Making Exercise Fun
merph518
Posts: 702 Member
What do you do to make exercise fun / more tolerable?
For me, my favorite way to get some activity in is playing games in Virtual Reality. I've been into video games since I was a kid and became somewhat of an early adopter of this new technology, having had headsets for a couple years now. One of my favorite games is Beat Saber, where you slice blocks with light sabers in various directions to the beat of music. It basically ends up with having you dancing around your living room.
For example:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0S8Jj3hK5Q
(someone playing Michael Jackson's Thriller in Beat Saber).
Levels vary from easy to super hard (expert+, they call it). I'm currently working my way back up to the expert+ level, I'm a bit rusty after having paused playing for a couple months due to a defective headset that I had to return.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHksBtpWnXo
I also enjoy running outdoors. I listen to music and enjoy being outside -- I find the experience to be pretty zen.
For me, my favorite way to get some activity in is playing games in Virtual Reality. I've been into video games since I was a kid and became somewhat of an early adopter of this new technology, having had headsets for a couple years now. One of my favorite games is Beat Saber, where you slice blocks with light sabers in various directions to the beat of music. It basically ends up with having you dancing around your living room.
For example:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0S8Jj3hK5Q(someone playing Michael Jackson's Thriller in Beat Saber).
Levels vary from easy to super hard (expert+, they call it). I'm currently working my way back up to the expert+ level, I'm a bit rusty after having paused playing for a couple months due to a defective headset that I had to return.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHksBtpWnXoI also enjoy running outdoors. I listen to music and enjoy being outside -- I find the experience to be pretty zen.
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this is a real battle for me, because I have yet to find something that I consider "fun". I detest regular, classic exercise. I've tried going to a gym, I've tried exercise videos, I've tried using the Wii, I've tried in home equipment like a treadmill and an elliptical, and all of them feel like a session of self torture. I even struggle to get myself to go on walks (not that there's a good place to walk where I live, anyway). I don't enjoy team sports except softball, but there are no adult leagues in the area, and if I could find one, they'd have to be the bad news bears type and not care all that much about winning, because I'm not any good at it (didn't have any opportunity to play in highschool or college, so I just know the basics).
My activity comes from housework, yard work, etc. I do enjoy hiking, but that's not something I can do on a daily basis or even a weekly basis as Saturdays are the only day a week I'd have to go and that's also the only day of the week I have for chores and other things that need done around the house. besides which, its not exactly a good thing to be doing alone, anyway.
I've thought about taking a martial arts class, but 1) its expensive and 2) I'm so dumpy and out of shape, I doubt I'd even be a good candidate.
When I'm on the phone, I pace the house, so I get steps in there, but I don't have people to call on a daily basis to get those steps in lol
I'd love to take horseback riding lessons, but at 270 lbs, I'm too heavy to even consider it.
It's a battle with willpower and one that I lose. After spending all day in my office, I'm usually mentally exhausted when i get home, and I have enough trouble powering my way through sticking to my deficit; trying to force myself into an activity that I despise is beyond my abilities at the moment. (though I did force my way through an elliptical session yesterday).2 -
bmeadows380 wrote: »this is a real battle for me, because I have yet to find something that I consider "fun". I detest regular, classic exercise. I've tried going to a gym, I've tried exercise videos, I've tried using the Wii, I've tried in home equipment like a treadmill and an elliptical, and all of them feel like a session of self torture. I even struggle to get myself to go on walks (not that there's a good place to walk where I live, anyway). I don't enjoy team sports except softball, but there are no adult leagues in the area, and if I could find one, they'd have to be the bad news bears type and not care all that much about winning, because I'm not any good at it (didn't have any opportunity to play in highschool or college, so I just know the basics).
My activity comes from housework, yard work, etc. I do enjoy hiking, but that's not something I can do on a daily basis or even a weekly basis as Saturdays are the only day a week I'd have to go and that's also the only day of the week I have for chores and other things that need done around the house. besides which, its not exactly a good thing to be doing alone, anyway.
I've thought about taking a martial arts class, but 1) its expensive and 2) I'm so dumpy and out of shape, I doubt I'd even be a good candidate.
When I'm on the phone, I pace the house, so I get steps in there, but I don't have people to call on a daily basis to get those steps in lol
I'd love to take horseback riding lessons, but at 270 lbs, I'm too heavy to even consider it.
It's a battle with willpower and one that I lose. After spending all day in my office, I'm usually mentally exhausted when i get home, and I have enough trouble powering my way through sticking to my deficit; trying to force myself into an activity that I despise is beyond my abilities at the moment. (though I did force my way through an elliptical session yesterday).
Sometimes it takes ages to find the right fit, just keep trying different stuff.
I don't mind doing at home workouts, I wouldn't say I enjoy them but I like the results I get from them and the fact that it doesn't cost anything.
I accidentally fell into rowing 2 years ago (despite being scared of water) and absolutely love it now.
On the energy side of things, I will say that when I have a moderate calorie deficit (around 1lb per week) and a regular workout plan, whether it be indoor actual workouts or running/hiking/rowing, I feel much more energetic than I do when I don't.1 -
Here is what I have found makes exercise no fun:
1) Being in too steep of a deficit. I like to walk outside. I look forward to doing it. Over the last 5 weeks as I have been trying to figure out my new energy needs part of that time I was in too steep of a deficit. At those times I HATED walking.
2) Time seems to drag on home cardio equipment. Music doesn't work for me because it doesn't take me away from the experience enough. TV is better but not if it is a program I have seen before or something with commercials that I cannot easily bypass. Netflix is my answer right now. I am way behind on a lot of shows.
3) I do not do as well if I have to face it all day. Discipline wanes as I go through my day. I am not a morning person so you would think that would be the worst time for me to exercise. I have found it to be the opposite. Doing something physical while my mental self is still groggy somehow makes it better. Getting my minimum requirement done early means I can engage in activities I enjoy more later with no pressure involved... more activity/exercise is gravy.
I kind of wonder if the best way to engage in new exercise is to do it at or near maintenance calories. If a person is not comfortable with suspending all progress drop the deficit to 250 for a couple of weeks. This way you are reducing the risk of building a negative association. If you build a positive association (as much as possible) the hope is you will need less motivation/willpower/discipline to keep doing it when you resume your weight loss at full speed.1 -
Pickle ball. It’s loads of fun. For awhile I was able to play three times per week. I gave up cardio workouts.1
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I love walking. I've always been a team sports player but my knees have given up so I can't play hockey any more, or softball. I've started squash recently and that's fun...I have a tournament this weekend but my progress already is affected by my knees. Walking is fab. It's my alone time and my outside time. I'm surrounded by people all day so I love solitary walks. I have a route which takes me around a lake which I enjoy. I've just started swimming and I'm enjoying the novelty but it's boring. I'll keep going though because it doesn't hurt my knees and it's a good change. I need variety because I'm easily bored.1
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well, I managed to get another session in on the elliptical. I was going by the idea of only counting 1/2 of my exercise calories, but I'm highly skeptical of even that number given by MFP - 275 calories burned for 15 minutes? My effort would be considered light I'm sure, so I've decided to only count 1/3 of the time, or 10 minutes for every actual 30 minutes. Still gets me a little boost to the daily calorie count, and if I stalk around the house for a few more steps, I might actually get in 5,000 steps today. For someone who usually averages half that, that's really a good count!
I also reached out to a local ju-jitsu studio here in town tonight. They have a ladies only session, and there was a gal in the picks who might be as big as me. We'll see if they respond. they give the first 3 sessions for free, so it won't cost me anything to at least go see what its all about. Something like that might be a fun way to get in a workout, though its only 1 session a week, but I'm a little uncomfortable about the fact that ju-jitsu is about ground fighting and grappling. Though I know that its actually a very good self-defense technique, and perhaps it can help me get a little more comfortable with folks within my personal space so that if I did get into trouble, I wouldn't lose my head...
The biggie, well, if they think they can work with a completely out of shape novice with absolutely no martial arts experience at all, is what the price is per session......
That's the only thing that is local to where I live, and the studio is maybe 5 minutes from my office with the women's session scheduled to start about 1/2 hour after I get off work, so its definitely doable. We'll see!7 -
I don’t know about exercise ever being fun for me but I do like my new Fitbit telling me to get up and walk 250 steps!...I am sure the novelty of this will soon wear off!3
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conniewilkins56 wrote: »I don’t know about exercise ever being fun for me but I do like my new Fitbit telling me to get up and walk 250 steps!...I am sure the novelty of this will soon wear off!
What are you doing typing?!? Get up and walk 250 steps!!
It may not wear off. I think it depends on how much you allow yourself to be gamified. I was resistant to my apple watch at first but now I try to enjoy the experience and it definitely helps me.1 -
conniewilkins56 wrote: »I don’t know about exercise ever being fun for me but I do like my new Fitbit telling me to get up and walk 250 steps!...I am sure the novelty of this will soon wear off!
What are you doing typing?!? Get up and walk 250 steps!!
It may not wear off. I think it depends on how much you allow yourself to be gamified. I was resistant to my apple watch at first but now I try to enjoy the experience and it definitely helps me.
Haha...you sound like my husband!....John bought our daughter, grand daughter and me Versa Fitbits for Valentines Day!...
Now this is the “ usual at our house deal”.....One color was out of stock until March 30 so I called to change the order to a color in stock...Tues. we got two in the mail...yesterday we got two more and one is the color that was out of stock...we also got a notice that the “ other” one is being shipped sooner than March 30....so now I think we have Fitbit #5 on the way!...I am not going to send them back until I see how many we get lol...
Happy Valentine’s Day!0 -
conniewilkins56 wrote: »Now this is the “ usual at our house deal”.....One color was out of stock until March 30 so I called to change the order to a color in stock...Tues. we got two in the mail...yesterday we got two more and one is the color that was out of stock...we also got a notice that the “ other” one is being shipped sooner than March 30....so now I think we have Fitbit #5 on the way!...I am not going to send them back until I see how many we get lol...
Before you know it, Connie will be hawking them.
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well, I've gotten a third day in on the elliptical - 39 minutes today. I'm counting 1/3 of my time, which still bought me another 238 calories.
I'm also scheduled for a free session with the jiu-jitsu studio on Monday evening. We'll see how that goes!5 -
So, I have now reached the point where I really need to up my activity. I have 110ish left to lose & my sedentary calorie "goal" is now calculated by MFP to be 1240. I'm thinking at 10 more lbs, I'll be at the minimum. I think that might venture into the "not sustainable" place for me. I'd have to change the way I eat (start restricting things instead of just eating less of the same things) & I'm just not ready to do that just yet.
So... I've decided it's time to take those great suggestions in the "how to improve your NEAT" threads & put them to good use. I knew this was coming, but it's still surprising to me with so much left to lose. I do have a Fitbit & have it linked, so the days I am more active, I do eat back a lot of those calories. I just need to move my base level up a bit. It is doable, I will just need to be intentional about it for a little while.
I've also really been wanting to add in some planned exercise (though this is for fitness reasons, not necessarily calories). My firm has brought in a wellness company to teach a different fitness class once a week during tax season. 2 weeks ago it was power flow yoga, last week was a HIIT class, this week is restorative yoga & next week is Zumba, then they start over for one more cycle. So, I just need to figure out a schedule to get at least 30 minutes in a few more days a week & actually do it. I do want to join a gym at some point for the weight training, but I'm afraid I won't utilize it enough until tax season is over. So until then, I'm just going to try to do some cardio & body weight and/or resistance band work.2 -
well, I had the first session of Jiu-Jitsu this evening. I was extremely nervous, but it helped greatly that there was another lady there nearly my size who had been at it over 6 months. I actually had to run laps in the beginning, and I'm proud to say I was able to keep up, though there was no way I was going to get the heal kicks in lol. The hardest thing with this is being willing to let myself fall down! It was easier than I thought it would be to let people into my personal space - this is a lot like wrestling.
Well, letting myself fall down and realizing just how inflexible I am - I was really feeling it in the hips when I was done, but at the same time, it was good stretching; I did feel loser than I had in ages!
I was there 1 1/2 hours, but wasn't sure how to actually account for it calorie-wise since I wasn't moving all that time, but I had worked up a pretty good sweat by the end, and boy am I going to be sore tomorrow, especially in the hips! I did find the MFP entry for it and decided to go with 15 minutes for now. I've got 2 more free sessions before I need to decide if I'm going to continue or not; tonight was positive and the folks extremely friendly, which was another thing I was kind of worried about (you know how it is when you are the new person in an established thing, especially for someone like me joining something like that, since I haven't been exercising, am out of shape, un-athletic, and obese (not to mention on average 10 years older than most of the other participants; thankfully, there were few hill-cresters like me there lol).
But I will say that it didn't feel like regimented exercise, and while I don't know if I can say I enjoyed it, I can say that I didn't mind it!7 -
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good news is that I'm not nearly as sore as I figured I'd be!4
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Proud of you, bmeadows380! Hope this will be a great, new hobby.1
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Exercise is not really my thing either. But I try to get in a long walk daily. Sometimes (work days) I break it into two walks. I listen to books on Audible with my iPhone. I live in Canada so it can be brutally cold but I manage to get out most days. I agree though that exercise needs to be fun. Otherwise you won't stick with it.1
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I don’t know if exercise will ever be fun for me but I am enjoying my new Versa Fitbit reminding me to get 250 steps a hour...I stop whatever I am doing and walk until I get my steps in...I do enjoy water aerobics and swimming so I can’t wait to get in the pool very soon!....no excuses for not swimming this winter but I haven’t been exercising much...concentrating so much on my meals and calories...I know I really need to exercise...0
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conniewilkins56 wrote: »I don’t know if exercise will ever be fun for me but I am enjoying my new Versa Fitbit reminding me to get 250 steps a hour...I stop whatever I am doing and walk until I get my steps in...I do enjoy water aerobics and swimming so I can’t wait to get in the pool very soon!....no excuses for not swimming this winter but I haven’t been exercising much...concentrating so much on my meals and calories...I know I really need to exercise...
I found this post I wrote last February!...My how things have changed!...I love my water workouts and I am getting in the pool about 5 days a week for 90 minutes water jogging,aerobics and slow laps...I was averaging about 1700 steps a day and now I get over 3000 even on a rest day....I had to take breaks when I was cooking a meal to sit down...I could not grocery shop or go to Walmart without using a motorized cart!...now I can’t remember the last time I used one!...and now only six months later I am planning on starting to add some walking to my activity!....not miles and miles but I have to start somewhere....maybe 15 minutes outside to begin...my scales have slowed down this summer but I am still going in the right direction!5 -
Ah, remember February, before the world imploded? Good times.
It's interesting to read that @bmeadows380 didn't have an activity she liked, since I'm pretty sure she's one of the most active people here.
I'm never sure if I truly like the actual workouts, or if it's just that I love how I feel afterward. Certainly some workouts are more fun than others, but I don't think "fun" motivates me. I am motivated in a classroom setting, both by the instructors and others in the class. I'm motivated by seeing how I've improved over the last couple of years, and seeing where I want to be, because I have vast room for improvement. I don't think I need it to be fun to keep going; I thrive on routine, and I'm happy to keep doing the same classes over and over and over.2 -
I ride a bicycle outside when I can inside in snowy winters. Social distancing Not a problem on a bike. I signed up for an online group 30 days of biking. April 1-30 2019 you ride take photos or not post experiences online. The people in Minneapolis got creative it snowed, rode in parking garages.
It isn’t how fast or how far. It’s every day, making it part of your life. May 1st let’s see if I can do May. This is day 518.1 -
@bobsburgersfan
*laughs*
I still don't have an activity I like lol Jury is still out on the jiu-jitsu - some classes have been fun, but others, like Friday make me question whether I really want to continue trying this thing out or just switch to a trainer and weight lifting where its just me, myself, and I.
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conniewilkins56 wrote: »I don’t know about exercise ever being fun for me but I do like my new Fitbit telling me to get up and walk 250 steps!...I am sure the novelty of this will soon wear off!
My how things have changed since this post last Feb......now exercise is becoming part of my daily routine....I love my “ me time “ in the pool....I try to go at least 5 days a week for 90 minutes...I do water aerobics,swim, and water jog continuously with only breaks to drink or have few bites of a 1/2 One Bar....I added the refueling and it has made a lot of difference in my energy level half way through...a 1/2 bar is 110 calories and has 10 grams of protein....really taste good, too....I am trying to take one rest day and the other day or if it rains, I started doing Richard Simmons dance videos....not really fun but it gets the job done and burns a decent amount of calories...It is getting harder for me to sit still for very long because I have so much more energy...I wasted so much of my life sitting that I over do some days and I get really tired sometime!...but most nights I sleep like a baby!....
Right now, today....I am enjoying this transformation....I want to stay on this ride forever!....hitting 100 lbs loss this morning sure helped my motivation and determination...I know I can finish what I have started!6 -
YOu are doing so well, Connie and are a great inspiration! I am so very happy for you!1
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bmeadows380 wrote: »YOu are doing so well, Connie and are a great inspiration! I am so very happy for you!
You have done very well, too my friend!...we are going to be success stories!
How is the beau thing going?...( wink wink )0 -
conniewilkins56 wrote: »bmeadows380 wrote: »YOu are doing so well, Connie and are a great inspiration! I am so very happy for you!
You have done very well, too my friend!...we are going to be success stories!
How is the beau thing going?...( wink wink )
@conniewilkins56 *blushes* going VERY well - I haven't scared him off yet
The biggest downside - he's in Wisconsin and I'm in WV... 4 -
bmeadows380 wrote: »conniewilkins56 wrote: »bmeadows380 wrote: »YOu are doing so well, Connie and are a great inspiration! I am so very happy for you!
You have done very well, too my friend!...we are going to be success stories!
How is the beau thing going?...( wink wink )
@conniewilkins56 *blushes* going VERY well - I haven't scared him off yet The biggest downside - he's in Wisconsin and I'm in WV...
@bmeadows380 I'm glad @conniewilkins56 asked because I’ve been so curious and silently cheering you on!!1 -
_inHisGrace wrote: »bmeadows380 wrote: »conniewilkins56 wrote: »bmeadows380 wrote: »YOu are doing so well, Connie and are a great inspiration! I am so very happy for you!
You have done very well, too my friend!...we are going to be success stories!
How is the beau thing going?...( wink wink )
@conniewilkins56 *blushes* going VERY well - I haven't scared him off yet The biggest downside - he's in Wisconsin and I'm in WV...
@bmeadows380 I'm glad @conniewilkins56 asked because I’ve been so curious and silently cheering you on!!
Exactly!....curious caring minds want to know!......I am missing your posts Bmeadows!1 -
@_inHisGrace and @conniewilkins56
*laughs* I've been a bit pre-occuppied of late to post
Besides, it isn't exercise related lol 4 -
@bmeadows380 Isn’t anything that makes your heart rate increase teeeeechnically exercise? 6
