Exercise
 

What follows is me sittng on the pity pot having a pity party. Sorry it is so long.

I am feeling kind of low. I have been reading the book discussion of Thin for Life, especially the part about exercise. I am just not interested in exercise. Period. I have tried various things to trick myself into getting a little exercise, but have been totally unsucessful. I can see myself eating in a healthful way forever, but I cannot see myself exercising forever. Period. What most of you gals do sounds like pure torture to me. I was thinking that maybe I could possibly get myself to do something for thirty minutes three times a week, but according to the discussion, I would have to do 60 to 90 minutes a day for weight maintenance, and the ammount I was thinking about isn't even enough to be healty!:(

It is not like I have never exercised. For about a year, on a previous self-improvent attempt, I got into walking and I joined a little neighborhood gym. I spent quite a bit of time on all this and it had zero effect on my weight maintenance. I walked five miles a day and I went to the gym in the morning and evening for the aerobics classes (this was back in the day of the leg warmers and when dinosaurs roamed the earth). I liked the sociability of the exercise class and to some extent I liked to get good at it, but I just never really got turned on like some of you seem to. I feel good most of the time, and the exercise didn't seem to make me feel any different. I even went to an event in another city where they had a walking competition and I won the race for my age group! Ultimately, the gym closed, and my schedule changed so I couldn't spend so much time on exercise, although I managed to keep walking over a period of several years. I think I was in acceptable physical shape at that time, but the thought of trying to get back where I was, and at my age (65) is daunting and depressing.

Also, it is not like I don't know all about exercise and its benefits. Like the book or one of you said, "knowing isn't doing".:). One of you also said something about maintenance being "A stick of celery and a 40 mile walk every day". That makes me grin, but I am afraid of the underlying truth.

I have a nice little mini-stair-stepper. It is something I can do inside (I live in the desert and it is much too hot to do anything outside). Since I have lost 23-24 lbs, my knees don't hurt so much, so I should just do it - starting with five minutes at a time. Right? Five minutes has to be better than no minutes. Right? Get a Richard Simmons old people's video and do it. Right?

Thanks for having the patience to listen to me carry on!

X

I agree with elmuyloco5 start will small things. Park farther back in the parking lot, when grocery shopping make one complete lap around the store (inside) before shopping, walk stairs when you can, etc. These little things add up at the end of the day. Also don't discount exercise tapes. Richard Simmons is a tape I do often (20min Blast Off & Sweatin to the Oldies) and it gives a great cardio workout. Also Walk Away the Pounds are great tapes for walking and toning.

All in all I think experiment and find something you don't mind doing. Do you like dancing even if you don't know how (thats me) turn a radio on and dance some dancing while cleaning the house. That burns calories and can be fun to do as well.

You are right, elmuyloco. One thing I thought about is that I can park under a tree (keeps the car cooler) if I am willing to walk a bit. I do park away from the store - mainly to park in the shade, but with the side benefit of making me walk a little.

Hee! My corner market is 10 miles away. That's what my DH suggested that I do. :lol:

I used to think I was too good for Richard Simmons. I need to get humble.

I used to laugh about his tapes. I never thought in a million years I would own and use his tapes. That was until someone gave me 2 of his tapes. Now I love his tapes. Great music, he is very encouraging, and in his tapes people are of all different weights, ages, genders. And the routines are simple to get after a few tries.

Well, something to think about is that exercise promotes good health. If you want to be healthy, you should do some form of exercise. 30 minutes 3 times per week would be better than 0 minutes 0 times per week.

Everyone is different though on how much exercise they need to lose weight and maintain that weight. I would say weight loss/weight maintenance is a minor reason to exercise, your overall health is the real reason I think you should exercise.

Not everyone is perfect, not everyone loves to exercise and I think everyone has set backs in their exercise once in a while, but you just do it because it will only benefit you. At least that is my opinion :)

Nelie, I agree with you. I think exercise is important for health. I am fearful about not being able to do enough to make a difference in my weight. I need to look at exercise of some sort as being good for its own sake and not worry about the rest of it.

I am going to see if my library has any Richard Simmons tapes, so I can see what I might like.

Every little bit of exercise helps even if it may not seem like a lot at the time. Every bit helps.

On finding some Richard Simmons tapes the library is good, also craigslist and freecycle are good places to look. Also if you wanna buy Amazon has some good prices.

While at the library look for some walk away the pounds tapes. They are low impact and only take up a little bit of space.

gail, I totally understand where you're coming from.

I've never liked to exercise, and when I heard those exercise recommendations, I couldn't believe it. No way, I thought.

But, I know I need to exercise. I set monthly minute goals and frequently fight with myself -- still -- to put on my shoes and just do it. I don't enjoy thinking about doing it. I would rather lie on the couch and read. But I started slowly -- maybe 20 min several times a week and built from there.

Now I average 40-50 min/day of exercise. No, it's not to that Thin for Life recommendation, but hey, I do what I can. Plus, I think it depends on what you call exercise... just moving more IS exercise!

And still, with all that exercise, I still don't like to THINK about doing it. Usually, not always, once I get started I like DOING it (especially weight lifting), but I try to give myself no excuses NOT to do it. And I DO like that my body is responding to the challenges of weight training and yoga and showing it can do more than it could before. There's something empowering there I never ever felt before.

Many people liken it to all the other things we have to do in our life, whether we like to or not. I don't want to pay my bills every month, but I know that not doing it will lead to negative outcomes down the road.

Another nice thing is that I've come to see how exercise can be a stress release for me, and how it signals I'm doing something FOR ME, not for anyone else. I'm important enough for that.

So... some thoughts. I am still overwhelmed by the notion of 60-90 min/day, but I just don't worry about it.

I think that going from absolutely no exercise, to 40-50 minutes a day or more is overwhelming for many.

You don't have to go from doing nothing, to working out like some of the advanced exercisers here.

Start slow. Make a goal for yourself to exercise for 10 minutes, 2 days this week. It is 20 minutes that you weren't doing before! Make it gentle-a nice walk around the neighborhood, or something that you will enjoy. It doesn't have to start out torturous!

When you have successfully done that for a couple of weeks, then either make that 10 minutes into 15, or add a third day of exercise in. Break yourself in slowly.

Also, exercise doesn't always have to be videos, weights, or equipment. Taking a class like martial arts, line dancing, going swimming, or walking around the neighborhood with a friend chatting counts as activity, too. :)

Some people here are 5K runners, and some are yoga lovers, others love Curves, Jazzercise, square dancing, or what have you. There are gads of ways to exercise. The best thing to do is start slowly, and find something active that YOU like to do. There is an enjoyable exercise for everyone. :)

You all are making me feel better! Here's my committment for now. I will park under the trees at work. I would guess that is a quarter mile round trip. And I will always park away from the store. That is probably another quarter mile round trip. This will be a fun little challenge. I am easily amused, I guess. Somehow, I don't have to force myself to do these things. Probably because I am so highly motivated to visit Mervyn's or Wal-Mart, I don't mind the slight detour.

There are usually a few Richard Simmons tapes at Thrift Stores, too! Sometimes they are still like brand new :s:

i hate exercise too. i bought a cheap pair of rollerblades for myself and my daughter, so we have an activity to do together that gets us out and the blood-pumping. a bonus of time with her that she gets excited about.

need2loseinGA:
This is me, too. :carrot: Well, not so much the cleaning, but definitely just playing the music and moving. :p I'll dance, kick, walk, jog, etc. It's fun and it's great for my mood. Sometimes I'll even "visualize" some fellow chicks dancing around me...sorta like we're doing this together in spirit! :hug:

gailr42:
I have 3 of his oldies tapes that I bought back in the 80s-90s. And I have a couple of other people's, too. Honestly, I don't really play them much, mainly because I don't like to stand watching a tv the whole time and doing an entire routine that way. I'm more, uh, freestyle (yeah, that's the word, lol). :p But I do learn things from the tapes and apply them.
As for Richard, I know people make jokes about him (heck, he makes a joke about himself), but I do have a great deal of respect for how he's been able to help people and how he was doing it before it was considered "cool"...I also like that his videos include people of different weights and ability levels. My mother said some people made fun of Jack Lalanne in his day, too...and the man looks amazing now in his 90s...his detractors are probably dead. :p

gailr42:
Before this year I wasn't exercising. When I started in January, I was doing several 8-10 minutes bursts a day. It made a difference. Plus, as I continued, my stamina increased, I was able to go longer and exert more. I'm what I call a moderate exerciser. I don't go to a gym. I walk and I do various exercises at home, and I play music (either the stereo or I put on my mp3 player) and just have fun with it. Oh, and I recently got an inflatable punching bag, which is pretty fun, too. :boxing:

Like others have said, there's so many ways to get exercise in without it being a regimented routine or block of time. I mean, when the Bee Gees come on and sing "You Should Be Dancing", I am! :D :p

I've never heard of needing 60 to 90 minutes of exercise to MAINTAIN. Sometimes it may be needed to drop those last few pounds, but 30 minutes for 3 days a week is a decent amount of exercise for someone if that's just all they can commit to, and will help you to maintain your weight as long as you eat right.

Like others said, start small. Add just one or two of the ideas here and work on them for a week or two, then add another couple ideas. Some of what I do...

Park far from all entrances like others mentioned.
ALWAYS return your shopping cart. ;)
Walk/bike to the nearest store if you need just an item or two.
Replace your chair at your work desk or home computer (or both) with a body ball.
Pace while talking on the phone rather than sitting.
Contract your abs and buttocks while seated.
Tighten abs while walking.
March in place while watching a program you like. Add hand weights for more of a workout, and/or add a step stool.

I like Richard Simmons tapes too. At first I was a little put off by the constant chatter but the steps are simple and easy to learn and in no time the work out is over. Goofy or not, he does make an impression :)

Tiffanie

I agree what others have said here. And frankly, I wouldn't worry about what Thin for Life said that most maintainers do; you just do what you can.

Okay, here's my other comment, and it's something that's going to sound against the grain, but I'll write it anyway: If you absolutely cannot get yourself to exercise, then don't. But if this happens, keep in mind that you'll need to lower your calories by about 200 per day to compensate (I'm basing this on some online calorie calculators, but this varies according to the person). My husband has NEVER formally exercised other than the sports he played in high school, and he's NEVER had a weight problem (he eats whatever he wants, but doesn't snack & doesn't have a sweet tooth). He does do yardwork a couple of times a week, but no formal exercising.

I am in no way discouraging you from exercising. As we all know, exercising improves overall health and makes weight maintenance easier. However, I also wouldn't want you to just give up on losing weight because you cannot get yourself to exercise. You can lose weight and maintain without exercise as long as you lower your calories a bit.

Hey gail,

Yes, start with small things. You know that it's important to stay physically fit as you get older. I'm older, too, and I have improved so much in the last 8 months! I'm not just talking about my weight and maintaining it--I'm talking about being able to walk a few miles, run up stairs if I need to, lift boxes without risking my lower back, climb 50 stories on the StairMaster without feeling like I'm about to die, and so on. ;) So, just do that 5 minutes or 10 minutes to start. :carrot:

Jay

....that must be why I run

I think I exercise more than the average bear but I just dont have 60-90 minutes every day. I run because it is highly efficient. When I first started running I hated running. I looked at it as "well I have 30 minutes at lunch - how do I get the most bang for my buck" 30 minutes running burned 300 calories, 30 minutes fast walking burned about 200, sauntering along ...150

Start wherever you can..you never know it may eventually hook you...it did me

Hey, gals, thanks for all the great suggestions. Mostly I just needed to hear that not everybody in the whole world is exercising 60-90 minutes a day. Somehow that just hit me like a ton of bricks.

I love the thrift shop, so I will stop by there and see about Richard Simmons tapes. I always thought he was a fun and generous person, I just didn't think it was for me. Why not, I wonder? I guess I just wanted to stay fat and lazy.:?:

I can sort of feel myself getting mentally geared up for this now.:)

Exercise was also my biggest obstacle, the food part was easy! I dreaded exercise so much and the only thing I could do while exercising was to count down to when it was done. As you can surely guess because of this I did it maybe once every 1 or 2 weeks!! Then I moved and ended up at the edge of the city a mile down the road from a mountain preserve and started hiking, which I totally loved, and that turned into trail running. Now that I've found something that I love to do and makes me feel good I'm addicted. Now I see exercise as my escape from the city life, my getting-back-to-nature time, my "me" time. Being outside in nature is important to me (yeah I'm originally a farm girl from Vermont!) so this is the only type of exercise that is fulfilling in ways other than to lose weight. Try to find something that you love to do. If you don't like to go to the gym then chances are you wont, if you don't like to run, chances are you wont. Even though I run trails and love the running part I still hate to run down the sidewalk in the city and if going to the mountain preserve isn't an option I just won't do anything at all because I hate running in the city.
Good luck!!

Thanks, Wisher. I know you are right about finding just the right thing to do. I actually don't mind a repetitive routine. In fact, I find it comforting...so, I'm going to get there, somehow.

I used to hate to exercise, never thought I would get motivated to do it until I bought some fun workout videos. I started off with the striptease video from carmen electra..its not the best but It got me motivated, I then went and bought the leslie sansone walk away the pounds videos...I looove those. For mothers day my husband bought me an eliptical...b/c I told him thats what I wanted. I don't ride it much as I should but I do it at least 20-30 minutes 5 days a week. I also dance around with music...I have a 2 year old so he dances with me LOL. Exercise can be fun you just have to find what you love to do :) good luck!

Ha! Striptease! My DH would approve.

Just want to let you all know that my car is parked under the trees this morning and I walked from there to my office. Thanks for all the great encouragement.