bit less than your pal! And third is regularity. Once you get used to going twice a week its just routine you may want to step it up to three times a week, but once its part of habit you think of it less as a chore and more of 'you time'...

Trouble is it just is not hard to knock you off the exercise perch....I say this as i sit here wobbling on my couch with my fat fingers stabbing away at keys.....so im talking myself round here too!!

I used to hate it. Now I'm addicted to it. I started out with some Richard Simmons DVDs. They were fun and I enjoyed the music. Within weeks, I felt stiff if I didn't exercise. Now I'm training for a 5 K and run 3 times a week. On the days I don't run, I do Pilates and the hundred pushups challenge. I feel really young and energetic in a way I haven't in a very long time. I'm even considering playing soccer again (I loved it in high school). Just pick something you like and make yourself do it. I don't always feel like doing my exercise but once I get off the couch, I really enjoy it.

Great suggestions so far from those who've responded. My personal suggestion is maybe you need to find a competitive sport to keep you interested in exercise.

Never done jazzercise, but a lot of members on MFP have mentioned doing zumba. Not sure what all it involves, but everyone that's mentioned it just loves it. Might be worth a try. Good luck.

Remember to start with small steps. Don't overdo any new exercise or you will be so sore you will probably give up right away.

I love my stationary bike (its actually my outside bike but I bought a stand for it so now I can ride it year around inside) I get a good book start pedaling a reading and before you know it you have gotten in a good workout. Lots of times I set next to some shelves put my computer on the shelves and watch a movie or some show I missed. It helps time go so fast for me at least for me,

I just do it whether I hate it or not. I know the end result will be more pleasing than what I had to go through to get there so I use my goal as my motivator. You can't get fit if you can't be bothered =]

I have never exercised regularly in my life until February. I hated it, but I realized that if I wanted to lose any weight sitting at a desk all day instead of walking around college like I was used to, I'm gonna have to do it. I didn't want people to see me either, so I used the Wii that I got for Christmas and invested in EA Sports Active. I can close the blinds and do it right in my living room. It basically takes you through all different exercises so I didn't get bored, and it was a 20-30 minute workout so it wasn't too time consuming. I also decided to take advantage of the little gym my office building has. There are usually a few guys there, but I just get on the elliptical and do my 50 minutes. The one thing that keeps me occupied for the whole 50 minutes is that I watch movies or TV shows on my ipod. I've been watching a miniseries on the Apollo mission (I'm a space nerd...) and it's about 50 minutes per episode. I'm never bored and the time goes by really fast.

So my suggestions from this novel is to find something you like that you don't mind doing, find something to occupy you while you do it, and get exercising into your schedule. I do it as soon as I get home from work, or as soon as I get out of work and go straight to the office gym. If I don't do it right when I get home, I'd get distracted and never end up working out. Three months into this, I actually enjoy it, my endurance has gone up SO much, and my body looks alot better since I'm eating right and exercising. My waist is alot smaller even when I was this size at the beginning of college. It just takes time and effort to adjust. You can do it though!

It only takes three weeks to form a habit!

Definitely look into classes, it's a whole hour of exercising without even noticing. Zumba is amazing!

As far as the gym:
Buy new workout clothes you feel comfortable in.
Make a playlist of all your favorite upbeat songs.
If your gym has individual tvs, go at the times your favorite shows are on.
Tell yourself you'll exercise for 15 minutes. Chances are, you'll stay longer once you get going!

I like working out but when I'm not feeling it, I use these tips and it helps! :bigsmile:

Exercising has never been my thing. When I started MFP, I could hardly do 10 minutes on my treadmill. I was honestly too afraid to "push myself" in fear that I would have a heart attack or at the very least an asthma attack. Once I got in the swing of things and realized that I wasn't as out of shape as I THOUGHT I was (even at 286 lbs) - it got a little easier.

I think the big thing that has helped is a change of mindset. I looked at it as something that I HAD to do to lose weight. Now... my exericse time is something that I GET to do for me. It is my ME time. I'm a 35 year old stay at home mom, I homeschool my son, my husband works from home and I volunteer at a local animal rescue.... I am ALWAYS on the run doing something for someone else. My cell phone is always with me and someone is always calling for something. Once it occured to me that I could use my exercise time as a "time out" from the world... I started liking it. I can get on the treadmill and as long as I'm walking... everyone knows that they'd better not bother me unless there's blood involved. I can go for a walk and not answer the phone if someone calls (Sorry, I was working out - couldn't answer the phone). I can kick my family off the tv because I need to workout on the Wii. Exercise is the one area in my life where I allow myself to be selfish. It's GREAT!

Now... does that mean that I jump up every morning anxious to exercise? No... but I always feel better when I've done it - and I have to remind myself of that all the time! The other things is... being able to eat a bigger dinner or dessert that night? Fabulous!

I'm like you - I don't enjoy doing classes in front of anyone... but the treadmill at home allows me to be the complete dork that I am... I listen to my music on my headphones, do arm movements and sing. Nobody is there to see me and I can be as silly as I please - and it feels good. It also gives me a lot of time to "think"... which is good. I like workout DVDs too - but it's sometimes hard for me to find ones that I like... anything too hard makes me feel like I'm failing. I LOVE the Wii though... I do Wii Fit and Just Dance. I may get the Biggest Loser next... but for now, I'm pretty happy.

I highly recommend getting a HRM - that way you can count just about anything you're doing as exercise... I'm always amazed at how many calories I burn cleaning.

When I started this journey back in January I knew that exercise would be my weak link, as I am in my 50's and just didn't want to do it (though I had enjoyed it when I was in my 20s), so I only commited to doing something 2x a week for 30 minutes. That started out to be just walking at a very very fast pace. At my work, they have a small workout room, so I visited one day and tried out the elliptical and found I liked it, so now do that at least once a week. Since the pounds starting dropping and I have started feeling better and the weather has improved, I find that I actually enjoy getting outside and walking several times a week, but never feel the pressure as long as I meet my 2x a week goal. So I would suggest you start slow with something simple and as you progress, build and add into that so that you can enjoy success along the way without feeling that you should be always be doing more. I think that comes with time.