reading while at the gym, really?

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  • invisibility
    invisibility Posts: 29
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    I could read while I was walking, if I was on a treadmill. Running, probably not, but that's because I'm still a noob, so the only thing I can focus on is not dying.
  • eblakes93
    eblakes93 Posts: 372 Member
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    I could read while I was walking, if I was on a treadmill. Running, probably not, but that's because I'm still a noob, so the only thing I can focus on is not dying.

    This.
  • Nikki31104
    Nikki31104 Posts: 816 Member
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    If I could read while on my elliptical I would be on there way longer than I am now. I love to read. I would push myself for one more chapter over and over again. I wish that were an option.
  • luisalg14
    luisalg14 Posts: 202 Member
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    Here's a thought. Maybe people who are reading at the gym are a bit more patient than you, and don't want to lose 50lbs, maybe they are just there to be healthy and have some time to themselves. Maybe they don't care about maximising their workout because the ones who are making progress are quite happy with the rate of their progress, and they don't care that they could have lost 20lbs more if they tried a bit harder. Going the gym isn't always about hammering away on machines, and you don't have to go because you have a fitness target in mind. Some people like to go somewhere with no screaming kids for an hour.

    Anyway. Maybe if you take a note from your own book and focus on your own workout it won't annoy you as much. Stop thinking about everyone else and just do your own thing.

    again we are off topic here ..but this is fun so whatever...

    My original point is that you would get more out of it if you concentrated on the actual routine. you go to the gym to improve health and fitness, right? So why wouldn't you want to get maximum results?

    I noticed it on a rest break and it got me to thinking, hence this thread...

    I work out at home, but do have a small gym available in the apartment complex. Today, I was about to go to the gym because the power went out (and thus, the air conditioning). So in theory, I wouldn't have gone to the gym to really exert myself (I probably would have walked on the treadmill at a high incline), but rather, to pass time and avoid the heat. The point is, one never knows why people do the things they do, unless one's a psychic. Whilst the vast majority of comments do seem to indicate such behaviour might stem from trying to avoid boredom during exercise, etc. one should not call such behaviour "fail", as that is a tad judgemental.

    P.S. In the rare occasions I do go to the gym, I don't read.
  • Mustang_Susie
    Mustang_Susie Posts: 7,045 Member
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    Motives: judgemental pride, arguing and having to be right.

    Your quotes OP:

    I mean we can't go to the gym for an hour without brining a book or tablet, really?
    don't you think they would have better progress/results if they concentrated on their routine for an hour?
    My thought is that people get more out of the gym if they focus on their routine rather than a book ...
    ..reading and working out are anathema to me...
    its my thread, so its my book :)
    everything else = epic fail/not trying hard enough
    I am just curious as to how one reads while on treadmill and that they could get BETTER results focusing on routine...
    maybe she would of lost 50 if she put down the kindle
  • Alicia_P_28
    Alicia_P_28 Posts: 76 Member
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    I am a nursing student and fully plan on reading while on the treadmill, bikes, etc. and have done it before as well as seen many many people doing the same thing (at least at the gym on campus-it's the norm) I HAVE to cram study time in whenever I can. I also read while at the doc office with my kids, at the park, even during lunch sometimes AT restaurants. I've been known to bust out some serious stacks of flashcards wherever I can. I don't see it as a fail...I see it as having awesome multitasking skills ;)
    Oh...the machines at the gym on campus have those little book holder thingies...it's for holding books so people CAN read while working out.
  • Joreanasaurous
    Joreanasaurous Posts: 1,384 Member
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    no I get it, you are a bumbling idiot who is on repeat....

    You know, of you are going to insult someone for being an idiot you might want start your sentence off with what we call a "capital letter".

    No I get it, you are a bumbling idiot who is on repeat...

    Also ellipsis typically only have 3 periods.

    Just fun things to know so you yourself won't look like a "bumbling idiot" as well. :)
  • BluejayNY
    BluejayNY Posts: 301 Member
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    I saw someone on a treadmill reading a book today, and it kind of got me to thinking. If you are on a treadmill running/walking whatever, how can you concentrate on reading a book? Another person brings in a tablet and sets it on ground in front of them when working with some of the machines...weird..

    In my humble opinion, if you are reading book or watching a tablet while at gym then said person is not working out hard enough and/or are not concentrating on routine.

    I mean we can't go to the gym for an hour without brining a book or tablet, really?

    curious what the rest of you think ....read/tablet = yes, no, or epic fail ....

    I do this on the treadmill and the stepper (which by nature is not exactly fast). I do the treadmill at a fast walk at a HUGE incline. It does wonders for my buns even though I am not going fast. The book is a wonderful distraction to both of these types of workouts. I don't always have to be going as fast as I can to get a decent workout.
  • corgicake
    corgicake Posts: 846 Member
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    Yep, I am one of those book readers the OP doesn't get. I have asthma and had asthma since I was a kid. Specifically, I had what amounted to uncontrolled asthma courtesy of a school district that handled that situation so poorly I suspected that what they called gym teachers probably wouldn't call the hospital if there wasn't blood involved. I was not the only one either - several students I knew personally were in the same boat. It got ingrained: do not run because if something bad happens nothing will be done about it.

    Since then, I've actually been able to use my medication but for years I handled it the way I did before graduation: don't run. I hit the treadmill occasionally now but like hell I'm doing it without a book or at least some good music to distract me from the fact that I'm doing something that I learned to associate with trouble for a reason.
  • StarChanger
    StarChanger Posts: 605 Member
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    I work 80 -100 hours a week. I will multitask in any way I can. I regularly bring my iPad to the gym...and yes, I can read while walking, and running. However, I'm usually trying to catch up on Game of Thrones or Walking Dead, etc. I do my lifting at home, so when I'm on the treadmill or whatever, I just need to motor through it.

    Some of us CAN walk and chew bubble gum. :bigsmile:
  • Joreanasaurous
    Joreanasaurous Posts: 1,384 Member
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    I work 80 -100 hours a week. I will multitask in any way I can. I regularly bring my iPad to the gym...and yes, I can read while walking, and running. However, I'm usually trying to catch up on Game of Thrones or Walking Dead, etc. I do my lifting at home, so when I'm on the treadmill or whatever, I just need to motor through it.

    Some of us CAN walk and chew bubble gum. :bigsmile:

    But can you talk too while doing it? lol
  • littlewhittles
    littlewhittles Posts: 402 Member
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    I used to read books on the recumbent bike, and I've watched tv shows and movies while I run on the elliptical. Makes the time pass.
  • StarChanger
    StarChanger Posts: 605 Member
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    I work 80 -100 hours a week. I will multitask in any way I can. I regularly bring my iPad to the gym...and yes, I can read while walking, and running. However, I'm usually trying to catch up on Game of Thrones or Walking Dead, etc. I do my lifting at home, so when I'm on the treadmill or whatever, I just need to motor through it.

    Some of us CAN walk and chew bubble gum. :bigsmile:

    But can you talk too while doing it? lol

    Not if I'm trying to run....the "girls" are too busy smacking me in the chin. :laugh:
  • shadowkat57
    shadowkat57 Posts: 151 Member
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    So, um - my brain can focus on other things while my legs are moving... I don't need to keep telling them "step, step, step" - which happily leaves my mind free to do other stuff!
  • carlapendergrass
    carlapendergrass Posts: 42 Member
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    I think I don't understand why this would bother you enough to ask the question. Mind your own and do your workout, and let other do what they do.
  • lordbrs
    lordbrs Posts: 5 Member
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    I play video games on my exercise bike at home. Keeps my mind off everything including the burn in my legs. I've also noticed that my speed will vary depending on what I'm doing in a game. Never drops below what I need but I'll get bursts of high speed when the action is intense. It works for me and keeps me doing it. I don't work out as often or nearly as long without it.
  • lauriewebster1
    lauriewebster1 Posts: 6
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    I bring my kindle to the gym and love it. It is the only time I have to get some reading in. I jump on the treadmill about 3 - 4 times a week. My average pace is anywhere between a 10 minute mile and a 11:30 minute mile. I usually do around 3.5 to 4 miles. I was switching on and off between outside hill runs (with music) and the treadmill but my knee couldn't take it and now I'm back to the treadmill with my kindle. It's worked for me for over 2 years now. So, yes, reading while at the gym, really! :smile:
  • melb_alex
    melb_alex Posts: 1,154 Member
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    This is the most ignorant and uncultured comment I've ever read on here.

    care to elaborate? Or are you just going to spout off a bunch of crap that makes no sense...

    THIS ^^^ what utter BS mate..he just asked a question.


    In my humble opinion, there is no way I can run/lift weights and distract myself by reading or logging anything! I barely have enough energy to change the song! ;)
  • melb_alex
    melb_alex Posts: 1,154 Member
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    Motives: judgemental pride, arguing and having to be right.

    Your quotes OP:

    I mean we can't go to the gym for an hour without brining a book or tablet, really?
    don't you think they would have better progress/results if they concentrated on their routine for an hour?
    My thought is that people get more out of the gym if they focus on their routine rather than a book ...
    ..reading and working out are anathema to me...
    its my thread, so its my book :)
    everything else = epic fail/not trying hard enough
    I am just curious as to how one reads while on treadmill and that they could get BETTER results focusing on routine...
    maybe she would of lost 50 if she put down the kindle

    stop being anal :wink:
  • gmallan
    gmallan Posts: 2,099 Member
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    Here's an idea, take the hour you spend at the gym plodding away on the ellitical/treadmill and reading and cut it in half. Spend half an hour reading intently and half an hour exercising intensely just as an experiment to see how it feels. You'll probably get more out of both. Multi-tasking is actually a myth, you may think you're doing two things at one but what is actually happening is that you are flicking back and forth between the two and doing both poorly.

    Especially to those people who say that they read to distract themselves, why not opt for a shorter more intense workout (obviously tailored to your fitness level). Just give it a go - you might even enjoy it. If you need a distraction music is proven to enhance your workout.

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