Hey ladies and gents, I didn't know where exactly to post this but im in my 20's so I guess here is as good a place as any. So this is more of mini rant but lately i've really been trying to up the exercise and try to shed these lbs. that have crept up on me do to antidepressant meds (and me shoving food in my face because of them!). Well, since becoming a bit more active, i've noticed its extremely hard for me to "keep going". I have absolutely no stamina left. I went on a two hour hike a couple of days ago and I literally felt like I was going to die! I don't know if it was the heat or what but i felt like I had an extra 200lbs weighing me down. I gained these 40 plus lbs. in a matter of about 5 months...do you think gaining the weight so quickly could have something to do with my lack of stamina and endurance? Today I went hiking with friends, very fit friends, and I was out in front and ahead of everyone but I felt like I had to work so so hard just to maintain a steady pace. This is really discouraging, and after a long day everyone wants to hit the bar, but me, I just want to go to bed! Im exhausted!I had a bit of a melt down yesterday because I used to be so active, I played softball, volleyball, I was on my high school swim team, and now it just takes all ive got to exercise. I really just want to cry. Does anyone else feel this way or now how to deal with this feeling of exhaustion? I feel like I have to wind myself up to do what everyone else does, whereas before I could do everything with ease. It's just really frustrating.
It really could be a lot of things..surely being 40 lbs heavier regardless of how fast you gained it will put you out of shape (or make you feel out of shape) in no time, especially if your lifestyle is more sedentary. Think about it, when you were more active, if you had carried a 40 lb backpack you would of been exerting a lot more effort and probably of been quite tired then as well! Unfortunately antidepressants are so notorious for having these effects, but everyone is different and I personally believe in living with (acceptable) side effects for the benefits..you might also want to try posting in the Depression and Weight Issues area. They have a LOT of experience with the effects of various drugs and how they deal with weight gain etc.
so i noticed your stats and i feel like we're very similar. i started at 196 and am now 149.5...though i never was small. but i can say that when i was at 196 and would do things i didn't regularly do (such as hiking, or biking, etc) i had NO stamina. if i did them regularly, i would build it up. the same is true now, really. if i start a new exercise that i don't do on a regular basis, it kicks my butt. i went for a 1/2 hour bike ride the other day for the first time in 3 months and i barely made it the full 30 minutes. i can't speak for everyone, but i think this is normal. as hard as it is, try to be patient with it. a 2 hour hike is a freakin long time. you should be proud of yourself for completing it, not upset that you didn't go as fast as you wanted to. i know at 196 i would have had not shot at completing a 2 hour hike...heck, i probably couldn't do that now.
you're body is very different now than it was then. as hard as it is, try not to compare how you are now to how you used to be. compare you to you now. as you start to lose the weight and get in better shape, compare each day to how you were when you started the weightloss, not the weight gain. hope this helps
You have to build up your stamina when you're doing intensive exercise like that. Hiking isn't easy and it takes time before you can successfully walk the trails and not be that tired afterward. Take it a day at a time and try to walk on smaller trails to build up stamina. Good luck.
You are not the same as before when you played softball, volleyball, and was on the high school swim team.
You have gained weight, gotten sedentary. You cannot expect to jump up to the level you once were cold turkey. You have to start smaller and build up.
I know it is disappointing to lose something you once had. At my best I was walking half marathons... I don't even make pace now much less distance!
But I'm trying to build back to that place and the bright side is -- bodies are wonderfully responsive.
Don't try to jump into 2 hr hikes "cold." Try a 30 min. then 60 min, then 90 min and so on to recondition.
Make peace with yourself, take it more reasonable, you WILL get there.
And then you don't have to deal with so much emotional baggage along the way. Instead of beating yourself up for what you think you have lost, concentrate on what you want to gain.
I can't keep up!!
Dhani 
