How did you find your exercise?

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  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,683 Member
    fitoverfortymom wrote: »
    How did YOU find it? What made fitness become as much a part of you as breathing?

    I grew up in a cycling household, surrounded by bicycles, cycling magazines, bicycle stuff. Both my parents cycle ... and so did I. It's what I've done since I was 6 years old.

    My family was also into walking and hiking a lot ... so I do that too.

    Those are things which have been part of my life from the very beginning. I can't imagine life without them.


    Plus I'll dabble in other stuff like weight lifting, yoga, canoeing, swimming, etc.

  • JeanieWww
    JeanieWww Posts: 4,037 Member
    I went to the YMCA and they took measurements and i filled out some questions. They came back with a strength training program for me where I use many different machines (for weights). Days I don't strength train, I make sure to do cardio (helps burn off the lactic acid). I find a good playlist helps me not focus so much on what I'm doing while on the treadmill or bike. Sometimes they have the TV on, and that's nice too. On warm days, I take my walk outside, sometimes different walking paths or routes help break up the monotony of it.
  • canadianlbs
    canadianlbs Posts: 5,199 Member
    bikes didn't click for me until i had a reason for riding that was not 'exercise'. then it all kind of came back together and most of my commutes have that sensation to them still, of being 10 years old and lighting out like huck finn with a 'picnic' wrapped up in a handkerchief.

    so that was one thing. lifting was the other, and i think it fits in with the fact that i am just not a person who works out for the sake of just working out. i need a destination. it has to have a meaning for me that is outside of 'you need to exercise because blah blah scold snore'. or i won't do it because i feel like my arm is being twisted and nothing is worth putting up with that.
  • fitoverfortymom
    fitoverfortymom Posts: 3,452 Member
    I didn't mean to abandon this thread. I love all of your stories. I figure I'm going to try a bit of everything and see what sticks. I read NROLFW a few months ago. It wasn't life changing like I expected it to be, but I backed up and just ordered Starting Strength (and The Barbell Prescription). Based on what I know I want from my goals (a strong, muscular body and an overall active lifestyle), I know that lifting is what I must do. I just have to break through my own personal crap to get there and do it right.

    I do enjoy biking, though, and as the weather warms, I'm going to give commuting to work on my bike one day a week a try (and hopefully work up to 2-3 days). Hubby and I share a car, so this would actually allow me to leave a little earlier than I usually do and get to the office sooner. It's a one hour ride according to Google Maps, but a good path out of traffic most of the way. Like @canadianlbs, fitness is a side effect of the ride, but it's a ride with a purpose (getting to work!). I can bring my bike on the train on the route home, so no worries about being "stuck."
  • estherdragonbat
    estherdragonbat Posts: 5,283 Member
    I've always been a walker. Not a power-walker, but a couple of hours at a leisurely pace takes off calories, too. And I have a fitness glider in my basement, so I guess I found it by walking downstairs and deciding to dust it off.

    As far as strength training, I walked into a fitness store and told them that I was a raw beginner and was losing weight, but wanted to start working on strength, too. They suggested either fitness tubes or dumbbells, and I went with the tubes because I'd walked over there in 45 minutes and I didn't know if I wanted to do the return trip with several more pounds of weights.
  • croftie4
    croftie4 Posts: 221 Member
    Kettlebells for me

    I've been enjoying kettlebells for 2 years now but it's only recently that I've gone heavy. I'm absolutely loving it, I love the workouts, the feeling of complishment and my changing body.
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
    edited March 2017
    fitoverfortymom wrote: »
    How did YOU find it? What made fitness become as much a part of you as breathing?

    I predominantly run. I started to do it for fitness, rather than because the job demanded it, because i needed an activity that was easy to facilitate. I was doing a lot of work related travel, so running involved a sports bag in the car and a hotel with reasonable access to routes.

    I did C25K, and continued that for a bit before needing some motivation. I did a 5K race and didn't enjoy it. So decided to go longer; 10K then Half Marathon. That's when i started to enjoy racing, which gives my training purpose.

    The community is great, but running is a solitary sport. I train on my own, but come together with friends for events. I'll run, or marshal, or take race photographs. I also do a bit of coaching nowadays.

    Being able to give something back is now a big part of it. My favourite events now are ultras.

    My X-training, yoga, plyometrics and cycling are largely aimed at supporting my running.
  • MelissaPhippsFeagins
    MelissaPhippsFeagins Posts: 8,063 Member
    Believe it or not, I went to the gym to spot my husband on bench press. I only tried it out of boredom during his rest time and I love it.
  • MostlyWater
    MostlyWater Posts: 4,294 Member
    I have a gym membership. I try most of the new classes. It's fun!
  • sakat726
    sakat726 Posts: 20 Member
    For me it's (mostly) cycling, although that morphed into triathlon. But cycling just kind of came to me. I always had liked riding my bike as a kid, and when I was in college I decided to buy a road bike and try it out. And I loved it! I loved the freedom: you head out on your bike, and soon you're miles away, finding new roads you didn't know existed and enjoying scenery. I have taken some long breaks from cycling when life got too busy or I got too stressed, or weather was bad, but in general the happiest parts of my life have been the times when I was cycling.

    Triathlon was just a growth off cycling. It's just so stinking fun. I'm not fast, I'm not usually even in the first half of the finishers, but I love that everyone there is huffing and puffing together toward a common goal of finishing. I also have found most races to be very friendly, with strangers cheering each other on.
  • nourhanehab7
    nourhanehab7 Posts: 125 Member
    ZUMBA is my passion . A month ago I was in stress of exams , no time for gym , I opened youtube to choose easy video just to feel better . I saw a zumba video with nice music that I loved . Told myself "just 10 minutes" surprisingly I did 30 minutes , sweating , HR up to 180 , feeling soooooooooooooo much fun . Yay ! I told myself " That's it " . Now I dance for up to 2hours at home burning TONS of calories and can't stop ♥ .It's ADDICTIVE
  • Tattooedmom44
    Tattooedmom44 Posts: 93 Member
    It took me so long to find my passion. I tried running, yoga, zuma, spinning, and the list goes on. Then I found lifting, and I'm completely obsessed. Sometimes it takes a while, and several different trials until you find what works for you.
  • Brabo_Grip
    Brabo_Grip Posts: 285 Member
    I always had problems with a traditional gym. I would go for six to 12 months, get bored and not go for a year or two. It was part of the reason for many weight fluctuations in my late 20's to late 30's.

    At two months shy of my 38th birthday I walked into an MMA gym at my heaviest. I fell in love instantly, mostly with Brazilian Jiu Jitsu/grappling with some Muay Thai, Traditional Boxing, and Cage MMA thrown in. I dropped 90lbs in 15 months and it has become part of who I am. I train 7 to 10 times a week, and it is as necessary for me as breathing or eating.

    I still hate traditional workouts and haven't done any lifting and very little running since I was fat, yet I am functionally stronger than when I was lifting weights in my early 30s. BJJ/MMA was a life changer for me.
  • 12anita
    12anita Posts: 11 Member
    I love Zumba! I get bored easily with treadmills, etc. The time goes by so fast while you're having fun!
  • dutchandkiwi
    dutchandkiwi Posts: 1,389 Member
    edited June 2017
    I like many different exercises and because I do, I do all of them. Chances are that I will not reach the pinnacle of perfection in any of them, but the enjoyment I get with doing so many things and challenging my body a dirrefrent way all the time keeps me going. I simply do not like specialising too much.

    So I walk, hike, cycle, run, weights, floor routines, a cardio class and YouTube videos. All give me different things and makes that I can change my routines around my life and the weather. For instance in winter there is less cycling more YouTube and in summer the reverse.
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