Wow I'm so unfit 😂

kimny72 wrote: »

Take it slow. So many beginners try to do everything and end up either super fatigued or injure themselves.

Congrats on getting started!

Well said. Don't injure yourself - take it easy. When I started on 170 kg (375 pounds) I didn't fit into / onto most gym machines. So I chose the pool (water aerobics) to start with. I love water, the near - weight - free - feeling, just wallowing about like a rhino or like a hippo. Magic! Find some joy and fun and don't just think "exercise" - move your body (and mind) in the best possible way you can do right now. Our bodies are amazing - they manage to heal themselves - just give it some time. I am surprised that after 430 days on a healthier life style (thank you MFP and all those supporting members!) I can walk over 2 hours! (Lost 35 kg, 80 pounds so far and lots more to go...)

I would add that the best thing you can do is find something you enjoy so it doesn't feel so much like "exercise". Does your gym offer any classes? All my previous attempts at exercise failed because I used to think that exercise meant running (bleh) and weight lifting (less bleh but still not my favorite), and so I would try to motivate myself to do things I didn't really want to do and that made it hard to keep up, especially coming like you did as someone very out of shape.

So I went and found sometime I actually enjoyed doing. For me that was martial arts, but there are so many different choices that I am sure there is one that will best fit your personal interests. I used that as a base to help me lose weight and build my fitness level. Now that I've done that, I've added in weight lifting and even running to help fully round out my fitness, since I'm able to push myself more now that I have a base level of fitness. But I would have never been able to start there.

Taking the first step back into any type of physical fitness is a huge win. When I got back to the gym I told myself to not over do it and to not expect immediate results. After I accepted how out of shape I was and that this was going to take a lot of hard work I actually started to enjoy moving my body more. I'm in for the long haul.