Bored at the gym...

get_it_gone2012
get_it_gone2012 Posts: 214
edited September 23 in Fitness and Exercise
How do you stay motivated doing cardio at the gym? I read posts of people staying on machines like the elliptical for 45 min at a time... I can barely stay on for 15! And not because I'm tired, I get bored! My brain is like "okay, enough of this... I need to do something else!"
I want to be able to get a good cardio workout, but it rains a lot here and running in the rain is only fun once in a while, and the pool is only open so often...
Help!!!

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Replies

  • catniss
    catniss Posts: 326 Member
    Have you tried listening to audiobooks? Pick a really fun book and don't listen to it except for when you're on the elliptical (or treadmill or whatever)--you'll find the time goes fast and you can't wait until the next session. the only thing is to be sure to keep up your pace, 'cause I think people tend to slow down a bit.
    Good luck.
  • skinnyme125
    skinnyme125 Posts: 396 Member
    listen to music, or watch T.V. when working out. At one of the gyms here they have a T.V. over every other machine and they leave the remote close by so you can change it if nobody else is watching it. Just a thought.
  • Catzwitch
    Catzwitch Posts: 205 Member
    I love gyms that have TV's - they make time fly by for me. Either that, or I load tv shows or other vids on the ipod and set it where I can watch it on the machine. If my brain is busy paying attention to something else, I don't notice it nearly as much. :)
  • skinnyme125
    skinnyme125 Posts: 396 Member
    this seems like a great Idea. I may have to try this.
  • cris12
    cris12 Posts: 90
    are you going to gyms with televisions? I personally find it tough to concentrate on a television show while working out, so I just listen to my ipod and turn on heavy music that keeps me going.

    I usually do a combination of strength training and cardio after. Strength training for around 45mins (about 5 different exercises, mixed up, so it doesn't get dull), then run for around 15 minutes. If you combine different things you can always spice it up a bit.
  • sarahliftsUP
    sarahliftsUP Posts: 752 Member
    I need music when I'm at the gym. You need to get a playlist that gets you moving! Try to aim for 20 minutes on a machine, with the cooldown included and then work your way up to 25 minutes.
  • Maidei
    Maidei Posts: 114 Member
    I used to have the same problem but started listening to pod casts, working out with a friend or watching tv. Or you might want to start doing your cardio a different way. Like buy dance dvd's or taebo or something fun like that depending on what your interest is. Cause that why you will feel you having fun while burning the calories.
  • stricnine
    stricnine Posts: 5 Member
    So far you have been given some good advice. How often do you do cardi? That could also play a part in you becoming bored with the exercise. If you also do weight training, try switching cardio and weights so that some days you do cardio first then other days you do weights first. Or try using different cardio machines like the treadmill or the stairmaster. Not forgetting that stationary bikes are also cardio trainers.
  • cmrich0511
    cmrich0511 Posts: 31
    I generally don't stay on any particular machine longer than 25-30 minutes at a time. BUT, I get bored too lol. I bounce around between listening to my iPod, reading a book (on the bike, not treadmill or elliptical lol), or watching one of the TVs at the gym. Sometimes if I'm super bored, I'll text the time away haha. I have a friend who used to be kind of a countability partner, and she's the first person I think of when I'm killing some calories on the stationary bike :) I'll be glad when my new iPhone comes in, so I can watch TV/movies on it too!

    Idk what gym you belong to, but if its a good size, maybe suggest they add a "cardio cinema?" I'm a member at Gold's, and they have a cinema room that's dark with a large drop down projector type screen & they show movies and have the room filled with treadmills, elliptical machines, and bikes. I love it in there...
  • Ally_Clare
    Ally_Clare Posts: 355 Member
    If you are still going on the machines for 15 min that's still okay. Why not just go on a different machine every 15 min like treadmill, crosstrainer, rowing machine, bike etc. Orr join in on a class :)
  • YeaILift
    YeaILift Posts: 580 Member
    Push yourself harder.
  • lisuhhx
    lisuhhx Posts: 14
    I have Netflix on my phone, so I watch episodes of "The Office." Doing 30 minutes on the elliptical goes by so quickly after watching something that is interesting. If you have the capabilities, you should try watching some TV episodes you enjoy! :)
  • jamezyjamez
    jamezyjamez Posts: 41
    I like interval training on a cardio machine as a way to mix things up...and it has accelerated my results as well!
  • dakotasky
    dakotasky Posts: 21
    I am on the treadnill for a hour or two six days a week . What helped me was my friend said you have to make the treadmill you B..... ! So the next day, I went to the gym with a "what's my name attitude" and downloaded lot of dance music on the ipod. Now I am known as the gilr that dances on the treadmill but that is ok and in a few months I will that hot girl that dances on the treadmill! :wink:
  • kelika71
    kelika71 Posts: 778 Member
    I'll be the first to tell you, I hate working out. Hate it with a passion. I do it because I have to and that's that. What gets me through? I first plan out my meals so I know what I have to do. Then, I decide if I'm going to do it all at once or break it up throughout the day. When I get going, my mind is set to make it to the end, come Hell or high water. When I feel like giving up, I make myself go another 5 min...then, another 5...another 5... Before you know it, your session is done and you'll feel better for having completed it.

    Good luck!!
  • digit78
    digit78 Posts: 177
    Im the same, get bored easy. Thats why i took up boxing as way to keep me doing cardio.
  • mmanderr18
    mmanderr18 Posts: 80 Member
    I rewarded myself with a Cosmo subscription with the catch being I can only read it when I'm at the gym!
  • poisongirl6485
    poisongirl6485 Posts: 1,487 Member
    Push yourself harder.

    What stellar, insightful advice. :/
  • YeaILift
    YeaILift Posts: 580 Member
    Push yourself harder.

    What stellar, insightful advice. :/

    Your sarcasm isn't appreciated.

    It is impossible to be bored if you have a high level of intensity when exercising by always pushing your physical limit with every workout.
  • cutmd
    cutmd Posts: 1,168 Member
    Push yourself harder.

    What stellar, insightful advice. :/

    Your sarcasm isn't appreciated.

    It is impossible to be bored if you have a high level of intensity when exercising by always pushing your physical limit with every workout.

    Sorry, I'm forced to agree that YeaILift's advice is sound. High intensity, especially when combined with an awesome playlist, makes boredom impossible.

    I see a lot of people just kinda chugging along on the machines, I'd be bored too if I did it like that. As it is, I'm busy trying to breathe and push my heart rate and speed to new heights. It's the difference between sitting in class versus learning something amazing; or having I can't fall asleep" or "I gotta get rid of this erection" sex and the mind-blowing kind. . One can be boring, the other simply cannot. :wink:
  • downtome
    downtome Posts: 529 Member
    I'm like you, I can do the work but I tend to get bored rather quickly and just don't want to be on the machine anymore! First, I make myself do it by having a great upbeat playlist on my ipod, then when I start with the mind games in my head like I'm done, or I don't want to do anymore, I just try and focus on something else or try and get into a zone, like zoning out so I don't think about too much. I also keep telling myself one more song, then another and another, before I know it, I'm done and feel great for doing my 30 minutes which is all I can do right now and considering my fitness level, thats good for me!

    Tonight I actually did my keetlebell workout for almost 30 minutes and I surprised myself because when it comes to exercise DVD's I have a hard time pushing myself to just do it. Once you get started it tends to become easier. Just keep trying and do the best you can, you don't have to do 60 minutes or even 45 minutes, 30 minutes is good, even 20 minutes for starters. You can do it! A littel more each day, start small. Good luck!
  • digit78
    digit78 Posts: 177
    Push yourself harder.

    What stellar, insightful advice. :/

    Your sarcasm isn't appreciated.

    It is impossible to be bored if you have a high level of intensity when exercising by always pushing your physical limit with every workout.

    Sorry, I'm forced to agree that YeaILift's advice is sound. High intensity, especially when combined with an awesome playlist, makes boredom impossible.

    I see a lot of people just kinda chugging along on the machines, I'd be bored too if I did it like that. As it is, I'm busy trying to breathe and push my heart rate and speed to new heights. It's the difference between sitting in class versus learning something amazing; or having I can't fall asleep" or "I gotta get rid of this erection" sex and the mind-blowing kind. . One can be boring, the other simply cannot. :wink:

    Or maybe for some people its just boring.

    eg I know one guy who hyperventilates with excitement when talking about fishing, however I it barely sparks my interest.

    Different strokes for different folks.
  • Veryan7
    Veryan7 Posts: 3 Member
    Music definately. Get some good paced tunes going that you love and its great. Also mix it up, do classes, weights, machines and something fun.

    I do boxing and its so much fun an hour goes in a flash and I dont really notice im exercising. The aching muscles and good muscle tone I get tell me I really am though!
  • loupammac
    loupammac Posts: 194 Member
    I need to have a great play-list. I might not listen to it but if I'm feeling out of the zone, I'll want it there. One time the gym had the radio down so low I couldn't hear it properly and it drove me insane. It was the longest workout ever. I was completely turned off my game. A book or magazine might help for the bike.

    Maybe you should try some fitness classes or get a trainer to shake up your cardio routine?
  • lhague
    lhague Posts: 258
    I am so happy you posted this. I am one of those annoying adults with ADD. It is hard to stay focused, just my mind has gone to the next thing. Anyway...when it happens, I will go to another machine, brisk walk of course. I do find that rowing intervals keeps me very interested and find I stay on it. I do intervals so you have to keep track of your pace, meters, etc. It is the only thing I find that keeps me interested. I do make it through the elliptical, but I do intervals on it also.
  • backinthenines
    backinthenines Posts: 1,083 Member
    There are two types of people:

    Those that think exercising is a chore that has to be done to achieve weight loss, something that is merely a means to an end. They approach exercising with a bad attitude from the outset, expecting not to enjoy it, and then look for any distraction to be able to "get through" it... whether thats's watching TV or reading a book on the treadmill... Their effort levels usually in some ways reflect their ill conceiled boredom.

    Then there are people who have found something they actually enjoy, and where the activity itself is actually not just a means to an end. They focus on what they're doing, work hard and don't need to be "distracted" to get through it.

    The key is to find something you enjoy!!
  • lhague
    lhague Posts: 258
    Generally agree with the analogy above. But there are people such as myself who love working out, who will ride her bike for miles, but to keep me focused I have to interval train to keep my mind interested.
  • poptastic
    poptastic Posts: 151 Member
    I could not stand doing cardio at the same rate for 20mins, so I do interval training with 60sec/30sec intervals, it's quite intense and you don't have time to get bored in between the fast bits because you are using all your concentration to get your breath back!

    Also, I have to have music on - make a playlist of tunes that motivate you. If I am slowing down/losing energy, the right tune can always get me going again :)
  • xstealth12x
    xstealth12x Posts: 43 Member
    Yeah, I'm agreeing with the "push yourself" camp. I find that I start to get bored when I'm jogging, then I'll decide to walk just because I'm bored, but instead, lately, I've been pushing myself to go harder for a minute. If I was jogging at 7mph, I'll run at 9-10mph for a minute, then you go back to 7 and appreciate it. Same with on the bike. I try to keep my RPM above 100, but the days where it's hovering 80-90, I push myself super hard for a minute, then slow it down a bit.
    Makes time go much faster because you're constantly either catching a breather, or concentrating on pushing yourself super hard
  • lhague
    lhague Posts: 258
    Yeah, I'm agreeing with the "push yourself" camp. I find that I start to get bored when I'm jogging, then I'll decide to walk just because I'm bored, but instead, lately, I've been pushing myself to go harder for a minute. If I was jogging at 7mph, I'll run at 9-10mph for a minute, then you go back to 7 and appreciate it. Same with on the bike. I try to keep my RPM above 100, but the days where it's hovering 80-90, I push myself super hard for a minute, then slow it down a bit.
    Makes time go much faster because you're constantly either catching a breather, or concentrating on pushing yourself super hard

    That's the key, interval, have to concentrate and you can't get bored.
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