Fitness Struggles

[Daknight]

I actually get Just Dance for the sole reason of working out (and I actually like it). I can fit 30 minute schedule thanks to it and even more now thanks to it been on switch I don't necessarily have to be near a TV or have access to a TV.

But it is tricky finding time to workout if one has a full time job and then do art after it. The body might not be doing much, but mentally one can feel tired limiting the desire to work out.

[zammap]

The thing I hate the most is how I always end up having fun and feel good after working out yet here I am avoid it???!?1?1?1 But I'm always like "this is more important, I need to do this instead"

[Rhonder]

Finally made it back to the gym for the first time since August, partially motivated by this thread, so yay~ gotta get back into it @u@

[Kittosaurus]

@Nachi Yes, now that I think about that, I think this has been one of my biggest hurdles getting back into shape - from my teens to early 20s I was in very good shape and did a lot of activity - but now trying to do exercise again is soo disheartening because I am so weak and I've lost soo much strength/stamina. I never really thought about it as a mental break before either. You make a good point

@Merle ooh lists! I'm good at those. Following through.. not soo much but I can see how this is a good place to start! I have enjoyed Zumba in the past - it's just finding a class that isn't too packed or too expensive that is the hard part lol! Thank you

@maelstrom51210 I wish my job was more active! You're lucky you essentially get paid to work out!

@Daknight Yes! The mental exhaustion is real! I didn't realize it was on the switch, I might have to check this out as I do enjoy dancing!

@zammap Isn't it funny! I can definitely relate to that! I think thats why, when I do manage to work out I am often 'tricking myself into it' I used to love rollerblading around the seawall/ pedestrian paths when I lived in Vancouver (years ago) - and let me tell you that was one hell of a workout! But me and my friend would get up early every Saturday morning to do it! And it never once felt like a chore.

@RhonderYay! Thats awesome to hear! I've picked out a 20 minute work out that I can try when I get home to start the week off right! Wish me luck!

[Merle]

Always check if you have gyms close to you with zumba classes at convenient times. Usually tunrs out to be cheaper ;D

[Mari]

I've been doing this because clinical depression caused me to gain a lot of weight and because of anxiety I cannot be in public places for more than like 20 minutes at a time without puking.... It's easy to do stuff and suitable for beginner and my legs ache quite badly every day after but it's helped me some. Obviously if you're more in shape than I am something more rigorous would be better for you, but that's just the one I've liked the most

[Kittosaurus]

@Merle Yeah unfortunately the gym closest to me ( that I was using previously) is just waaaay too packed! Nothing else close near by

@Mari Aww I'm sorry to hear that! That sounds rough Looking at the routine that does seem quite manageable! After talking with everyone it is quite clear that I am my biggest obstacle!

[Kittosaurus]

I'm reviving this thread...

While I still haven't been able to find a fitness plan that works for me. I have instead turned my focus to things I have more control over. While I am against calorie counting as a long term method - I can see it's benefits for the short term to get portion sizes under control.

However after doing some research - it turns out that the calories burned according to my fit bit might not be all that accurate. Has anyone else had trouble with this or have suggestions.

I should add the disclaimer that I am not trying to do any sort of crazy dieting here - I know that the diets that help you loose "20 lbs" quick and all that are not sustainable/ damage your metabolism in the long run. Simply trying to get into a healthy calories in vs. calories burned ratio.

[33rdCenturyCaveman]

Me doing variation on One Punch Man workout. 3 exercises, 100 reps each, 300 reps total. Sets ladder up 5 - 10 - 15 - 20, than ladder down 20 - 15 - 10 - 5. Warm-up, cool-down, and in-between active recovery periods am all 3-minute walks or cardio if available. Very scalable, very modular. EDIT: 45 minutes or fewer.

Me also working up to 100 burpees total with 3-minute suitcase carries for core work and active recovery. Good for crane stance and general balance.

[Lummy]

• walk to your work if it is a reasonable distance from you (ignore if you already do it lol), I use sweatcoin for motivation to talk instead of taking the bus (even though it will take you literally years to get something from sweatcoin)

• try to do the 10 min workouts that they offer you on YouTube (YouTube workout are very effective, talking here from personal experience)

• if your goal is to get in better shape is actually to lose weight than eat right
  I was mindblown when I discovered that you only burn 300cal (in a good case) in a workout, and that one tiktak (chocolate) is also 300 cal -_-

[jcmraz]

It's about priorities. There is definitely time to do it 3 days a week but that has to be the thing you set time aside for. Instead of doing something else recreational you go and work out 3 times a week. Doesn't need to be every day. Do cardio sometime and make sure you're strength training. Don't worry too much about visible growth at first. Build the habits first. Then worry about improvement. Get there and do the c25k 3 times a week on a track or on a treadmill if you HAVE to (but know that treadmill running is nothing like running on foot I promise you. You'll think you've gotten the ability to run the distance and then you'll do it on foot and realize the difference. But moving is moving to start) and then go into the weight machines and pick 3. Do 3 sets of 10 on each machine and make sure you feel it at the end of each set. Build the habit and then look into real work out plans and build strength. Muscle takes more caloric energy to maintain than fat so you can get thinner and leaner by strength training and you run and do cardio to make your heart and lungs strong as well as to strengthen your slow muscle fibers. Don't think about how hard it is to find the time. Just find it.

[Shanny8]

Currently just trying to work out my arms to rid myself of the pain so that I can ease back into making my comic again. Right now between this issue and my day job trying to ramp up my number of tasks that I do in a given day, my focus is all over the place.

[33rdCenturyCaveman]

Me agree, it about forming habit's. Me never worry about breaking diet because me breakfast-skipper for life.

[33rdCenturyCaveman]

When me say me am breakfast-skipper, it not mean me am captain of H.M.S. Breakfast.

[33rdCenturyCaveman]

Thank you for your helpful advices Susan.

[33rdCenturyCaveman]

Gym still open where you are?

[aqua03]

If you guys have a Nintendo Switch, I'd highly recommend Ring Fit Adventure. It's a genuinely good game and a genuinely great workout game. Go check it out if you ever have the chance to.

[atoamsh]

It may seem that there is no progress, but it's not true. Just keep working and you will see the result. Don't give up. Just keep doing that and everything is going to be alright. It is also very important to be careful while doing fitness, just to ensure that you won't be injured. Once I was really not attentive at the gym and I got a trauma because of this. It was very serious, and I am really lucky that I have found a really good chiropractor at aurora-chiropractic.com that helped me very much. So, please be careful with that.

[lynestjules]

I have the same issue and distance to walk to and from work is a bit excessive. Instead, I do simple things to get to my weight goal and stay active

• Park further in the parking lot at work & stores , so I end up walking a little bit more.

• Eat a very small healthy lunch (because I work sitting down)

• Drink a lot of water

• During my lunch, after I finish eating, I change my shoes and go power walking for the remainder of my lunch.

• At home, I try to do 30 minutes of the JUST DANCE NOW app. I pay monthly to have unlimited access, it's much cheaper than going to a gym and I don't have to feel self-conscience.

• Limit myself to night snacking to once or twice a week and I'm allowed a small bowl of it only.

• Limit myself on prepared foods and make most of my meals from scratch.I use my wok and my slow-cooker a lot. A wok will cook everything really fast and my slow-cooker can cook things when I'm at work and drawing at home. So, I maximize my time to work on my comic at home, but at the same time, I don't neglect my health.

• If I need to go somewhere from home that's 30 minutes or less walking distance, I don't drive, I walk.

• I also have a Fitbit and do challenges with family and friends.

It's hard to do all of this in the beginning, but it becomes a habit after a while.

[Snickerdoodles]

I have a hard-bottomed office chair that's only comfortable for like forty-five minutes. It encourages me to get up and walk around periodically.