How to stop being distracting whilst exercising?

LemonPoppySeedMuffin
LemonPoppySeedMuffin Posts: 302 Member
edited October 2024 in Fitness and Exercise
I'm a horrendous fidgeter & get bored awful quickly. I always end up watching the time, which makes it seem much slower, making it even more painful >.<

Replies

  • jgic2009
    jgic2009 Posts: 531 Member
    Find something you like to do.
  • caramkoala
    caramkoala Posts: 303 Member
    I do Zumba and hip hop dancing- I'm so distracted by trying to learn and remember the steps/not fall over and make a fool of myself, I can't afford to get distracted :tongue:
  • LemonPoppySeedMuffin
    LemonPoppySeedMuffin Posts: 302 Member
    Find something you like to do.

    I HATE exercise full stop but it has to be done! I'm so unfit, it takes the mickey!
  • LemonPoppySeedMuffin
    LemonPoppySeedMuffin Posts: 302 Member
    Find something you like to do.

    I HATE exercise full stop but it has to be done! I'm so unfit, it takes the mickey!
  • KavemanKarg
    KavemanKarg Posts: 266 Member
    I think if you are bored and watching the clock, you likely need to find more challenging exercise.

    When I am pushing myself, those things fade away.
  • krm0789
    krm0789 Posts: 134 Member
    I've started watching the Biggest Loser on my iPod touch while walking on the treadmill. I walk for 28 minutes, which is about 1/3rd of an episode. It distracts me from watching the time, and when I want to quit, watching people who sometimes weigh more than 300 lbs more than me give it their all is incredibly motivating :)

    I also change the display so I can't see the time, and instead watch my miles increase. I do just over 1.5 miles during my walks, so every .5 miles I check the time, think "yay, 1/3rd, 2/3rds of the way there!"
  • caramkoala
    caramkoala Posts: 303 Member
    Another is to listen to talk-back radio while doing the gardening, so busy yelling at stoopid people (and the infinite number of weeds always in my garden), that I don't notice how hard I'm working until I come inside or sweat rolls down into my eye :angry:
  • ZebraHead
    ZebraHead Posts: 15,204 Member
    I have a TV in front of me when I'm in the weight room, that I have on while I am working out...

    Also I throw my towel over the readout that shows the time.

    I focus on a point in the room and look only at that for the longest time. And while I'm doing that I remind myself why I'm working out, what my next mini-goal is, how other MFP folks push so much harder than I do and that I need to step up my game.
  • determinedbutlazy
    determinedbutlazy Posts: 1,941 Member
    I agree with the iPod idea, I watch an episode of a sitcom or something, some show I like while I'm on an exercise bike or X-trainer. It takes my mind off the pain in my legs and stops me watching the clock.
  • labellabinti
    labellabinti Posts: 2 Member
    I would just find something you like to do. Exercise and exercising comes in many shapes and forms. It's not just limited to a pair of weights and a treadmill. As long as you get your body going and you're breaking a sweat, you're doing something. But with the time, if you find yourself distracted just get rid of the time. Get out of the sights of clocks;i.e. don't wear a watch and stop looking at your phone or any other gadget that has a clock on it.
  • Artemis_Acorn
    Artemis_Acorn Posts: 777 Member
    I download fun books on my Kindle (like romances, mysteries, sci-fi etc.) and read those while I'm walking on the treadmill. The time goes much faster. Sometimes I'll watch a movie on our small DVD player that I got for trips - I just attach the player on the treadmill with the rig that came to attach it to the back of a car-seat. For that, funny movies with great music helps the time go.
  • MinnieInMaine
    MinnieInMaine Posts: 6,400 Member
    How about making the time watching part of your routine? Not sure what you're doing but say if you're on the treadmill, increase the incline or speed every minute or two then decrease it every minute or two, etc. Intervals are a great way to build stamina! You can do similar changes on just about every type of machine.

    Something else I used to do is to spend only 10 minutes on 3 different machines. It's a great way to break up a half hour!
  • RagtimeLady
    RagtimeLady Posts: 172 Member
    I agree with the idea of "find something you like to do." I would add... "and do what you can." I've been building up to what I'm doing now for about 4 months. At first, the only cardio I could handle was walking on the treadmill at a fast pace for about 20 minutes. I bring my iPad, on which I have a Kindle app loaded with books I've wanted to read - and I READ. At that time, I couldn't do an elliptical for more than a few minutes. Kept building treadmill time and decided it was better to go out on some pretty walking trails than to be stuck on the treadmill counting the minutes. Before long, I couldn't walk fast enough to get my heart rate up, so I started SLOW jogging. Now I'm jogging with short bursts of actual running. Just last Saturday, I competed and COMPLETED a 5k run. I've been bicycling like a maniac - it took 4 weeks and a new, better bike to build up, but just yesterday I rode 30+ miles and kayaked 6.5 - total calorie burn was more than 2,000! I haven't been to the health club in weeks, and I DON'T MISS IT. I'm looking forward to winter so I can learn cross-country skiing and snowshoeing.

    So, get outside, find someplace you like to walk - pedal a bike, paddle a kayak. Do it moderately, and don't exhaust yourself. Try to do a little more the next day. I can't BELIEVE what I'm doing these days, and the weight is starting to fall off, where it was stubbornly hanging on with 30-minute daily workouts. There must be SOMETHING you'll enjoy, even if you don't enjoy it at first.
  • kaizen31
    kaizen31 Posts: 74 Member
    I use an elliptical and have at least two things to distract myself with, like the TV going and a book to read. Shifting between the two makes the time fly!
  • Hellbent_Heidi
    Hellbent_Heidi Posts: 3,669 Member
    Where are you working out..home or in a gym? Maybe find a workout buddy..sometimes I end up burning 100 or more extra calories when I get to talking to someone and don't even realize the time went by.

    Otherwise...iPod with a lot of fast music helps the time go by (I like to change it up frequently so I don't get sick of the same stuff).
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    I'm a horrendous fidgeter & get bored awful quickly. I always end up watching the time, which makes it seem much slower, making it even more painful >.<

    I used to be the same way. When I ran I HAD to run outside and not on a track because once I ran away from my starting point I had to run back. If tried to run on a treadmill or track I'd get bored and stop long before I had intended. When I did machines I found myself watching the clock, which always seemed to have stopped working. Then I found Zumba. I've been doing it regularly for 10 months now and still don't get bored and the hour seems to fly by. The hour of Zumba seems much shorter than the 15 min of strength training I do. Those 15 min still creep by.
  • theginnyray
    theginnyray Posts: 208 Member
    Did I miss what kind of exercise you are doing?
    I like video workouts, but they get boring - so I like to keep a radio next to the TV and listen to that. I prefer talk radio, but that's just me :-)
    Running on the dreadmill is boring - but my first priority is to get on and cover the screen. I like to see how long I've been on - but not my mileage, so cover what bothers you on the machine and go from there.
    I agree with the PP who said find something you like to do! I'm easily entertained, so I don't get bored running or biking, and sometimes I even leave my ipod at home (gasp!). I also used to take kickboxing classes that were 45 minutes long, they felt like they took 15 minutes - so I would always recommend joining a class if you can!
  • coloradocuppiecake
    coloradocuppiecake Posts: 129 Member
    I hear ya! It seems like every time get ready to start, someone is calling, coming over, doing something. Find something that is fun. Like the Wii fit 2 or a fun dvd
  • stubbysticks
    stubbysticks Posts: 1,275 Member
    I think if you are bored and watching the clock, you likely need to find more challenging exercise.

    When I am pushing myself, those things fade away.
    This...& to expand on it a bit, I've found that when I'm working toward a specific goal & training for it, my workouts are much more interesting. For example, say you have a goal to run a 5k. You can look up programs like Couch to 5k & set up a training schedule. If you're working towards something it helps you feel more like your efforts are really doing something while you're working out. Or maybe you want to bench press 100 lbs, but you can only do 45 right now. So each time you do your chest workout, you'll work on increasing the weight just a little bit every few weeks until you get there.
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