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Old 04-14-2011, 09:34 PM   #1  
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Default My Nemesis--- Exercise

I need help! I started out at 324 lbs and lost 100lbs. Now I have gained back 40 and I am at 264. I KNOW I need to exercise, but I HATE it and, based on previous attempts, I don't foresee me becoming one of those people that eventually become addicted to exercise and feel horrible without it.
Does anyone have any suggestions on finding the motivation to exercise? I really don't know what to do and just writing this post makes me sick, sad and tired.
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Old 04-14-2011, 10:15 PM   #2  
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I think the key is to find something (anything) that you can have fun doing...volleyball, or walking, or dancing (zumba, pole or belly, whatever works for you). The best exercise is one that you'll do (so everyone here is saying).

For me, I'm not a fan of exercise, but I try and get out and walk every day, usually 3 miles. I plug in my MP3 player, crank it up, and just enjoy the scenery, or think about stuff. It's a good way for me to center myself, and the fresh air is awesome.
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Old 04-14-2011, 10:44 PM   #3  
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I can't guarantee you'll ever LOVE exercise, but you can almost definitely learn to like at least some kind of it. I used to loathe exercise of any kind; as far as I was concerned, there was exactly one reason to get all red-faced and sweaty, and it was NOT exercise.

Here's what helped turn me from an exercise-hater to an exercise-tolerator:

- I reframed my thinking. Instead of "I HATE exercise!" or "I look stupid" or "It's so undignified," I consciously re-cast my thinking: "I can spare an hour," "This stretching feels good," and "I wonder how good I can get at XYZ" replace the outright rejections. I even let myself think, "I like yoga" or "I'm looking forward to swimming."

- I cast about until I found stuff I enjoyed. Then I gave myself permission to not do the crap I didn't enjoy. I like walking, swimming, yoga, and weight-lifting. I don't like running or being outside in the heat unless I'm in a pool, so I won't do those things.

- I paid close attention to how I felt during and just after exercise. I find I feel pretty good after a workout, so by focusing on that, I expanded my positive associations with exercise. This helps me out when I'm all, "Blehhhh, I don't wanna walk!" I can remind myself of how good I feel when I'm done and it gets me out of my computer chair.

- I looked for things to like about my physical abilities or my environment. I'm completely uncoordinated and would be lost in a Zumba class, but I am super-flexible and have taken naturally to yoga. Jogging makes me feel like a lumbering beast, but walking lets me notice how much I'm enjoying the park instead of focusing on how I might look to others.

I actually feel a lot less "sick, sad, and tired" now that I get about 4 or 5 hours of exercise a week. I could (and should) get more, really, but I still have some motivation problems. "Hmm, go for a walk or get some work done so I can earn a new pair of shoes?" Not a tough call for me.

Good luck with it, and I really do empathize. Congratulations on your weight loss thus far! You'll lose that 40 again, I'm confident that you will.
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Old 04-14-2011, 10:44 PM   #4  
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Ditto with OhMyDogs & Nola. The best exercise is the one you do.

I am not an "exerciser" myself. This time around though, my whole family (husband, mom, & dad) joined the gym together. We joined a popular local gym and then found out that several of my friends are going there as well. So I have been able to meet the ladies at gym for classes Monday, Thursday and Saturday. Tuesday, Wednesday & Friday I do another class where I've met some really cool people that I look forward to seeing. Just trying to show that I've found something that suddenly works in a way that it never did before. It's hard but I'm actually enjoying myself and I'm super surprised by that.

I also like everything Nola said about finding stuff you like then giving yourself permission to skip the crap. I hate DREADmills...every minute feels like an hour - so I don't do that...EVER! I hate/love this one class, GST. I feel like dying in the class but then I feel this super weird high when it's done. I also really enjoy Zumba - exercise but I learn to move my body in fun, sexy ways (which will one day actually be sexy when I do them! LOL).

So like they're saying, try anything and everything until you find something you don't hate...then you might even find something you kind of like.

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Old 04-14-2011, 11:21 PM   #5  
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ugh I loathe it too! I hate sweating LOL I walk, because my hips and back feel better for it and i know it's good for me...other than that, I don't do deliberate exercises per se, but I stay very active by shovelling the snow with vigor, or doing yard word at an insane pace, Ultimate Housecleaning is my favourite sport I wash floors the old fashioned way, I move my fridge and clean behind it every WEEK, I take a load of laundry up and down ONE at a time, I scrub every toilet and bathtub to within an inch of its life pretty much daily, going to start digging in the garden hard core soon -- there's lots to DO to keep active, not all movement has to be on a treadmill! and the upside is you have a pretty & sparkly house! yay!

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Old 04-14-2011, 11:34 PM   #6  
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Walking is the way to start for most people and one piece of advice I got was that you should use it as a way to explore. Drive to a different part of the city and walk around. Or have someone drop you off somewhere (not too far) so that you have to walk home. Its amazing what you notice just wandering the streets. I walk around evaluating peoples houses thinking what works and what doesn't, what I would do to my house if I had the money and guessing what sort of people live there
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Old 04-15-2011, 12:07 AM   #7  
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I was in the exact same boat you were. Exercise was so LAME. But, I also constantly beat myself up over not doing it when I knew I should. I decided to go with the easiest and least cumbersome for me, walking. My doggies benefited as they went with me, and I got to see my neighborhood as I am a street walker (lol!) not treadmill. I started at half an hour walking, more of a stroll. The thing that really helped me was listening to audiobooks!

I found a book I really really liked, and then I only allowed myself to listen to it when I was walking. So, I would be excited to hear what happened next, but since I was only allowed to listen when I was walking, it was the motivation I needed to get out the door. Plus, concentrating on a story instead of just on music puts your mind sort of out of your body (for me anyway) so the aches and pains and heat didn't bother me as much.
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Old 04-15-2011, 01:11 AM   #8  
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I'm glad I came back to this thread. I see a couple of great suggestions here that I'm going to put into practice--especially more vigorous housecleaning and looking into audiobooks.

A healthier body, a cleaner house, and a well-read mind--what could be better?
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Old 04-15-2011, 06:50 AM   #9  
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I feel the same way! I walk at my local mall. The mall opens early for walkers and yesterday I passed up a woman with a cane! hehe! I love looking in the store windows and see all the cute clothes I'm giong to fit into one day. I also sneak in exercise when I can. When I pull out the gallon of milk in the fridge I do a few arm curls, driving in the car, contract my stomach muscles. I also have exercise bands and use them during commercials when I'm watching tv or jump around during the commercials. I make the kids do it too. They think I'm crazy but it stops me from going into the kitchen and getting an snack.
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Old 04-15-2011, 07:03 AM   #10  
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Ok, so I love exercise and am quite addicted to it and maybe not the best to respond to this, but...

I enjoyed exercise at the beginning, but the true addiction came when I started to realize just how much more fun life is when I engage in physical activity on a regular basis. Oh, the things I have conquered since becoming fit!! And I face these things every single day. I forgot my towel upstairs this morning and had to run back up to get it, and it was no big deal!! I RUN up and down the stairs now just to grab something I'd forgotten. I got to go spelunking with my 10 year old and it was not an easy trip. I went on a 5 mile hike through the woods on rough terrain and did not get winded. I am living this incredibly awesome life that had just been passing me by and it's all because I hit the gym every morning.

Maybe you can use life events as your motivator. My spin instructor is big on having goals or things you're training for. I'm not training for a marathon but I am training for each and every day of my life.
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Old 04-15-2011, 10:30 PM   #11  
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I really didn't like exercise at the beginning either. I started walking, everyday, I hated it to begin with, took major will power to just get up off my butt and do it. I started with only a mile (which is up a nasty hill and back) I am now walking 5 - 6 miles a day, not all at once though. I love it now. It clears my head and I can just relax and reflect on the day. My senior dog has also lost weight, which is good, she doesn't look like a rectangle anymore
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Old 04-15-2011, 11:05 PM   #12  
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I love my Nintendo Wii If you like to excersize indoors.....they have dancing games, wii fitness games, and all kinds of stuff to get you active.....and on top of that its fun! They even have zumba on the Wii
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Old 04-16-2011, 12:44 AM   #13  
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I love the audio book idea!
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Old 04-16-2011, 01:06 AM   #14  
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I HATE running and I tried to force myself to "become" a runner, but now, I don't. I'm not a runner, and I don't think I ever will be. But I found other things I like to do (Zumba, walking, etc) and then there are things I don't like to do that I do anyway, because they are excellent workouts (namely, stairs...I HATE stairs but I WANT to conquer them!!!)

My main point is, not everyone is going to become a gym rat, or live for exercise, but physical activity, to me, is a fundamental part of a healthy life. So just get up and do it, and eventually the hate will dull into a strong dislike and what really helps me, is visualizing how hot I'll be after exercising and remembering why I'm really doing it...no matter how much I hate it at the moment.
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Old 04-16-2011, 09:07 AM   #15  
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I'm also an addict, but I wasn't always and I don't think everyone has to be. You really should get some exercise though. You've already gotten some great advice. Find things you like and do not do things you truly hate. You don't have to absolutely adore everything you do, but you shouldn't be dreading every minute of it either. When I first started I bribed myself. If I get X many minutes of exercise in this week then I get a new shirt. If I do X many crunches this month then I can have new shoes. You may surprise yourself and find something that you really love, but until then maybe you could combine something that you don't hate with a reward system to get yourself moving. Good luck!
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