Creating the habit of exercise?
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Three years ago I lost 45 lbs and was going to the gym 6 days a week. I had a goal and was working towards it. Then life intervened it got harder for me to keep up with it all. Unfortunately for me gym time was cut due to a work IT conversion. I noticed right away when my good habits that I had worked so hard to establish were quickly replaced by long hours and quick meals. I was amazed at how quick the good habits were hard to adhere to. I gained weight felt my energy sputter. I regretted it, beat myself up about it. I personally felt that I failed while I poured all I had into work. Work was successful however, now I am starting over again of the people I see here, if you find the balance to everything that is what makes all the difference. There has to be balance in ones life it's something I constantly work at and for those who have it I salute you, and hope you will throw me a rope! Ha
It is likely that bad habits - things we automatically fall into the practice of doing but are not productive to health or well-being - are always there - they are easy to fall back into because they have their own reward set (quick meals are tasty and leave time..., etc.)
If, in fact, once ingrained as practices we don't really lose them we somehow need to manage them or block them? I'm not sure about the how. But certainly it's important to be able to recognize when we fall back down into poor habits.0 -
You know how they talk about how some people are genetically more trainable -- how some people make aerobic gains more easily than others? I think I am one of those people. For people like me, the rewards come more easily. I don't need so many cues to get out the door and/or so much motivation to stay disciplined. The pleasure comes easily.
Because it comes easy to me, I enjoy it. And as most have said, enjoyment is the key. You will stay with something -- and the habit will develop -- if you enjoy it. For some people, finding what they enjoy will come easier. I can lace up my shoes and start jogging, and I enjoy it. For someone with a different makeup, there may be more discomfort involved in that and they are going to have a harder time finding what they enjoy.
But they can, obviously. Maybe they just need to start, and stay with, an easier program for longer -- until it becomes easier and the habit gets established.0 -
EvgeniZyntx wrote: »The two things that come to mind are making the exercise as convenient as possible and making the exercise as rewarding or enjoyable as possible.
For the enjoyment factor I attempt to foster this in clients by helping them become good at certain movements and getting them on a structured program that gets them stronger and we track that metric so that they can see the improvement taking place (weight on the bar goes up --> client feels empowered --> client wants to keep improving).
I think you're asking the right question. Also in for discussion because this is a great topic that extends beyond exercise compliance as well.
It does - the underlying question is really about behavior change - if you notice - the people answering this thread are already all partakers of exercise and have a habit. Underneath all the "how did this come about?" is "how can this be actively applied to modify how we behave in other areas?"
For example - here is a simplistic one - I keep chocolate in the cupboard - I love it and can easily eat all of it, but I now practice moderation - I was very much before: open cupboard: see the chocolate (cue) eat the chocolate (routine) mouthgasm (reward). I broke that by simply moving the chocolate to a less travelled cupboard. Other people might be more radical in how they break habit (tossing out food, etc...)
Understanding how habit functions and if it can be manipulated as we want is a an interesting area of discussion.
I think tweaks like this, that set the stage for action by reducing the energy required to either start a desirable activity or inhibit an undesirable one, are great. Willpower is overrated.0 -
You know how they talk about how some people are genetically more trainable -- how some people make aerobic gains more easily than others? I think I am one of those people. For people like me, the rewards come more easily. I don't need so many cues to get out the door and/or so much motivation to stay disciplined. The pleasure comes easily.
Because it comes easy to me, I enjoy it. And as most have said, enjoyment is the key. You will stay with something -- and the habit will develop -- if you enjoy it. For some people, finding what they enjoy will come easier. I can lace up my shoes and start jogging, and I enjoy it. For someone with a different makeup, there may be more discomfort involved in that and they are going to have a harder time finding what they enjoy.
But they can, obviously. Maybe they just need to start, and stay with, an easier program for longer -- until it becomes easier and the habit gets established.
Sometimes you gotta fake it until you start making it.
And the rewards start later. I might not be the biggest fan of running but I can certainly reward myself by counting the km's. I'll get there again - I hope.
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AllonsYtotheTardis wrote: »I make it a part of my routine. I'm a creature of habit, and I like repetitive schedules for weekdays... It helps me remember where and when I need to be. So, I make the exercise part of that routine. If I don't exercise, something feels off.
Yep, that's me. I go every weekday because if I skip a day, it's too easy to skip the next day. Not every workout is full effort on those days when I would have rather stayed in bed. But the routine of going every weekday is just that - my routine. And I work better in a routine.0 -
I too believe that if you find something that you enjoy, you will continue to do it. I love lifting weights and look forward to going to the gym. I do have times when I don't want to go/feel tired/lazy etc. but I make myself. I remind myself that I will feel great afterwards.0
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So, I might be sort of like you. I really don't enjoy exercise, though there are some kinds that I hate less than others, and a workout or the feeling of accomplishment can be pretty satisfying. But once I get out of the habit, even for a short time, it's very hard to get back into it. So I tend to be "all or nothing" at the gym, like a year or two of working out 4x/week, followed by a year or two of letting my membership lapse. I'm lucky that my gym has 3 month subscriptions with no initiation fee or automatic rollover!
My husband is a creature of habit. When he wanted to start running, he blocked out the time on his calendar like any other appointment, Three years later, he still goes 3x / week. He also got a personal trainer, so his appointments really are set in stone.
I'm the opposite. I'm spontaneous, and I don't like doing the same thing all the time. So developing 'habits' is harder for me, and maybe not even desireable. For me the "habit" is: log your food, log your exercise, and burn more than you eat. If that's the goal, going to the gym or going for a walk is a side effect.
I do put my gym clothes on in the morning if I think I'm going to work out.
I bought an exercise bike and put it smack in the middle of the living room. I now have a habit of biking each evening for at least an hour while I watch TV
I have certain TV shows I ONLY watch on the elliptical or bike. I always have a binge-watching series (whatever Im enjoying the most on netflix) which is reserved for the gym.
I got a fitbit, and befriended a few people at work. We set each other daily challenges (not every day, but sometimes). I am VERY competitive, so on those days I have to make time for exercise or be humiliated
There's been a few times the challenge was enough to get me moving on what otherwise would have been a low-movement day.
I also have a few "rewards" (yes, I'm like a trained seal). the biggest one for me is logging my exercise minutes on MFP. I like when it goes up on my feed and I get those "likes" from my MFP friends. I love seeing what everyone else is doing and it feels like we're all in it together,
I don't know what will happen when the next "life event" gets in the way - someone gets sick, someone dies, work gets harder, childcare changes. These are the events that have historically disrupted my ability to exercise. Hopefully I'll be able to keep it a priority, but the truth is sometimes other stuff will get in the way, because I just don't love exercise the way some people do. I understand that for some people exercise relieves stress or adds energy or improves their mood. For me, it's one more thing on the tasklist, and it makes me feel more tired/less energetic afterwards, not more, so if I'm already running on empty, it will probably have to go.
I'm trying to redefine myself as an athletic person, which may also make a difference. Ask me in two years 0 -
Just look in the mirror. That's about it. If you absolutely love what you see, get your *kitten* to the gym or out on a run to keep yourself looking that good. If you're like the rest of us though, and see some room for improvement... get your *kitten* to the gym or out on a run to get yourself looking good. You don't have to love liftimg, or running, or cycling... like every Nike commercial ever... JUST DO IT!!! You just need to accept the fact that it's a nessasary evil to get yourself looking and feeling the way you want, so either enjoy it or suffer through it, whatever gets it done, then reap the benefits.0
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My least favorite piece of advice on threads like this is always "find something you enjoy". I've been going to the gym or running, on and off, for 30 YEARS. I still don't like the activity, I only like the results. The only way I get through it is by turning off my brain and numbing the pain with music or movies. In the days before phones, I'd sometimes get to the gym and discover I forgot my ipod. I'd turn around and go home because that is simply not happening.
The only athletic activities I truly love are ones that are expensive and require exotic locales, like skiing, sailing, kayaking, and snorkelling. Not exactly the backbone of a fitness routine for a busy working mom, lol. I don't like biking outside. I hate hiking with a passion. Swimming laps is boring because no music. Walking is tedious and doesn't burn enough calories per hour to be worthwhile. I don't like sunburn or bugs. And I'd rather take a hockey puck to the teeth than join a sports team of any kind. So the gym is the least objectionable of all the possible activities. And I still don't like it.
For some of us exercise will always be like going to work - something you do because you have to. And that's OK, as long as you do it. How do you motivate yourself to go to work? Although actually, that's not a fair metaphor because 9 times out of 10 I'd rather be at work than at the gym.0 -
My least favorite piece of advice on threads like this is always "find something you enjoy". I've been going to the gym or running, on and off, for 30 YEARS. I still don't like the activity, I only like the results. The only way I get through it is by turning off my brain and numbing the pain with music or movies. In the days before phones, I'd sometimes get to the gym and discover I forgot my ipod. I'd turn around and go home because that is simply not happening.
The only athletic activities I truly love are ones that are expensive and require exotic locales, like skiing, sailing, kayaking, and snorkelling. Not exactly the backbone of a fitness routine for a busy working mom, lol. I don't like biking outside. I hate hiking with a passion. Swimming laps is boring because no music. Walking is tedious and doesn't burn enough calories per hour to be worthwhile. I don't like sunburn or bugs. And I'd rather take a hockey puck to the teeth than join a sports team of any kind. So the gym is the least objectionable of all the possible activities. And I still don't like it.
For some of us exercise will always be like going to work - something you do because you have to. And that's OK, as long as you do it. How do you motivate yourself to go to work? Although actually, that's not a fair metaphor because 9 times out of 10 I'd rather be at work than at the gym.
I am leaning towards this. I do two workouts. One I found I enjoy, the other not so much. My reward is progress ans success. You could also make goal.
If I work out X amount of days for x amount of time. I'll treat myself to y.
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EvgeniZyntx wrote: »You know how they talk about how some people are genetically more trainable -- how some people make aerobic gains more easily than others? I think I am one of those people. For people like me, the rewards come more easily. I don't need so many cues to get out the door and/or so much motivation to stay disciplined. The pleasure comes easily.
Because it comes easy to me, I enjoy it. And as most have said, enjoyment is the key. You will stay with something -- and the habit will develop -- if you enjoy it. For some people, finding what they enjoy will come easier. I can lace up my shoes and start jogging, and I enjoy it. For someone with a different makeup, there may be more discomfort involved in that and they are going to have a harder time finding what they enjoy.
But they can, obviously. Maybe they just need to start, and stay with, an easier program for longer -- until it becomes easier and the habit gets established.
Sometimes you gotta fake it until you start making it.
And the rewards start later. I might not be the biggest fan of running but I can certainly reward myself by counting the km's. I'll get there again - I hope.
Absolutely. Rules like "do something every day" help you learn that motivation can be irrelevant - that it's often better to let action precede and direct emotion. (Assuming that like most people, once you get there, you wind up feeling uplifted anyway, just due to the physiological effects of cardio if that's what you're doing, or to the boost to self-esteem ("I've done it, I'm here, well done me").)0 -
My least favorite piece of advice on threads like this is always "find something you enjoy". I've been going to the gym or running, on and off, for 30 YEARS. I still don't like the activity, I only like the results. The only way I get through it is by turning off my brain and numbing the pain with music or movies. In the days before phones, I'd sometimes get to the gym and discover I forgot my ipod. I'd turn around and go home because that is simply not happening.
The only athletic activities I truly love are ones that are expensive and require exotic locales, like skiing, sailing, kayaking, and snorkelling. Not exactly the backbone of a fitness routine for a busy working mom, lol. I don't like biking outside. I hate hiking with a passion. Swimming laps is boring because no music. Walking is tedious and doesn't burn enough calories per hour to be worthwhile. I don't like sunburn or bugs. And I'd rather take a hockey puck to the teeth than join a sports team of any kind. So the gym is the least objectionable of all the possible activities. And I still don't like it.
For some of us exercise will always be like going to work - something you do because you have to. And that's OK, as long as you do it. How do you motivate yourself to go to work? Although actually, that's not a fair metaphor because 9 times out of 10 I'd rather be at work than at the gym.
You get nothing from running itself? Not even that meditative feeling?0 -
EvgeniZyntx wrote: »You know how they talk about how some people are genetically more trainable -- how some people make aerobic gains more easily than others? I think I am one of those people. For people like me, the rewards come more easily. I don't need so many cues to get out the door and/or so much motivation to stay disciplined. The pleasure comes easily.
Because it comes easy to me, I enjoy it. And as most have said, enjoyment is the key. You will stay with something -- and the habit will develop -- if you enjoy it. For some people, finding what they enjoy will come easier. I can lace up my shoes and start jogging, and I enjoy it. For someone with a different makeup, there may be more discomfort involved in that and they are going to have a harder time finding what they enjoy.
But they can, obviously. Maybe they just need to start, and stay with, an easier program for longer -- until it becomes easier and the habit gets established.
Sometimes you gotta fake it until you start making it.
And the rewards start later. I might not be the biggest fan of running but I can certainly reward myself by counting the km's. I'll get there again - I hope.
Absolutely. Rules like "do something every day" help you learn that motivation can be irrelevant - that it's often better to let action precede and direct emotion. (Assuming that like most people, once you get there, you wind up feeling uplifted anyway, just due to the physiological effects of cardio if that's what you're doing, or to the boost to self-esteem ("I've done it, I'm here, well done me").)
Totally agree!
On habit in general, I read somewhere a long time ago "it takes 30 days to make or break a habit". Lol...for some reason that always stuck with me, so I also agree with "fake it until you make it". It usually does take about that long before something is no longer something I make myself do (or not do), but just what I do.
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I'm a big fan of the habits book. You really can deliberately build new habits that overpower old ones. The research is fascinating.
A couple blogs I wrote on the book: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/ihad/view/the-power-of-habit-part-1-why-habits-matter-6881300 -
I have had to change my frame of reference. I have lost weight in the past and worked out, but never did strength training and I would also come up with unrealistic goals such as go to the gym for 2 hours a day and do cardio. Inevitably I would gain all the weight back.
So the first thing I've had to do is figure out what I need to do to get optimal results and for me that includes a combination of cardio and strength training. I have no obligations on the weekend so I have 2 workout days right there and then I just have to fit in 2 more days during the week. It's actually not that difficult when I break it down like that. On all 4 days I do 5 miles of cardio and 2 of those days 1 hour reserved for either body pump/strength work/heavy lifting/calisthenics.
Now I have asked myself what is it that I value about eating right and working out and it has really made it easier. I essentially came up with 2 answers: The first is that I love clothes and fashion, and this is much more fun when I'm a size 4-6 as opposed to a size 10. Another thing that I value is that sense of well-being. My body is really sensitive to what I put in it, probably b/c I am a celiac. When I overeat and don't exercise I feel like HELL. So when I don't feel like getting moving I remind myself of these two things. Just keep reminding myself of what I value and it's not as easy to stay home stuffing myself and doing nothing.0 -
No, I do not get a meditative feeling from running. I get a feeling of "wow, this sucks even more than I remembered", which stops when I stop running.
I do enjoy the smug, self-satisfied feeling that comes from having worked out while other people sat on their butts So there's that.
I just hate exercise. But I do it anyway. "No whining, no excuses, no quitting." Ok, maybe a little whining, lol.0 -
In the beginning I formed a habit of lifting by making a plan to go three days per week (always the same 3 days) and treating it like my job. The reward was that I felt stronger and healthier and saw aesthetic changes that were positive.
Right now I'm mostly still doing it because of fear. Fear of weakness, fear of losing my muscle, fear of feeling like a "sick person" again-- it's not ideal. There's very little reward in it because any physical activity (even walking) makes me feel worse. The closest thing I'm getting to a reward is the grim satisfaction that it sucked but I did it anyway.
Mine may not be typical (for most people exercise isn't going to induce bouts of crippling muscle weakness) and I expect this bad spell to pass.0 -
When I first started exercising, I told myself I had to try it for 6 weeks - in my case, this meant swimming 3 times a week for half an hour, which was something I felt was accessible as I used to enjoy swimming lessons as a child/younger teenager. I was never really big, but my main downfall was having dessert every day. I cut them out, and told myself I could only have something sweet after dinner if it was a swim day. I did have to really push myself through the first few weeks, but then I started to enjoy how relaxed I felt when I got out of the pool, and the feeling of success and satisfaction when I could swim an extra length or go a bit faster than before. I started sleeping better and I lost a few pounds that first month. I then joined the gym and a few years after that started running. I had to be strict with myself to establish the habit, but now I feel very motivated to continue. The gym is MY time. Going for a run is stress relief to me (and means I can eat and drink more of what I like).
I do think you have to find something you can stick with. Lots of people like team sports or group classes - I don't mind meeting a friend at the gym or having a quick chat while I'm there, but generally I like to work out alone and I like to compete only with myself. I still try to enforce my 'no sweets if no sweat' rule, and I aim for a rough average of 4 sessions a week, with no more than 2 days off between.
Those people that have highlighted discipline are right - you have to make yourself do it until it becomes natural and no big deal, like other things we do by habit like brushing our teeth/tidying up etc., or until you start to enjoy it and accept it as part of everyday life. You will get something from exercise, whether that's personal satisfaction, new social contacts, a hotter body, faster sprints, an hour to yourself away from the kids, whatever it is that does it for you. But you will feel the benefit in some capacity if you stick with it!0 -
Nobody has touched my reason---I have to. I have OA and wake up stiff and sore every morning. I usually do 45 mins of stretching to limber up, and then go to the pool 4 times a week. Without this, I have more pain. While swimming my mind wanders and this is precious since I'm busy all day with family things and have no time for myself. I must admit I am a person of habit, and when I commit to something I just do it, period. It never occurs to me to quit or not do it.
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I'm a big fan of the habits book. You really can deliberately build new habits that overpower old ones. The research is fascinating.
A couple blogs I wrote on the book: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/ihad/view/the-power-of-habit-part-1-why-habits-matter-688130
Ha, if there was someone here that had done that and done it well... It had to be you. Thanks for that. I guess I missed it when you wrote it.
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