Ask Lemmy

I lost 30lbs and doubled my muscle mass by doing a gentle calisthenics routine to failure every night while watching the whole series for King of the Hill. I found it kept me busy enough to not notice how much I hated exercise but it wasn't distracting enough to need to stop and watch.

I do it for my dogs. They drag me out and make me walk.

Audiobooks.

Music is fine, but I actually find I will make more time to exercise if I'm listening to a good book.

For me at least: getting out into nature. Cycling can easy get you out and into the countryside. And is easy on the joints etc. I prefer road bikes as I can see more.

Otherwise, I often drive to walks or runs with good views etc. I cycle to a nice forest park run.

The other trick that works with me is statistics. Going for Strava or park run segments/records can really motivate me. I also now use the wanderer.earth extension to get 'points' for exploring new places I have never been.

Going to the gym sucks. Swimming is nice in moderation.

i learned to love the feeling of muscles getting stretched

If you're looking for a "life hack" to make any exercise instantly enjoyable, then that's really not going to happen.

But you sound like you're motivated to start exercising so that's great. You can add this in layers to make this genuinely enjoyable:

1. find something you like (for me: weight lifting and squash are fun. Running and swimming are hell)

2. Decide on a fixed time (for me: 10pm every day is designated for exercise)

3. Make it as simple as possible and remove as many barriers as possible (for me: I don't sit to watch TV or play video games close to exercise time, otherwise I know I'm not going to get up again. I put on exercise clothes when I get home from work so I'm already ready when the time comes).

4. Add something else that's really enjoyable (For me: I have a TV series that I only watch when I'm in the gym. So if I want to find out what happens next, I'll have to go to the gym tomorrow.)

5. Make this routine (once you're habituated to doing this regularly, then it stops taking will power to force yourself and is just embedded in your routine)

6. Forgive yourself for missing sessions (any time you miss a session, it doesn't matter, you'll start making progress again any time you start exercising again)

7. Make it social (some people love this and you can do exercise with someone. I personally hate that and I love the meditative solitude of exercise time)

A doctors note telling me I don't have to. :)

When you have a heart attack, they enroll you in a program called "Cardiac Rehab", it's like physical therapy for your heart.

Had the first heart attack, started the program, doing the workouts, felt pretty good. Actually, while using the machine, it felt like I could do it all day.

Then they'd have me stop, cool down, drink some water, my blood pressure would crater and I'd pass out. :(

Doc said "Yeah, I don't think Cardiac Rehab is productive for you..."

Had the 2nd heart attack. "Well, that was 5 years ago, lets try it again!"

Sure... Same deal.

I noticed that I feel better emotionally and physically when I exercise regularly and feel like shit when I don't, so it's kind of a self-preservation thing.

A couple ideas:

One of the best things you can do to be active is walk/run/use cardio machines for long stretches of time. So,

• Get some wireless headphones and catch up on some podcasts, albums, or audiobooks you've wanted to check out.
• If you have a convenient way to set it up, you can try to get an excercise bike or treadmill in front of a TV screen, and watch or even game while you're active
• Find some trails nearby. It's more fun moving around if your focus is on sightseeing and exploration, instead of exercising

But also, gamification can be fun. Stuff like,

• Last time I did 3 sets of 12 reps of 100 lb, can I do more this time? Get an app and keep track, aim to increase either reps or weight when you can
• Last time I went a half mile in 20 minutes, can I do it faster this time?
• Yesterday I walked for 5 minutes, can I handle 6 today?
• Can I piece together a workout from some exercises that I don't hate? One that gives me push/pull/legs? One that covers certain muscle groups? That planning can be kinda fun
• Likewise with diet, get a calorie counter app and try to eat with intention. Think of it like a strategy game for min/maxing numbers. Can I get a slight surplus? Deficit? Can I get xyz grams of protein a day, or stay below xyz grams of sugar?

I use comfortable earbuds, turn on a podcast, and go outside. I walk as far as I can and loop back around and barely notice because the pod was taking up my mental space preventing me from feeling the pains.

I like exercise that is also something else and isn't purely exercise for its own sake. Things like hiking, where I get to see scenery and animals, or biking, which serves as a mode of transportation. Currently, I do renaissance fencing, which is fun and social in its own right, and I get to master a skill.

Playing DDR.

Because then the public won't see my red, flailing body as I stumble around to sit after a single song.

That and mowing my lawn. ...except with my lawn, I've had people pull over and ask if I'm okay. Which is embarrassing every time it happens. I'm out of shape and I have a condition!! But I'm not going to explain that to strangers lol

I discovered I like hitting things a while back so I go boxing regularly. These days I read some Trump news and then go take it out on a heavy bag for an hour.

Search apartments.com or whatever for places 1-2 hour bike rides from work. Move there.

…not joking, I’m fortunate enough in that that’s what I’ve been doing. Biking/walking to work is the only way I get any exercise (even though I can work from home). In winter months/if it’s too cold or snowy I’ll use the stationary bikes our work building put in to entice people back from COVID.

I have to have a purpose to exercise (other than health I guess?) otherwise I won’t do it.

I hate running, so I don't do it.

I love hiking and swimming and team sports, so I do them.

Two ways -

1. Really really long walks in the city and people watching, or
2. Biking like a madman, not measuring anything, only enjoying the wind.

I use a stationary bike in front of a TV. My brain is off anyway, so I might as well put my body to work.

Another alternative is to find a sport that you enjoy, or a social group that makes the activity enjoyable.

I dont tolerate cardio, its really not feeling good and it seems to take forever to get to a place where its supposed to feel good. If it ever does.

But lifting weights is fun. I enjoy that since body looks better and feels stronger. And there, results show clearly in just 2 months or faster.

Good, driving music. I have a big list of liked songs on Spotify that I listen to while I'm exercising, but I'm slowly creating another playlist called 'Energy' that I add suitable songs to, with the intention of ultimately building a playlist full of such songs. It's kinda weird though, sometimes I feel like the music gets stale and repetitive, even with 800+ songs on shuffle, and that affects my motivation to exercise.

Embrace the Suck.

Last time I enjoyed myself doing exercise, I probably played table tennis with a tennis ball and hands as paddles. The hard part is finding people who have time when you do, and who are on a similar skill+fitness level as you (picking silly games like the one I described helps).

So yeah, I'm not getting much exercise, either.

Rhythm Games (Samba De Amigo, Fitness Boxing Ft. Hatsune Miku) + needing to walk to bus stop to go to arcade

Ring Fit was also good, but I foolishly left that behind when I moved out x.x

Exercising is part of my precious me-time. I put on a good podcast or some nice music and have a good time. No stress, no hanging on the phone, no Netflix - this is my opportunity to dwelve into thoughts or just do nothing. It is super relaxing.

Me personally? Group dance aerobics are joyful fun classes. Group yoga classes are a very supportive and lovely environment. I do also get to work without a car, do yardwork, park far if I take a car, just try to be generally active.

It takes 6 weeks to build a habit. Just choose something you tolerate, commit to 6 weeks, and at that point you should feel better on a day you work out, than on a day you don't.

I've speculated that it takes time and discipline of exercising regularly for a long enough time, until you get the psychological reward from it. After which for some including me, makes it an addiction. I literally crave it. And if something happens to where I can't workout, like an injury or work or whatever, it really sucks and I can't wait to be able to get back into the routine. I'm talking of a mix of "boring" weights and cardio. I love it.

So my two cents is, muscle through the initial several months of boring suckage but make it count. Eventually, maybe you'll catch the addiction. But this might not work for everyone.

I've never enjoyed gyms or traditional workouts, but yoga clicks with me.