Does anyone else dislike exercise?
Francl27
Posts: 26,371 Member
I keep seeing people who love working out, doing dvd programs etc... 1.5 year later I still don't. I force myself to do it, typically really doing half of it because I can't keep up. I've tried lots of different things. . None of that 'exercise high'. At this point I realize I just don't want it hard enough.
Is it just me?
Is it just me?
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Replies
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I'm In the same boat! I have to force myself everytime to work out. I think this Is why I haven't met my goal yet
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Our bodies were made to move, not be sedentary. That is why people feel better when they move. Moving does all kinds of good stuff to your body. I bet that if you tried the following, you might increase your chances of learning to enjoy exercising:
1) Allow yourself the time to build your fitness slowly and at a pace that feels comfortable for you. This means NOT comparing yourself to anyone else. Instead of trying to run for 20 minutes off the bat, walk first, then alternate running and walking, then slowly add in more running and less walking.
2) Experimenting with different forms of exercise to see what you enjoy. For example, hiking, tennis, swimming, walking, ultimate frisbee, etc. You don't ever have to do exercise videos if you don't like them. Let's say you discover that you love tennis. You might then want to do other exercises to help you get better at tennis (strength training or some cardio). If you love tennis, it might just motivate you to get stronger and fitter.
3) Explore how you think about exercise. You may have a fear of it, think of it in a negative way, etc. HOW you think about something greatly impacts your experience. You may need to reframe your negative thinking to something more positive.0 -
Nobody loves exercise. We do it for the benefits. It's part of being an adult, doing things we'd rather not.
That said, I am never sorry after a work out. But I am almost never pumped to go beforehand. It's always the reward afterward that makes me glad I did it.0 -
I really, really dislike exercise, but like previous comment, I feel awesome when I'm done and so glad I did it. I have however, found a LOVE for lifting!! thanks to some great people here on MFP and my personal trainer
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This is the kind of thing that happens to you when you are really really unfit. I should know I was there. If you push through it you will quickly learn to love exercise in a few weeks.
Thing is you have made such a habit out of being sedentary that your bodies set point for perceived exertion is ridiculously low. You do a tiny amount of exercise and feel like crap. And you never get to feel good because of that.
Trust me and push through it. It will get better. In fact it will get great. And if you keep going the way you are going you WILL have health problems. Like the last poster said your body was not meant to be as sedentary as you are.0 -
Our bodies were made to move, not be sedentary. That is why people feel better when they move. Moving does all kinds of good stuff to your body. I bet that if you tried the following, you might increase your chances of learning to enjoy exercising:
Technically, you are correct -- however, so is the OP. I feel my body was intended to lie on a chaise and be fed bonbons by a staff of eunuchs. I am currently in a recliner feeding myself blueberries and will force myself to move later because both of you are correct. I hate exercising and it makes me feel better. Dammit.0 -
Nobody loves exercise. We do it for the benefits. It's part of being an adult, doing things we'd rather not.
That said, I am never sorry after a work out. But I am almost never pumped to go beforehand. It's always the reward afterward that makes me glad I did it.
I love exercise. I take Les Mills classes and I'm something of an addict.
I'm also taking up running. Less of the love there but sometimes I have to hold myself back from going on a run (need a rest day, etc)
There's nothing wrong with getting ten minutes or half way through a DVD, OP. Just keep looking for something you like and do as much of it as you can or want to. As time goes on , you'll be able to and/or crave doing more0 -
I never used to enjoy it, but then I started seeing results, and found some workouts I really enjoyed - insanity and then p90x3.
Don't get me wrong, sometimes I do my workout because I should, not because I want to, but as the saying goes 'I really regretted that workout, said no one, ever!'0 -
I hate some exercise...but love some of it also. It is why it is so important to find something that you love doing.
I hate those videos...I am not fond of weight training (force myself to do it) but I love walking and hiking. So those two are what I look forward to doing...well...when it is not 100 degrees outside.
I look for exercise that will help me live the life that I want. If it will benefit me as I age...allow me to stay active...I do it.
My biggest waste of time...doing exercise just because the are the most popular.
Find what you enjoy...you will stick with it if you do.0 -
Nobody loves exercise.
Umm, it's my favorite time of day. I am absolutely pumped beforehand. I go to bed anxious for the next day's workout.
I know most other guys into bodybuilding feel the exact same. Surprising comment coming from a bikini competitor really.0 -
That's why I just do a daily walk though in the winter I do a few Leslie sansone indoor walks but find it gets boring! I like to be outside and I made goal nearly a year ago0
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Nobody loves exercise.
Umm, it's my favorite time of day. I am absolutely pumped beforehand. I go to bed anxious for the next day's workout.
I know most other guys into bodybuilding feel the exact same.
I've had nightmares about sleeping through my classes! :laugh:0 -
I'm sitting here with a broken ankle, blisters & a bunch of callus on my hands - not to mention blisters in my armpits...I'd LOVE to be back to where I left off before breaking my ankle on a friends boat - jogging 2 miles every other day
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I would have said that 15 years ago, and I still do with one glorious exception: outdoor walking. In 2002, then on my city's Zoning Commission, I thought it would be at least useful to walk and see every street in our 9 square miles. I colored in each walk on an old zoning map, soon found I could easily do 5 miles, often 10 or more. After that, I did another city. And another 20 cities including the Minneapolis (58 sq miles). I'm now about 60% done with St. Paul (56 sq miles). It's amazing what you can done even in winter months. So explore options - swimming, sports, martial arts, yoga, you might find your own exercise you like.0
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Our bodies were made to move, not be sedentary. That is why people feel better when they move. Moving does all kinds of good stuff to your body. I bet that if you tried the following, you might increase your chances of learning to enjoy exercising:
Technically, you are correct -- however, so is the OP. I feel my body was intended to lie on a chaise and be fed bonbons by a staff of goegeous fit men catering to my every whim *rubs thighs* I am currently in a recliner feeding myself blueberries and will force myself to move later because both of you are correct. I hate exercising and it makes me feel better. Dammit.
Fixed that for you. :flowerforyou: :laugh:0 -
Funny, in school days i always hated exercise. Probably because my metabolism was fast those days and no matter how much i ate, i wont get fat.
Now however, is a different story, i wished i started to exercise back then.
Long story short, i learned to love it. And now im proud to say i love lifting weights
P.S : i dont "love" cardio, but i'm still learning to.0 -
Nobody loves exercise. We do it for the benefits. It's part of being an adult, doing things we'd rather not.
That said, I am never sorry after a work out. But I am almost never pumped to go beforehand. It's always the reward afterward that makes me glad I did it.
not true.... a lot of people enjoy exercising. And there are also people who don't. I've even seen a scientific study that shows that some people enjoy exercise far more than others. Most people find that they like some kinds of exercise but hate others... I love skating and hate running, for example. But in terms of health, they're just as good as each other and I don't see any point in forcing myself to run, ever. I stick to exercise that I enjoy.
OP - If you really hate *all* forms of exercise - any activity that gets you moving around and/or carrying things will benefit your health. It doesn't have to be anything that you would formally categorise as "exercise". Brisk walking is sufficient to keep your heart and lungs healthy. What's important is that you're not sedentary. You can make walking or other physical activity functional if you find it hard to ever do it for enjoyment... e.g. walking to places instead of taking the car/bus; taking the stairs instead of the lift; carrying your shopping bags in from the car; anything that's going to get you moving. Using cardio machines while watching TV might help in distracting yourself from the fact that you're exercising, because you're focused on the TV. Try different ways of being active until you find something that works for you.0 -
I really enjoy exercise now but I used to hate it. I'm pretty sure that my opinion changed partially because I am more physically fit than I was when I started and partially because I found something I enjoy doing. I used to do 30 mins of cardio 4x a week and hated it. Then it got easier to do as I lost weight and I grew to tolerate it. I started lifting in March and really love it. I still do some cardio, but only as a brief warmup to lifting and one or 2 short workouts a week on days I don't lift.
If you don't like exercise, maybe you just haven't found one that you like to do yet.0 -
One more suggestion: get a FitBit. I wear a FitBit Zip on my belt 24/7 minus sleep, uploads to my PC via Bluetooth, and you can set it to update your MyFitnessPal account automatically as well. Move enough, and MFP will grant you extra budget calories. Even if you don't exercise formally, you might find it interesting what your baseline activity is like. Neat thing is that FitBit gives you credit for everything you do, like parking at the edge of parking lots. FitBit is the only exercise tracking I do and it's automatic.0
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Nobody loves exercise. We do it for the benefits. It's part of being an adult, doing things we'd rather not.
That said, I am never sorry after a work out. But I am almost never pumped to go beforehand. It's always the reward afterward that makes me glad I did it.
Nobody loves exercise?
Speak for yourself. Exercise can be fun. Go-go dancing, aerial arts, parkour, moshing, and kayaking are all exercise and I love doing all of those things.
I think the key is to find activity you actually enjoy. Some people aren't gym rats or cardio bunnies and there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. If you don't like the gym, don't go. No one is obligated to just because it's a common method.0 -
There are many sports that don't make my heart sing, but then there are those that are becoming one of my many happy places. I thought I didn't have an athletic bone in my body, but I've already finished couch-to-5K and showed myself how wrong I was.0
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I really dislike exercise. I don't enjoy being hot, sweaty, and out of breath. I don't feel better after I work out. I never get an adrenaline rush. I am usually pretty fatigued for hours afterwards. The ONLY reason I do it is so I can eat a comfortable (for me) amount of calories in a day. Instead of forcing myself to do those workouts 5x a week, now I only do them about 1 - 2x a week, which is much more manageable to me. I found other ways to burn calories.
A few months ago, I started an all ages martial arts class with my kids. I am REALLY enjoying it, but it doesn't burn a ton of calories. I also bought a desk cycle and use that when I am at the computer or watching TV. (Which is about 3 hours a day). It burns about 100 calories an hour at the pace I go. Between a workout dvd, martial arts, and the desk cycle, I burn about 3500 calories a week, which is making a huge impact on my weight loss.0 -
I truly hate exercising. The only thing that movitivates me is knowing that I am transforming my body and getting it towards how I want it to look. I also know that if I exercise more I can eat a little more. I truly don't know how some people love it. I've never felt that feeling. Like I said, I only know it's making me look better and feel better (like not getting out of breath after walking up a flight of stairs)0
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I hate it some days and love it others, but I absolutely agree that I almost NEVER am sorry for sucking it up and getting it done. The one exception is if I'm just really distracted or the workout itself is sucking hard and I'm bombing on lifts that I had no problem with the week before, then I get pissy. :explode:
Right now I'm cranky because I can't run as I'm letting a tendon injury heal up. Three weeks ago when I was running I had plenty of days that I tried every form of rationalization to get out of doing my run. Right now I'm so antsy and fidgety all I can think about is running and I can't! :sad:
The one common thread that I'm seeing in responses however, suck it up and do it anyways. Love it or hate it, you're better off getting the workout done than skipping it. :flowerforyou:0 -
There's a lot of exercise I dislike (a lot), but over the years there have been two types I've loved. In my teens/early 20s, it was martial arts. I'd probably still be really into it if it wasn't so damned expensive and if there was a decent dojo around. Now, in my 30s, I've discovered weightlifting. I used to HATE lifting weights - like, would do anything to avoid it - but since I tossed out the notion of "many reps, low weight" and started lifting heavy, I fell in love. Now that I've moved on to barbell training I'm totally hooked and look forward to my workouts - especially deadlift day, rawr.
It might not be true for everyone, but I think many people can/could find a sport or exercise that they really enjoy and that doesn't feel so much like a chore - more like play or "me time". I think it takes a willingness to experiment and think outside the box sometimes 0 -
Hey for my Friday gym day I headed out and got stormed on. Completely soaked through. You know what i did I want home waited for a couple of hours for the storm to pass then headed back out again in new clothes because I DID NOT WANT TO MISS MY WORKOUT.
One of the principle differences between a body with a bad level of fitness and a body with a good level of fitness is that you enjoy your workouts. A lot of people think this is wrong because frankly you can work out every day and not achieve a good level of fitness. In order to improve yourself to the degree that workouts become a pleasure rather than a pain you have to push yourself. Repeatedly. Just clocking in the hours in the gym with very little real exertion isn't enough to do it.
And this is coming from someone who once thought that exercise was a form of torture you endure to lose weight.
Trust me if you hate exercise it's because YOU are unfit. That or you have a medical condition. Exercise makes me feel strong healthy and alive.0 -
Uggh hate it so much! Especially pouring sweat! I force myself everytime but it does get easier...0
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Uggh hate it so much! Especially pouring sweat! I force myself everytime but it does get easier...
I very rarely pour sweat in the weight room. Some do some don't, but if getting sweaty is a major deterrent, heavy weights is much less likely to cause that, for me anyways.0 -
Nobody loves exercise. We do it for the benefits. It's part of being an adult, doing things we'd rather not.
That said, I am never sorry after a work out. But I am almost never pumped to go beforehand. It's always the reward afterward that makes me glad I did it.
Could not disagree more, I truly love to work out. I know a lot of people who love it....so yes, some do love exercise.0 -
I have to force myself to do it but once i've been at it for ten minutes i'll get over it and start liking what i'm doing. Also, feel great afterwards. However, i sweat so much and i really do not know why. Within five minutes i'm soaked.0
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