Anyone out there used to be REALLY fit?

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serenayang11
serenayang11 Posts: 7 Member
in Motivation and Support
Hey there,

I'm having a really hard time getting back into shape - mostly because I used to be really fit. It's not just that I don't want to exercise, or that it's hard to motivate - or even how hard it is to start up cardio. I get so depressed b/c I used to be able to DO all this stuff, and now I'm back at square one. The formerly-fit part of me is like, what is wrong with you???

Anyone else out there have this problem? It's totally self-defeating, I know. Part of the whole getting older thing that I am having a hard time accepting :-)

Serena

Replies

  • red01angel
    red01angel Posts: 806 Member
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    OH MY GOD YES!!!!!!

    I was a gymnast, a cheerleader and a runner in my teens...and just like you said, it's EXTREMELY depressing seeing how bad my times currently are or how my flexibility and strength have decreased. It honestly makes me want to cry sometimes...or eat ice cream.
  • Heather75
    Heather75 Posts: 3,386 Member
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    Yup. I didn't appreciate it then - just took it for granted. Never again!
  • sblim
    sblim Posts: 99
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    I used to run 20-40 miles a week and then hurt myself and lost all of my fitness. I know how you feel. Being at square one just means you can only go up!
  • stylistchik
    stylistchik Posts: 1,436 Member
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    definitely! I am trying to get that lean, flexible cheerleading body back!
  • chocol8doll
    chocol8doll Posts: 14 Member
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    Yeah! I was a cheerleader in highschool and I was in the Army. Ah the memories.....
  • vhuber
    vhuber Posts: 8,779 Member
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    The "whole getting older thing" is tough (Iknow) so get the boxing gloves on and kick some serious *kitten*! If you don't do it NOW it will only get harder! Set up your workouts like it were a doctors appointment and do NOT let anything stand in your way! I have NOT missed a day of fitness since Christmas day and if I (the older woman) can do it you surely can too!! Now plan your day for tomorrow and stick with it!!! Good luck!!!
  • livingnlove
    livingnlove Posts: 49
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    Yep, and I spent 20 years beating myself up! Don't waste your time beating yourself up mentally, just do what you can and look forward. Start with what you CAN do and work up to what you want to do.
  • jamie11k
    jamie11k Posts: 82
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    Serena, I'm right there with you. Soccer, running, tennis, all of it. I rode my bike everywhere and didn't get a car until college. Now I could sit and watch TV for an entire weekend, realize I coulda shoulda woulda worked out, and then feel so mad and guilty. I know the motivation is hard now, it just isn't as much FUN working up a sweat as it was when we were young! This is our chance to do it right- make it fun, find a buddy, sign up for a fun sport, challenge yourself to a 5K, find a place to walk or ride your bike that is gorgeous!

    I think the fun gets zapped as soon as we slap the labels on fitness- 'weight loss' or 'have to' or 'should'- so try to separate them! Go make it fun, and then treat the burned calories as a bonus!

    Good luck, and thanks for reminding me to finally go buy those rollerblades!
  • Tatsu2010
    Tatsu2010 Posts: 9 Member
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    I'd like to think I was... =) Still very active and always have been, it's just that my eating habits have gone to hell in a hand basket lately. Need to be more aware of what I'm taking in that is for sure.
  • FabiolaEnvy♥
    FabiolaEnvy♥ Posts: 730
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    my sis in law was. she told me alot of the things she could do o_o

    as for me, i was in a way fit. maybe not in shape but i was fit, cause i always went hiking with my dad. always went for a walk, and always did some kind of sports, in school.

    so yeah, i do wish. i could do some of the things i could do in the past. but it is a struggle cause i would be like man i cant do it anymore... >.< but i know in the long run, i will be able to do them again and not only that but be fit in shape wise
  • spob
    spob Posts: 206
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    Yes Yes YES! I was always the impossibly skinny girl in school not that many years ago. My identity was skinny girl, athletic, fit, etc. etc. Sometimes when you lose weight especially when those around you can not know or remember who you were or that you were once thin, or in shape, or ran marathons, threw batons, name your skill here, sometimes even you can not identify your own sense of self in your current body whether you have lost or gained weight, you can sabatage yourself because you do not understand who you are. Are you a skinny fit person in a fat body or fat person that needs the body to match. When I have set out and arrived at goals weight wise, I quickly turn to habits that I know will sabatage me. As if to test something. Many will read his and simplify but the reality is: you truly have to change your attitude continually on this journey to slowly adjust to the new emerging you or you will find yourself dumb founded and your own worst enemy. I can only speak from experience as a mom and a woman, but you can so get lost in the: "Who am I ?? "" Who does this body belong to?" The subtle changes that evolved from many years of disregard for calories, fat-laden, deep fried, nitrate laced indulgences, child birth, breast feeding, blah blah blah led to the unfortunate moment when asked to do the Downward Facing Dog, posterior to a mirror, when in a moment I could not identify my own butttocks. (and I saw what others would see should I have faced the other direction). I do gain solace from what my body has survived, and pulled me out of, and I celebrate the strenghth that is belied my bmi and my thicker waist. When this is not enough I have a glass of wine, toast with my girl friends, because even when I forget or lose track of who or what I am they are only to happy to remind me!
  • DanOhh
    DanOhh Posts: 1,806 Member
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    Yes, I was a wrestler, played football, and baseball. I was active all year long. I got out of high school and in college was no longer active in sports other than rec center stuff. I am now 40 and I can honestly say that I am in the best shape I've been since high school. It takes some time but you can get there. You may not be in the best shape you ever were do to age but you can get in excellent shape and feel great about your self.
  • ccoaker17
    ccoaker17 Posts: 1
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    I know how you feel! I was on a competition cheerleading squad that won nationals 3 of the 5 years I was on it. It's been hard getting back into shape, but I'm slowly getting there. What's really weird for me is that right now, at the heaviest I've been in my life, I can run faster and longer than I ever could before. That one is throwing me for a loop BIG TIME. But, keep it up-- you'll get there! I beleive in you!
  • marygomez
    marygomez Posts: 2 Member
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    I KNOW IT'S HARD. I REMEMBER BEEN 95 LBS. ON MY HS YEARS, AND 7 YEARS LATER AFTER MY FIRST BABY I WENT UP TO 134 LBS. 3 YRS. AFTER THAT I WAS WAITING 143. AND THATS WHEN TI DECIDED TO STOP DEPRESING AND START DOING SOMETHING ABOUT IT. 4 MONTHS OF DIETING AND EXERCING I HAVE LOST 18 LBS. OF COURSE I DON NOT PLAN TO GO ALL THE WAY TO THE 95 LBS. I JUST PLAN TO LOSE 10 MORE LBS. I KOW U CAND DO IT, SET UP SHORT GOALS, LIKE ONE POUND PER WEEK , AND AFTER FEW MONTHS U'LL SEE THE RESULTS LIKE I AM DOING. GOOD LUCK
  • kriddle2
    kriddle2 Posts: 11 Member
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    motivation doesn't seem to be my problem, it seems to be patience...I use to be in really great shape, I'm just getting annoyed by the slow progress...yes it takes time but it would be great if there was a reset button???
  • bethinagain
    bethinagain Posts: 282 Member
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    motivation doesn't seem to be my problem, it seems to be patience...I use to be in really great shape, I'm just getting annoyed by the slow progress...yes it takes time but it would be great if there was a reset button???

    This made me laugh....."reset button":laugh: Love it!

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