Self Sabotage - What is your stopping point?

PattiBear85
PattiBear85 Posts: 24 Member
edited November 23 in Fitness and Exercise
I have yet to establish a work out routine for the umpteenth time.
I'll do everything with good intentions to start a routine. Put it in my calendar, set up a gym bag, eat better, etc. I'll even go to the gym maybe once or twice.
But I know my desire drops as soon as my lower back hurts (from excessive top weight) or my knees start getting sore (from actually exercising) The breathing hard is embarrassing but not stop-worthy.

Am I the only one like this? Is there tips on overcoming it?

Replies

  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,575 Member
    I've never had a consistent exercise routine. I prefer to stay as active as possible without "exercise" and when exercise is required, I tend to change it up pretty often. I get bored with exercise easily.
  • peaceout_aly
    peaceout_aly Posts: 2,018 Member
    PattiBear85 wrote: »
    I have yet to establish a work out routine for the umpteenth time.
    I'll do everything with good intentions to start a routine. Put it in my calendar, set up a gym bag, eat better, etc. I'll even go to the gym maybe once or twice.
    But I know my desire drops as soon as my lower back hurts (from excessive top weight) or my knees start getting sore (from actually exercising) The breathing hard is embarrassing but not stop-worthy.

    Am I the only one like this? Is there tips on overcoming it?

    A lot of people have the issue of getting started and sticking with a routine. Some people do better with a steady program, while others can stay dedicated when they switch up their classes, etc.

    My biggest word of advice is to stay dedicated, as hard as it may be, for at least a month. After that, the results will be your motivation. Once you start seeing results (easier breathing, lost pounds or inches and even just a little better time for a walk or run) that will be pure motivation and a reason to stay dedicated and it doesn't seem so much like a chore.

    I have sciatic nerve issues along with a reconstructed foot, so I totally understand where you're coming from with the pain or uncomfortableness causing a lack of desire to continue your session. Especially this time of year when it's so cold! Push through. Don't take on more weight than you can handle if you are lifting, but don't let it stop you from doing body weight or resistance work. Know that this will help the pain improve in the long run and eventually your work out will be your "warm up"!
  • Treece68
    Treece68 Posts: 780 Member
    Why not try working out some at the gym some and at home. For your lower back pain try yoga. I did and it helps so much. I just googled "beginning yoga for lower back pain" and there were so many YouTube channels. Once I got the moves down I can do it without the video. I take 20-30 minutes and do them while I watch/listen to the tv.

    Self Sabotage is the key here "I can't because of XYZ" well you can you just choose not to.
    Change can only be made by doing.
    If you are unmotivated to work out you will stay that way unless you decide to be motivated.
    Decide to check out your back pain and knee pain maybe some physical therapy for them, or maybe just lose weight

    The only way to overcome it is to make the decision every day to overcome it there is no easy way.

    Best of Luck!
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,463 Member
    edited January 2018
    1. Pace yourself and start out with easier, more gradual workouts 2-3x week so your body can adapt.
    2. Decide how badly you want this. We've all had aches and pains from medical issues and from exercising itself. I just had to decide I would move ahead and push through (without injuring myself) without continuing to make excuses.
    3. Do it whether you "feel motivated" or not.
  • rybo
    rybo Posts: 5,424 Member
    You could also try group classes. Sometimes the community aspect of working out gets people to show up when they otherwise wouldn't
  • Marykaylady2010
    Marykaylady2010 Posts: 69 Member
    Maybe get a buddy to workout with. I found that if I make plans with someone else the guilt of letting them down will get me to go and then once I’m there it’s a little easier. In the end it is up to you to motivate yourself but a good friend not one with the same problem won’t let you out of the workout without a fight.

    I remember feeling my gf I don’t want to go today and she simply said I’ll be at your house in 20 mins be ready and hung up
  • canadianlbs
    canadianlbs Posts: 5,199 Member
    PattiBear85 wrote: »
    Am I the only one like this? Is there tips on overcoming it?

    i dunno. the only two things i've ever got into have been bike transportation and compound lifting. both of them threw up obstacles, especially when i was starting out. bike commuting introduced me to the informaiton that my body goes into an autonomous, pathological state of terror when it gets itself onto a bridge. lifting made me think i had ruined my knees, for the first couple of months.

    but i just wanted to do them enough that the obstacles were more like road bumps. i sat down with each of the problems as they came up and figured out a way to get through/around them.

    i don't suppose that that's helpful to you, and it's not meant to be preachy either. it's just a case-in-point on how important it is (for me) anyway, to take up 'exercise' for the right reasons and of the right kinds that will work for you. set against the sheer bloody-minded stubbornness that kept me riding and made a lifter of me, there's the fact that no power anywhere in my body has been able to make me go to more than two sessions of any yoga class. or let me learn how to belly dance. or kept me on any athletic teams, or gotten me through more than a couple of weeks of c25k.

    i don't believe in exercising just to be exercising. i'm a couch potato from the roots of my hair down to the skin on the soles of my feet. so the only thing that gives anyone the impression that isn't true is: i found things i actually, really, and seriously wanted to do.
  • ms_havisham
    ms_havisham Posts: 42 Member
    I have had the same problem in the past. I would decide on something, do it for a week or two, and quit when I hated it/ was too tired/ missed a day and got discouraged. This year I chose to do something different. I decided that if I want to make a positive change I need to feel positive about it, and putting myself in a position where I am going to beat myself up is contradictory. So I resolved simply to move every day. Whether I go for a walk, do heavy housework, do a yoga video, go swimming...hell, even spin in circles or have a Trolls dance party with my 2-year-old niece... it counts. Well, so far I have done it. I have had days that were better or worse than others but discovered I love my yoga videos and am pretty flexible for a beginner. I rarely miss a day now because I found something I enjoy. I have managed at least something every day but one this month...and that was missed because of a stomach bug (in fact, I might just count that one too for all the running to the bathroom that I did).

    Make your initial goal manageable. You can always decide to reach further, and if you do you will feel amazing about it! If you start big and need to trim back it is hard not to get discouraged and beat yourself up. And I agree that you should try different things until you find what you like...if you like something it is so much easier to just do it. It will stop being something you are doing to accomplish a goal and become the goal in and of itself. I think setting a long-term goal, even in terms of months, depends on your personality. When I say I decided to move every day, I am putting the emphasis on "day". I wake up every day and decide to move my body. For me, it started off the way it would if I was quitting drinking or when I quit smoking. One day at a time. While I don't plan on missing a day of some kind of real movement, I know that ultimately, as long as I get out of bed, technically I have moved my body. There is no failure possible, and there is always the opportunity to do even better today than I did yesterday.

    So, manageable goal. Find what you like. Figure out what works for you- groups, alone, a buddy, a friend to keep you accountable. Do it to ADD happiness to your life, not take it away. Decide daily, every day, one at a time.
  • trigden1991
    trigden1991 Posts: 4,658 Member
    The ultimate question is: Do you really want to change your body?

    If you continually make excuses then you obviously don't want it enough. Losing weight or changing your body composition takes effort, time and consistency.
  • michellebirtleeds
    michellebirtleeds Posts: 62 Member
    It sounds like you always start a diet change and a new exercise plan at the same time. Maybe start with the diet, build good habits for a few weeks or even months, and then add more exercise--slowly--when you're feeling ready.
  • MegaMooseEsq
    MegaMooseEsq Posts: 3,118 Member
    I found that started small has worked great for me. I mean, really small, so small you can’t make any excuses. I added ten minutes of walking to my day in the AM, another ten in the PM. Then ten at lunch. The morning and eventually evening walks started to stretch to fifteen minutes and then feeling too easy, so I started jogging. Again, I stuck to small goals, 10 to 15 minutes three times a week, but it became easier as I realized how much I enjoyed what I was doing. Some things I tried and didn’t like, others I liked and expanded on. Maybe nine months later and I’m doing body weight exercises with cardio intervals for 30-45 minutes six days a week, 15-30 minutes of yoga every day, and really looking forward to running again when the ice melts. You definitely can find something that works for you, but it might take some time to get there.
  • 88olds
    88olds Posts: 4,538 Member
    Can you walk? Do that to get started.

    My lower back hurt so much walking was tough. Try the recumbent bike.
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