How to get motivated??

Missejo
Missejo Posts: 4 Member
edited September 2024 in Motivation and Support
I don't feel motivated enough to exercise and keep a healthy diet. For me it feel as if there is way too much pain involved and the reward isn't big enough. I'm not overweight - I've never been. I'm not fit... but since I'm tall, many people see me as thin. My friends often say to me, that they envy my body.... and yet I'm not happy with it at all... there are so many faults which I could correct with some exercise and eating healthy. But as I said...it's just way too much pain...

For example: Today I took a long walk with my dog (5K) and burned a lot of calories while doing it. During the walk I felt weak and dizzy. It was almost as if I couldn't get enough oxygen into my brain to not faint... and still I was breathing normal. My pulse was between 70 - 90% of max. throughout the walk. And when I got home I felt just pissed. My head hurt, I still felt dizzy and sleepy....

I took a shower and afterwards I crawled into my bed to get some sleep. 4 hours later (now this was in the afternoon) I wake up feeling great. But I have no desire to go out and exercise when it makes me feel cranky, dizzy and sleepy.

My husband (whom exercises daily and is in great shape) tells me how proud he is over me training and courages me to keep on doing it. But that doesn't motivate me at all.


So, where should I look for motivation? How to create a goal for myself which could feel as a huge reward and push me to exercise although I feel pain doing it?

Replies

  • Steph_135
    Steph_135 Posts: 3,284 Member
    In the past, I've tried to run, just for fun, like to the car if someone is picking me up, or down the road if I'm in a hurry.

    What I found was, my mind and body want to do things, but I just don't have the strength (leg muscles, and lung capacity) to do them.

    One of my big motivators is that I want to be able to do what I want to do with ease. It's tough when you wanna run, and you're lungs aren't strong enough. :angry:

    About being dizzy, make sure you are breathing deeply enough, and not shallowly.
  • Missejo
    Missejo Posts: 4 Member
    Thanks for the advise...

    I think that for me it's like other way around. I don't want to do anything, because I don't have any motivation. I know that I do have some strength to do things, since I can keep on doing physical things around my house for several hours without getting tired.
    What I'm trying to say is that I think that I have a mental block, which makes it hard for me to get motivated to exercise.
  • Missejo
    Missejo Posts: 4 Member
    I would love to do some exercise indoors, since it's still pretty cold outside. I just bought a hula hoop and was thinking of using it to tone my belly. What else could I do with it? And are there any easy yoga poses to do at home? I have a book about yoga at home, but the poses just feel weird. And after trying to complete all the 12 poses I felt exhausted by number 7 - and could not complete it at all... I was just thinking "so much for a relaxing workout..". =)
  • feelingalone
    feelingalone Posts: 24 Member
    I have a good friend who is similar to you. When you do exercise you feel icky and headachy...she had to go to the doc and found out that if she exercised too much or too hard, she gets migranes. she has to do low impact stuff and just watch what she eats. She has lost about 20 pounds by relaxing and just eating right before she goes on.
    Take small steps and relax a bit, then go on for a little more...as long as you are not making yourself sick!
  • Missejo
    Missejo Posts: 4 Member
    Thanks for sharing that!
    I would love to exercise on low impact. If someone would tell me, that I don't have to walk at least 5K/day to get fit - that it's enough if I just walk like 1K or a mile a day, I would love it! But I'm afraid, that if I don't exercise on high impact, that I might not see any results soon enough. It's only 5 weeks until summer and I still have at least 20lbs to lose.

    When I was younger I would stay on a strict diet for couple of weeks and lose like 10 - 20lbs. It just seems as if I am not able to reach that kind of numbers anymore. Funny thing was that after that diet I could hold the weight like couple of years.
  • Steph_135
    Steph_135 Posts: 3,284 Member
    I would love to do some exercise indoors, since it's still pretty cold outside. I just bought a hula hoop and was thinking of using it to tone my belly. What else could I do with it? And are there any easy yoga poses to do at home? I have a book about yoga at home, but the poses just feel weird. And after trying to complete all the 12 poses I felt exhausted by number 7 - and could not complete it at all... I was just thinking "so much for a relaxing workout..". =)
    Hula hoops are great!! Don't be scared if you bruise a little a first. That'll go away! My friend and I made some, and they are awesome, but I'm gonna be buying a weighted one soon, for more cardio.

    In the book "Keep the Connection" by Bob Greene, there's a chapter (chapter 1) called "Motivation" it's a great read! And a pretty small book.

    As for low impact, I bought this DVD and think it's a great workout (if you play music over her constant talking after a while)... http://www.t-tapp.com/try/index.html Maybe try some of the videos out and see if you like it!
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