Would you exercise if you didn't have to?

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kikityme
kikityme Posts: 472 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Ok. For all you gym lovers, good on you, get down with your bad selves.

I. I am NOT a gym lover. I hate the smell. I hate the chatters, I hate the non chatters. I hate the people who slam the weights down and I hate the tv channels. I hate running shoes and my shirt rides up uncomfortably.

I'm also Type 2 Diabetic (newly diagnosed.)

The thing is, since I started restricting my carbs to more reasonable levels, and started a drug regimen, I am dropping a consistent and pleasing amount of weight. I'm losing about 4 pounds a week which my doctor is quite pleased with as my nutrition plan is being followed.

So, if you didn't have to go? Would you? And can you tell me seriously why? I know for me it's mental and I will most likely eventually have to do it as the carb cutting won't be enough and I'm trying to mentally prepare myself.
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Replies

  • _Zardoz_
    _Zardoz_ Posts: 3,987 Member
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    You don't have to go to a Gym to exercise. if you hate it in all likelihood you wont keep at it long term. Maybe search out an exercise that you can do that you may enjoy that doesn't involve a gym.
  • AshwinA7
    AshwinA7 Posts: 102 Member
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    I do other things besides running on the treadmill when I go to the gym - primarily rock climbing.

    But all of it boils down to two things - 1) a feeling of wellness afterwards and 2) mastery - feeling like I've accomplished something.

    A day spent hiking or mountain biking in the Sierra Nevadas will kill any bad mood instantly.
  • melaniecheeks
    melaniecheeks Posts: 6,349 Member
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    I run, and do lots of dance classes. Havent been inside a gym in a year. I run and dance cos I enjoy those activities.
  • d3mon4ngel
    d3mon4ngel Posts: 242 Member
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    I don't go to a gym to exercise. I do Krav Maga classes twice a week, sometimes three, but that's because I enjoy it and getting fit is a nice side-benefit. At home I do yoga DVDs, use my kettlebells or run on my treadmill, which I was lucky enough to have been given :smile: Before I had the treadmill, I would just run on the streets or in the park.

    I do this because I want to be fit and healthy. I'm fed up of my asthma holding me back, and I want to overcome it.
  • whitebalance
    whitebalance Posts: 1,655 Member
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    I'm a loner, only go to the gym when I have a trainer appointment or want to use a specific piece of equipment that only the gym has. I used to use the gym's weight machines, but also got plenty of exercise walking, running, climbing stairs, and doing body weight exercises in the stairwells between flights... and could have gotten it all that way if desired. Now I use free weights at home; my rack, bench, bar and plates are kinda cheap stuff, but they cost me a total of about $300 new. Point here is you don't have to go to a gym to exercise if you don't want to.
  • abadvat
    abadvat Posts: 1,241 Member
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    Hold on a second, no one, unless medically required has to exercise!!?
    I don't have to but i am still training twice a day 5 days a week....
    I can't see myself not training for more than 2 days rest I take a week.
  • kikityme
    kikityme Posts: 472 Member
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    Hold on a second, no one, unless medically required has to exercise!!?
    I don't have to but i am still training twice a day 5 days a week....
    I can't see myself not training for more than 2 days rest I take a week.

    My point is that the job is getting done right now without it. I'm trying to build myself up to going. But .... blargh .... I walk about 30 minutes a day now (and that 30 is a slow walking the dog walk), but that never seems like "working out" to me.

    But thanks for your answers.

    Twice a DAY? Seriously, ain't nobody got time for that! ;)
  • GertrudeHorse
    GertrudeHorse Posts: 646 Member
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    I go to the gym because it makes me feel good and helps to release stress. I also like to feel powerful and dominant so exercise achieves that.
  • Harry_jazzhands
    Harry_jazzhands Posts: 16
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    i cycle (mostly mountain bike) because i love it, any excersize i get from it is a bonus
  • Nicolee_2014
    Nicolee_2014 Posts: 1,572 Member
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    Yes.
    I lost weight a few years ago, just by eating well. Which was great. I gained weight, had a baby, lost weight by eating well & exercising - the result the second time around was far better than the result the 1st time. My body changed shape & toned up. I was actually heavier on the scales the 2nd time but a smaller size in clothing & people always commented that I actually looked skinnier than I ever had before.
    So...I'm a huge fan of doing both, eating right & exercising. I don't go to the gym as such, I've got a personal trainer that I see twice a week in a studio environment, half the time it is just him & I...No mirrors, no people, no tv's. I love it! The other days I walk & do about 30-45 mins on the x trainer.
    You may eventually love exercise, or not :flowerforyou:
  • HollisGrant
    HollisGrant Posts: 2,022 Member
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    You don't have to go to a Gym to exercise. if you hate it in all likelihood you wont keep at it long term. Maybe search out an exercise that you can do that you may enjoy that doesn't involve a gym.

    Great on the mark comment. I lost all my weight from walking to work and local errands instead of driving my car, plus hike on the weekend in nature. I've never exercised in a gym. Find something you like to do and do it.
  • crissi725
    crissi725 Posts: 82
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    I am a loner by nature. So I go after 10pm. There's few people and more parking. Of course it helps that I don't have children and that my gym is down the street. Its also a truly awesome Anytime Fitness.
  • FruityLoops
    FruityLoops Posts: 138 Member
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    If i didn't have to there is definitively some exercise that I would stop doing! I currently do some form of workout 5-6 days a week (usually cycling, kick boxing, zumba step, gym, exercise vids, walking) and I kind of feel like it's taken over my life, but I can't say I enjoy all of it. I would defo keep up the kick boxing and zumba step, and I'd keep cycling, tho for function rather than exercise, but I dont think you'd catch me in the gym again or running!! I love badminton too, but my doctor has banned me from playing it tho because of my p arthritis :-(

    All exercise doesn't have to be hellish, you just have to search for something you enjoy! For me I'm competitive so doing exercise with a partner I find enjoyable, but gym is just drudgery!
  • abadvat
    abadvat Posts: 1,241 Member
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    Hold on a second, no one, unless medically required has to exercise!!?
    I don't have to but i am still training twice a day 5 days a week....
    I can't see myself not training for more than 2 days rest I take a week.

    My point is that the job is getting done right now without it. I'm trying to build myself up to going. But .... blargh .... I walk about 30 minutes a day now (and that 30 is a slow walking the dog walk), but that never seems like "working out" to me.

    But thanks for your answers.

    Twice a DAY? Seriously, ain't nobody got time for that! ;)

    Different optics I guess - I don't train to get the job done I train because this is the way i am, it is my passion, i need to train and no one is forcing me!
    Between going home and watching TV after work or a brutal workout? Bring the violence - anytime!
    Between going out with people and a brutal workout? First the violence - then the bender!

    All this to say, no one is forced to train, exercise, workout or which ever way you want to label your physical activity.
    Being active is a sensible decision in relation to your health - that's all.

    Walking the dog for 30 minutes is still better than not walking the dog for 30 minutes in my opinion!
  • Senneth12
    Senneth12 Posts: 72
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    Maybe. Probably. It depends on your definition of "have to."

    Exercising isn't necessary for maintaining my weight, and it wasn't necessary for losing weight. And I don't love it OR like it. I manage to barely tolerate it. It's hard, it hurts, and it will never get easier or become fun.

    But it is necessary to keep my body functioning as much as possible. It keeps my joints more stable, it helps maintain endurance, and it improves my long term health outlook.

    I consider the above reasons as "have to." It's probably more important for me than for most people, but I think that some form of exercise is necessary for everyone to stay healthy. The type of exercise will vary depending on personal goals, but the necessity doesn't.
  • FIT_CANDY
    FIT_CANDY Posts: 4 Member
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    Yes! Love it!
  • MissBabyJane
    MissBabyJane Posts: 538 Member
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    You don't have to go to a Gym to exercise. if you hate it in all likelihood you wont keep at it long term. Maybe search out an exercise that you can do that you may enjoy that doesn't involve a gym.


    Agree. :)
  • Wonderob
    Wonderob Posts: 1,372 Member
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    You don't have to go to a Gym to exercise. if you hate it in all likelihood you wont keep at it long term. Maybe search out an exercise that you can do that you may enjoy that doesn't involve a gym.

    You don't have to go to the gym to do cardio, but there's really no substitute for lifting heavy weights.

    I envy those that enjoy the gym as I only go because it really does do me good. 3 times a week for the last 8 years despite finding it a horrible, painful ordeal!
  • allotmentgardener
    allotmentgardener Posts: 248 Member
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    I also hate the gym, not the equipment but being around other people as I'm very self conscious. I prefer doing stuff on my own. I do lots of walking (both with and without the dogs), we also walk as a family and I do other workouts at home (with only the dogs as spectators).
    For those who love the gym it is perfect, for those who don't there are lots of other options, I personally would always try to exercise though, it make me feel better both physically and mentally.
  • Catfriend25
    Catfriend25 Posts: 95
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    Adorable horse! I'm sorry to hear about the diabetes *hugs* and it sounds like You hate the environment of the gym :'(

    I would not exercise the way I do if I wasn't fat (Insanity, 30 Day Shred, Killer EVERY day plus walking/cycling). It makes me dizzy and my body is in pain all the time but I have no choice because I am fat. If I were not fat, I would just do walking, cycling, and swimming, and not every single day through sick and cold.

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