Exercise makes me depressed. Anyone else this way?
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Maybe don't worry about it until you finish your dissertation. That has to be a source of stress on its own. I will say three hours seems excessive even with 30 minutes of walking. That means you're working out for 2.5 hours. That's a lot for someone who hates exercise. I think I'd hate that too.2
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Honestly, I feel ya. I go to the gym pretty regularly but if I had it my way I'd never exercise.
I have tried nearly everything over the years and the gym for me is the one that's stuck simply because it fits my lifestyle. However, even after 10 plus years of going on and off, it's still a struggle to get up and go.
I do enjoy walks, but right now where I live is super hilly and it's so easy to simply not go. Haha.2 -
Personally not being able to exercise depresses me.
As would eating such a miniscule amount of food - you have my sympathies!
Is there no outdoor exercise you enjoy? Maybe it's the gym environment you dislike?
PS - it's not clear why you hate walking for 15 minutes or why it would take up to 3hrs out of your day. What else would you be doing with this time?
I dislike all forms of exercise. I wish I didn't. Maybe I'm just lazy. As for why I hate walking there. That's 30 minutes there and back in a busy area. I hate crowds of people. I work during the day and I'm also writing my dissertation in the evenings and weekends. I would much rather be studying than working out. I honestly just don't understand how people can enjoy it.
If you truly can't find anything in the massively wide scope of exercise/sport/physical activity you can enjoy then maybe just think of it as an investment of time for a reward of improved health and fitness.
A bit like investing in your further education / degree is an investment in your future career?
Not seeing how a gym workout and 30 mins of walking adds up to 3hrs though.
If you don't like being amongst people then maybe getting out and about in the countryside would appeal more?
I include all the time it takes from getting up to go to the gym to coming back home. Take Sunday for example. I headed to the gym at 4pm and returned home at 7pm. I do cardio for around an hour and then another 45-60 minutes on weights. I don't drive and so heading out to the countryside whenever I fancy isn't exactly feasible. I live in a city in England. The countryside is miles away, unfortunately.
Maybe exercise far more efficiently and for shorter time periods?
There is no reason for you to be doing two hours of exercise in one go.
I live in England too, on the outskirts of the London urban sprawl. I can be in a peaceful environment without crowds very quickly. Most cities have parks, public transport or countryside within easy reach.6 -
I've joined a lot of gyms over the years and followed the same trajectory of starting off strong with 3+ visits a week, and then a few months later having to deal with the "customer retention" teams and the cancellation penalties.
Clearly the solution, assuming you are not willing to be a person who just doesn't exercise, is to get a home machine that you can tolerate. That will knock your three hour investment down to 30 minutes plus a quick shower.
And just as clearly, you need a machine you can use while watching TV so that you don't have to pay attention to the fact that you're exercising, or enjoy it, or really, do anything other than get it over with.
Exercise isn't just for weight loss, and at some point in your life whether or not you kept in shape will become crucially important, and if you didn't, you'll pay dearly. It's better to suck it up and find a way to make exercise happen, whether you enjoy it or not. There are lots of things you do without liking it. Do you like paying taxes? Fixing a flat tire? Going to the doctor? You just do them because you have to. Add exercise to that list and get on it.
A machine you can use while watching TV is probably the ticket for you. Recumbent bike, treadmill with a panel screen, etc. Or, load up your phone with tunes you like, get a good pair of headphones, and put on those walking shoes. The louder you make the music, the less you'll notice you're walking LOL
1250 is not a realistic number of calories to eat. Have you ever heard of a single person who ate 1250 and stuck with it over time? That kind of diet doesn't last. People who do 1250 are the people who a year later have gained it all back and are posting about yo-yo dieting.
I disagree with the posts above that say exercise isn't very important to a diet. Actually, it is. If you're running a 500 calorie deficit on a 1,500 calorie diet and doing 300 calories of cardio per day, depending on whether you eat the exercise calories back the exercise accounts for either (a) 38 % of your total weight lost, or (b) an additional 20 % more food. Either way, the impact of exercise on a diet, just mathematically speaking, is absolutely huge. Beyond the numbers, exercise is a habit that keeps you on track as far as feeling like you're working on your own health and well being, which helps a lot when dieting starts to seem tedious, which it will. Yes, you can diet without exercising, but it's harder and slower, and easier to just fall off the diet as soon as there's a life interruption or event. Exercise keeps you plugged into a larger self-improvement project that gives the dieting context and purpose.7 -
I sometimes don't feel like exercising but the thought of exercising (or doing anything else) never makes me feel depressed.
Actual mental "depression" is a clinical condition that may or may not require professional treatment that probably has a lot more to do w/just than exercise.
Consult a psychologist if it is something that feels overwhelming to you. Otherwise, like the rest of us, just assess the problem and deal w/it the best you can.
The key is to have clear and realistic objectives, make a plan to achieve them and stick to the plan until you do6 -
It sounds like you just haven’t found an activity that will hold your interest. You don’t have to love it, but you should be able to find something that is at the very least tolerable. Try a new activity every week until you find something that is a good fit for you. There are millions of things you can try: tennis, swimming, walking, rollerblading, dancing, rock climbing, frisbee, jumping rope, CrossFit, boxing, weightlifting, running, aerobics, basketball, soccer, etc.
In addition, I think you may need to change your attitude toward exercise. If you start out thinking negatively about how much you hate it and how much it sucks, it makes sense that you won’t want to do it. Reframe your thoughts and the way you talk to yourself about exercise. Invite a friend to join you and make it into an adventure.
Alternatively, you can continue on your current path forcing yourself to go to the gym and being miserable until you finally give up and become one of those people who pay for a gym membership that they never use.2 -
Exercise isn't depressing you. Forcing yourself to do activities you don't enjoy is depressing you and I can't think of anything more depressing than dedicating hours of my time doing something I hate.
The solution is don't "exercise". There's nothing anywhere that says that you need to "exercise" in order to be healthy. What you need to be is "active" and being active can be achieved in loads of different ways.
Personally, I find the best way for me to stay active is to have a bunch of different things to chose from.
- I have a bicycle for when I feel like going for a ride.
- I have weights at home for when I feel like pick up heavy things and putting them back down again.
- I have swimming gear for when I feel like going for a swim.
- I have scuba gear for when I feel like going for a dive.
- I have a bodyboard for when I feel like going to the beach.
- I have a backpack and walking shoes for when I feel like going for a walk/hike and I have golf clubs for when I feel like going for a walk that makes me very angry
Point being is that every one of those things gets me up and moving and not one of them feels like "exercise". Forget about exercising for exercising sake and find one, two or ten different hobbies/pastimes/things that you want to do and just do them.8 -
I love gym group classes but I used to hate going. I found stuff I enjoyed instead like hiking and horse riding and focused on that until I found a gym I loved. Now you can’t keep me out of it0
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We all need balance. It does no good to persue health at the expense of happiness, or happiness at the expense of health.
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I wouldn’t say exercise makes me depressed but it’s certainly so stressful to fit into my life that I rarely do any form of ‘purposeful’ exercise.
Stressors include:
1. Unsupportive sarcastic husband who works from home so is always around.
2. Distance from nearest bearable gym. Also see point 1.
3. I’m not a ‘joiner’ so can think of little worse than classes. If there was yoga anywhere near me I’d think about it, but see point 1.
4. It bores me to tears! I can get 3 or 4 reps into something and want to scream with the tedium.
So, I just try and increase my daily activity where I can...housework, gardening, decorating, walking the dog (small dog so distance is restricted), some resistance band stuff while reading/watching Netflix etc on my iPad alone in my bedroom after I’ve gone to bed(we don’t share a bedroom because he’s overweight and a dreadful snorer). I’ll park right at the back of a car park, shop like a moron in the supermarket so I can go back and forward through the aisles rather than being logical. 😂, take the stairs anytime I can in preference to a lift or escalator.
Maybe once a month I’ll go for a proper walk with a friend, maybe 14 to 16 miles when we do this, but she’s 20 years younger than I am so still has small children at home so opportunities for this are limited. Even this is met with derision and scorn from my husband ‘so you’re off for one of your little walks eh?’....🙄. I told him a couple of days ago I was going to go pick a prescription up at the doctors and would be walking so I’d be longer than expected. His response was to say ‘Alexa’ is Barbara insane’ to his Amazon Echo on his desk....
Honestly, if it’s depressing or stressful I’d suggest you don’t do it, the benefits are probably not sufficient to counterbalance the way it makes you feel to do it.7 -
I hated to exercise too. I forced myself to do it because everyone else seems to love it, why don't I?? Now that I'm seeing results with the strength training program Ive been using, I'm enjoying working out a lot more. I still don't LOVE it like some people, and if I had to leave my house or be around other people I would never do it. You just need to find an activity you like to do.
That's what I was hoping. That even if I don't love it, I'll still do it because of the results. However, I don't stick with it long enough to see any. Maybe I should try a class. I've never been to one before because I'm not as fit as I would like to be and would hate to be the only one not able to keep up.
This was me a month ago, I didn't wanna go the gym or to a class until my fitness level went up but it wouldn't ever have gone up if i didn't join the gym. I went to my first class last week (legs bum and tums) and I was petrified! But then i followed as much as I could, i tried my hardest and stopped whenever I needed too and it easier said than done but just focus on you. If you're the first to stop, then that's okay! I was so worried about others laughing at me or thinking why was i in the class if i couldn't do it but just like everyone else, I was there to get fitter.
It's proper easier said than done but just try
good luck
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This was me three years ago. I went to the gym regularly and found the treadmill tolerable-ish if I watched the TV or listened to some good music. But I was totally wasting my time as I never actually worked hard enough to see any benefit. It was just mindless, and a real slog to force myself to do.
I took up an offer at our gym of some cut price personal training sessions. This was because I wanted to start working with weights to stave off osteoporosis as I get older. I was terrified and fully expected to hate it. The trainer introduced me to kettlebells, and to my surprise I enjoyed using them. I decided to carry on with the training because I found the sessions more enjoyable than doing stuff by myself plus I was starting to notice results. Then the trainer introduced me to boxing and that has changed my life.
Now you cannot keep me out of the gym. I go at least 6 days a week. But it does not take over my life because I go, work properly hard for an hour and then leave. The increased strength has resulted in increased confidence in every aspect of my life. Housework is more tolerable as I am not totally out of breath after dragging the vacuum around.
I would definitely recommend trying all sorts of different things. Do try a class. (I hate classes, but I have tried a few just in case.) Just remember that it does not matter if you can't initially do whatever it is they are asking you to do. I've gone from being scared of failing (and scared of getting into a red sweaty heap) to being pleased when I find something new I suck at because it gives me another challenge.2 -
seeing results of what diet and exercise can do makes me hate it less 0
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You don't have to love exercise. It's just something you need to fit in your life, like brushing teeth or hoovering your house.
Just try to find something that's bearable, if the gym is not for you, try cycling, dancing, rock climbing, karate, rowing, hiking, the possibilities are endless.3 -
I'm not a fan of going to the gym for hours on end either. Heck it's hard for me to even find the time and motivation to go for just half an hour, and my gym is across the highway from me. So I just did 15-30 minute youtube workouts, or workouts from a fitness app. Whatever I felt I had the time and energy for. I actually did see results from it too. It doesn't have to be a huge time consuming thing to see results.
Other things you can do is just little things to keep up your activity level. I am crap at staying on top of an exercise routine. I either get bored with it, or get sidelined by injury or illness and never pick it back up. But what has helped me maintain what I lost for over a year is doing little things to keep myself active.
-walk during my work breaks
-park at the back of the parking lot when shopping
-if out grocery shopping and I only need a few things I carry a basket instead of using a shopping cart
-dance like an idiot while cleaning and listening to fun music. (I am so so bad at dancing,
)
-take the stairs if availbale
-try to stand more then sit at social gatherings
LIttle things like this help keep my activity level up, allows me to eat around 1800 cals a day as maintenance instead of 1500, and feels like it takes up little of my time. Maybe you could find a park to walk to, you could wander your home while you read a textbook to study, walk your neighborhood during slow times if it's safe(less peopley) walk to your grocery store if it's not too far away. Put a little extra physical effort while cleaning such as so a squat every time you pick a thing up, scrub with more zeal and flair, whatever it takes to be a little more ineffiecient and therefore more active.
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Have you thought about an app?
I own Jillian Michaels' app, and I find that it's great for times I don't feel like going to the gym. There are a ton of programs and you can set it to beginner, intermediate or advanced. It would eliminate traveling time for you and you can even do programs without equipment or dumbbells if you don't have any. The workouts are quick and you won't even have time to think before it's done. She includes fitness tests you can do to track your progress, and most of her DVDs are also included.
Of course there are tons of apps out there, so I'd recommend choosing one that's right for you - JM is just an example. I wasn't a big fan of exercise until I discovered her years & years ago. I liked the structure of her workouts and how quickly I saw results. It motivated me and it just grew from there.
My other suggestion is just to watch your calories and walk more. You say you walk to the gym and it takes 15 minutes. Why not try walking around your city for 45 minutes or an hour? That's exercise! Try anything to get your blood going and your heart pumping and don't be so hard on yourself. Not everyone likes the gym! 1 -
I find the best way to look at exercise as a vehicle to push you to an ideal. Pick an athlete you aspire to be like. Pick an activity you dream of excelling at and then identify exercises which help you toward this path.0
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I could imagine for someone who doesn't like a busy area of town group classes might be a nightmare.
Have you considered working out at home? Bodyweight exercises require very little space, worst case just 1x2m. There's a lot you can do if you focus on basic exercises such as pushups, squats, lunges and core exercises. Each of those four groups has a huge amount of variation from easy to darn difficult, and once something gets too easy you just work on something new. Also, I can't imagine a single place in the UK where nature is further away than 1 mile, even if it's just a park or a lake. You could grab your kids and go on long walks with a stroller, or get inline scales and do the same a bit faster.3 -
I hate gym workouts, so I don't really ever go, even when I have a membership. I love to dance, so I signed up for some expensive-ish dance classes. I don't like to miss them because I enjoy them, and because I spent so much damn money on them I better go! I can't stand doing 20 squats in a row, I get bored, but ask me to do 32 counts of plies (basically a squat) and I'm having fun. For me the dance class has the added benefit of making me stop thinking about work/school/ anything else because I'm concentrating on doing the moves right. I found taking the dance classes and having that break from school improved my grades. A one hour dance class is my cardio and my body weight exercise, it takes about 1.5 - 2 hours out of my day (including getting changed and getting there and back) and I go 3 times a week.
I wonder if there are any active classes that you might enjoy? maybe martial arts, dance, swimming? Or batting cages, mini golf, etc - just anything to get you moving a bit?2 -
I don't like crowds, but I love group exercise. When I started getting serious about working out (about 15 years ago once I'd graduated college and started gaining some weight at a desk job), I started by going to the gym and doing something similar to what you are doing, cardio for 30-60 min and then strength training of some kind. I didn't really enjoy it, but kept at it to lose weight. I would be pretty consistent for a couple months, miss a few weeks or a month, then drag myself back for another couple of months.
This changed when I found group exercise. The first thing I had to do was actually walk through the door with the knowledge that I had no clue what to expect. After I got over that (it took awhile of being in the back as much as possible), it started to become fun. I really enjoyed various kickboxing classes offered at the YMCA, but it was always still a bit unnerving when I would travel and had to go to a class I had no experience with. Then I moved to the UK for work and found Les Mills, specifically BodyPump and BodyCombat. I love, love, love these classes and have been doing them now for over 10 years consistently (back in the US now).
The main reason I love these classes (and others from Les Mills like BodyAttack, BodyFlow, BodyStep, CXWorx, etc) is that there is a format which is typically about 10 tracks and it is the same in whatever gym you go to that has Les Mills. It does take a few classes to understand the cues and moves, but once you've got it, it can be a lot of fun and challenging at any level.
One more note on group exercise: there are almost ALWAYS new people in the class and a variety of fitness levels and body types. Also, everyone in there is concentrating on themselves and not whatever a new person might be doing.3
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