Unmotivated - how did you get started?

violethaze
violethaze Posts: 13
edited December 19 in Fitness and Exercise
I'm doing ok on the the diet front, but finding it very, very hard to get off the couch and get moving. There are a number of factors making me feel a bit downhearted:

I've never been this heavy before
The only time I lost significant weight I did it with a family member, and had a job which involved constant movement (I'm now sat at a desk all day and living alone)
I am on a tight budget and can't afford gym membership in London at the moment
I can't go running due to problems with my joints

I have been going swimming, but can only budget to do this once a week. I got hold of 30DS (which I have done twice now), but it's such tough going! I feel like I need a middle ground between the couch and the craziness of Gillian, something to get me moving that isn't going to make me want to punch the TV!

So, how did you start exercising at the beginning of your weight-loss journey? Any advice?

Replies

  • xbekkiex
    xbekkiex Posts: 30
    Personally I jumped right in with bootcamp 3x a week - it's offered at lunch through work for 12 weeks and I figured it would be a great way to stay motivated and be held accountable. I'm not sure how I'm going to continue after it's over, but I'm hoping once 12 weeks has passed I'll be so pleased with my progress the motivation will just be there!

    I've heard really great things about zumba which I might look in to! doesn't get much better than dancing away the lbs :D
  • violethaze
    violethaze Posts: 13
    Slightly impatient but... *bump*
  • violethaze
    violethaze Posts: 13
    Bootcamp sounds like a great idea!

    Zumba is also a great suggestion - I do love to dance :D
  • lizziebeth1028
    lizziebeth1028 Posts: 3,602 Member
    I have a ton of work out DVD's at home of all varieties so there is never an excuse not to do something. And something is better than nothing!!!

    I love Leslie Sansone's walk at home DVD's....low impact and easy to follow and you will sweat. I probably own about 10 of these!
    I have Jillian Michaels 30DS
    Denise Austin (how obnoxious is she?!?!)
    I also own quite a few yoga DVD's

    Maybe try and find a walking buddy too!
  • iwantahealthierme13
    iwantahealthierme13 Posts: 337 Member
    If you're low income, you should ask if there's a policy in your city that will allow you free use of the pool you go to.

    I'm in Toronto, Canada and they have what's called a "welcome policy" which I'll be using to get passes soon which will save me the $7 per week I've been spending for the last couple of months.

    I swim twice a week for an hour each time, use a treadmill at home that we already have and I bought a pilates DVD and a 6lb medicine ball that I also use, now that the weather's nice, I walk outside sometimes too.

    Anything you can do to get your body moving will help with motivation.
  • StephC74
    StephC74 Posts: 64 Member
    Well what motivated me is seeing photos of myself and realizing I wasn't hiding my weight gain like I thought I was. Don't give up on 30 day shred it can really get you stronger and burning more. I only did it 3 days a week though and didn't even attempt to try it every day. It is tough but if you have a rest day in between and stick with it you will get stronger and it will get easier. The short amount of time it takes was a great option for me and even though it took me 10 weeks I lost inches and about 12 lbs during that time.
  • FlittyGetsFit
    FlittyGetsFit Posts: 94
    Have you tried your local council's gym? They're usually significantly cheaper than Virgin, Fitness First and the like. If you receive benefits or housing costs, you can usually get an off peak membership even cheaper. I pay £26 per month for mine (inner London borough) which is less than I used to spend on cola and chocolate!
  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
    Start small. Do anything. Go for a 15 min walk every day at lunch, or after/before work. Once you get into a routine of working out every day for a specific time period, you can start expanding the time, the intensity and/or the variety of exercises. I started with 15 minute walks myself. A year later I spend an hour in the gym 5 days a week.
  • afigueroa_pr
    afigueroa_pr Posts: 344
    My wife gave birth to our beautiful daughter 13 months ago.
    Around 2 months later I looked at myself and I looked at my daughter. I hated the fact that my BMI was 32.6 and I didn't want my daughter to be raised in a house where eating could be a disorder. My families have diabetes in their medical history. I took it upon myself to lose this weight and to teach her the importance of a healthy meal and exercise.
    This is where I am now: 53 pounds lighter and a 13 month old toddler running around the house lol
  • hdsqrl
    hdsqrl Posts: 420 Member
    As to how to get motivated to get off the couch and just move - when I'm feeling like there's NO WAY I could get moving, I mentally separate my mind/brain from my body, and I pretend that my mind is one person, and my body is another person, as if I'm somehow babysitting my body. And, hey, my body needs to be down at the pool by 7, so we better get her there! Or, hey, my body has been ordered to go for a walk at 6:30, and it needs to be walked 1.5 miles before it's permitted to sit down again, so we better get moving. Time to deliver this body somewhere, so let's go, team.

    It sounds ridiculous, but it often works when nothing else will, and once you're up and moving, you can happily rejoin the mind/body connection and feel good that you DID IT!! :flowerforyou:
  • taunto
    taunto Posts: 6,420 Member
    While everybody is different, when I know I need to workout but am unable to, I tell my friend on GMAIL to motivate me and his words usually are along the lines of "Move your fat *kitten* you little b1tch" and somehow that motivates me :)

    One thing I have noticed though is that its the first step thats the hardest for me. But once I get moving on the stationary bike at home I am on a roll. Or if I start walking I say F it, i'm going for it and next thing I know theres 1k+ calories burned. Just gotta push yourself to take that first step
  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
    I started with low-impact DVDs that I could do at home. Richard Simmons' Sweatin' to the Oldies 2, Leslie Sansone's Walk Away the Pounds, and a Bellydance for Fitness DVD. My early goal was just 20 minutes a day and I gave myself a sticker on the calendar for every day that I stuck to my routine. It seems cheesy, but it worked for me. Play around, I'm sure you'll find something that will work for you.
  • LizHowerton
    LizHowerton Posts: 329 Member
    I was very heavy. I started with going on walks on my lunch break. I gradually increased the distance and time as I felt better. Then I would walk on myl lunch break and after work. Gradually increasing the distance and time and speed. As the weather got bad, I purchased Leslie Sansone walking dvds. I got into doing her for quite some time.

    Now I like Chris Freytag's extreme cardio, and Jeanette Jenkins, circuits and tae bo.

    Just gradually increasing what I was doing helped me. I was very overweight/obese and I am 49 with MS. If I can do it, you can!
  • ClaireLouGard
    ClaireLouGard Posts: 2
    Find a time that suits you best. Like you I'm the heaviest I have ever been and sometimes struggle with time as I've got a fifteen month old. I've started exercising in my dinner times at work and my friend has started doing it with me (which is motivational), sometimes we walk sometimes do exercise classes depends on the time and how we feel. So I'd recommend finding a friend to rope in and a time that suits you.

    You'll soon get into it and once you do you'll be flying. I have a leisure card at work, but sometimes lunchtimes classes in gyms are cheaper than evening ones, so it's worth checking.

    Also, hula hooping is good, cheap, easy and fun. The classes are supposed to be really good.

    Good luck :smile:
  • SaraSM143
    SaraSM143 Posts: 10 Member
    Hi, I also have a huge problem with motivation. Sometimes for me it just comes down to telling myself, "Get up off your butt and DO IT!" I also have a great support group of women here and that helps. I can't afford the gym or a personal trainer etc so I do online videos. Doing the 30DS now, not sure if I am ready for that. I also have a Bellydancing one, Hip hop abs and Carmen Electras striptease areobics. Someone also recommended this:
    http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/fitness_videos.asp
    Good luck and I wish you all the best...
  • kayleesays
    kayleesays Posts: 564 Member
    I literally have to do it one measly step at a time. Put hair in a ponytail. Roll out of bed, put on a sports bra and running shorts. Get back in bed. A few minutes later, put on running shoes. Get back in bed. A few minutes later, go fill up a water bottle. Find iPod. Find running app. Stare at it. Look at running pictures on Tumblr. Walk downstairs. Finally get on treadmill and walk, slowly. Start to run.

    It sucks, I know.
  • Sonyakrueger8
    Sonyakrueger8 Posts: 69
    When I first started I worked out with resistance bands and loosley followed a book called the Cardio Free Diet by Jim Karas (sp?) I saw results quickly and its what motivated me to keep going. Now I have moved to Jillian Michaels and Bod rev and have lost 27lbs. The main thing is that you get moving. Make a promise to yourself and do your best. Dont beat yourself up but motivate yourself. Friend MFP pals that will help you motivate!

    You can do this! Good LUCK! Friend me!
  • Flixie00
    Flixie00 Posts: 1,195 Member
    I never went on a diet, some colleagues talked me into signing up for a charity walking half marathon, and it all started from there. Before then, I was getting bigger and bigger and did no exercise.

    Keep up with the swimming as its a wonderful exercise, but add some long walks (longer than 30 mins a walk at a brisk pace). Walking is a fantastic place to start, free, and as you're in London, there are loads of routes to take (try www.walkit.com to plot your route).

    For me, becoming fit became a buzz, and now I hate even having to take a rest day.
  • emily2tx
    emily2tx Posts: 77
    My motivation is food. I love to eat, but since my metabolism is sooooo slow, I have to exercise to get any real meals--- or I should say "fill me up" meals. That said, once you start exersising more than 3 times a week, it becomes an obsession. To get motivated, I have friends that I walk/run/workout with. Sometimes you just have to make yourself do it, we make each other do it. Like the runner that said she goes back to bed a few times. Once you get started, you will feel better!
  • mkutkowski
    mkutkowski Posts: 10
    I got started by selecting an exercise that I thought would be fun; the Wii Fit. I have to say, it offers a lot of variety and therefore the ability to change up an exercise routine to keep things interesting. It will also generate one for you. I've stuck with it because I enjoy it. If you like dancing, I highly recommend Zumba. It keeps me so engaged, I don't even notice the 45 minutes going by. Anyway, try to find something that you would enjoy, and it won't be such a chore. Good luck! :happy:
  • kristen6022
    kristen6022 Posts: 1,923 Member
    Just go for a walk. Increase your speed and distance slowly. Get some light weights and do some strength training in front of the tv at night instead of sitting on the couch. I don't have a gym membership but I did have motivation. I wanted to be a better me and they only way I was going to do that was to get moving.
  • cherrieruns
    cherrieruns Posts: 342 Member
    yep, if your joints can handle it, walk, often and over time, far. use home dvd's or if you have access to free cable workouts use those. We have ondemand here that has numerous free workouts fromyoga to boxing. force yourself to schedule it into your day. After awhile it will just become another thing you do every day. Good luck to you
  • PughTooFew
    PughTooFew Posts: 44 Member
    My motivation wavers regularly, it only takes a few days of 'rest' to turn back into a couch potato! I'm starting off my exercise again slowly. Not having very much money and also having two small kids I can't really go out to gyms or pools so it's more like walks and housework and gardening that I push myself into doing more vigorously. I tried 30DS and lasted under a week, it seems like such a big step when you've done no exercise before (or not in a while). If you can afford it, Zumba is so much fun! or a step class for beginners.

    Keep going and let us know what exercises you can find to do around the home or on a budget - get creative and keep moving! : )
  • mandymccoll
    mandymccoll Posts: 13
    Walking and cycling are great ways to exercise and don't cost a lot of money. It's difficult to convince yourself to start exercising, start out doing something 2\3 times a week and then build it up, you will be amazed how quickly it just becomes part of what you do. I've been really surprise, 6 months ago I found it really difficult to motivate myself to do any exercise, now I get some sort of wierd withdrawl from exercise if I haven't done anything for a couple of days.

    Find something that you are interested in doing and if you can find someone to do it with you that will help. Exercising with another person helps, you don't want to let the other person down by not turning up, which in turn can help you get in to a routine.

    I hope this helps, all I can say is that if you make small changes to begin with it will get easier.
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