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Work out?

Libre

Member
A bit of life history:
Up through my 30's, I was always very active and athletic. Though I shunned organized sports such as baseball and basketball, I had lots of vigor and agility, and could usually leave my peers in the dust in any kind of race. I could beat much bigger boys in arm wrestling or leg wrestling, and most strength related activities.

Then, in my early - mid 30's, unhappily married, the lethargy set in. A gut developed. I lost my vigor. I smoked heavily.

In my late 30's I was single once again. I began exercising. I became an avid bicyclist, and worked out with free weights 4 times a week. I recaptured the athletisizm of my youth. This continued to my early-mid 40's.
Then I got bored or tired - maybe both. I stopped the work outs. I no longer bicycled. I ate junk. My blood pressure and cholesterol soared, and I gained weight. My mantra became a quote that I had heard once, attributed to Winston Churchill:
Whenever I feel the urge to exercise, I lay down untill it passes.

Now, at 55 (and happily married this time, I might add), I recently joined a gym. I work out 3 times a week.
My wife works out almost every day, and she is delighted at this change in me.
I want to report the the benefits of this can be felt immediately. I started to feel much better after only 2 or 3 workouts.
Yes, it's hard. Yes, it hurts. Yes, it takes drive and energy, and frankly it's far easier to lay down. Screw that. I'll be laying down a long time once I'm dead.

I'm working with a trainer right now. We're doing strength and cardio exercises. My strength and vigor are nowhere near what they once were, but they increase daily. I can't wait for my next session - Monday morning, 9am sharp!

How about you? Do you exercise or do you excersise your right to avoid it?
What are you working on? What exercises do you like? Do you work out in a gym or at home? Or, are you mired in a morass of inactivity and overeating? Do you need some encouragement? What's your story?
 
Libre said:
Do you exercise or do you excersise your right to avoid it?

I do an hour and a half of muay thai kickboxing on Mondays and Thursdays. I try to slot some swimming into Tuesdays and Sundays; sometimes I run instead. Wednesdays I play badminton.
 
I do Body Combat (a combination of various martial arts in a sort of aerobics set up) on Mondays nights, squash on Wednesdays and hockey on Friday nights.
 
I think Libre, that you are being polite when he asks are you overeating. Some people can over eat and still remain thin. Maybe the question should be are you fat?

Most people are fat because they do over eat and do no exercise. But I think that you can over exercise as well, once you are at your ideal weight. I also think that your body adjusts to what you do to it. If you give it a lot of exercise now, what happens when you have to stop (for what ever reason)? You will regain the weight.

Everything in moderation ;)
 
Twice a week I play Badminton, usually on Saturdays & Tuesdays but it varies, & I've just started to relearn swimming.
I am trying to motivate myself to get back into running but the treadmill is so darn boring and I hate running outside in my area, it's too busy and I always end up stopping to chat with people.
I do walk a great deal though, and try to go hiking as often as I can.

muay thai kickboxing
A friend is going HERE for two months in November, I may go with him - but just as cheerleader - I wouldn't wanna break my nails with all that training :D
 
I get really bored at the gym, so I have to find other activities to keep me in shape. I do a ton of dirt bike riding and play softball a few nights a week in the summer. Come winter I snowboard and snowshoe with my dogs.
 
The treadmill is boring, that's true. Hard to overcome that.
I used to find that bike riding was much more exciting. Riding, as I used to do it - in NYC traffic - was exciting because there was always a reasonble chance that I would be killed.
The gym has it's own mentality, though. I really like the weights and machines - the cardio exercises not as much. That's kind of a form of torture, but - as I said - the benefits are huge.
I get the feeling that those of you that are playing badminton and doing kick boxing, and other actitivies that are not strictly "working out" are still in your youth. Let's say under 35. You may find that once you hit the dreaded "middle age" it is going to be much harder to stay motivated and to stay fit. That's what I found, at any rate. It's hard to beat the gym for a good hour or hour and a half work out that will cover most everything.
 
I run and do yoga afterwards. Once a week I run with a small group of people and then I run by my self in the weekend, always outside by a lake near my house. It has been a good thing to run with the group especially during autumn and winther as it gets mighty cold outside over here. I am thinking about taking up yoga at a class starting in august.
I am not what you call youth but I do find it great to exercise, helps me staying fit and feeling strong.
 
Exercise bores me. But I do do yoga, albeit irregularly, because it loosens up the whole body and feels so great. Other than that, I walk. I mosey, wander, stroll, hike, tramp and gumshoe, all over but preferably in forests, for hours. May I add, I have never seen a smiling jogger. :p ;) I miss biking a bit, but now I live on top of a mountain... :rolleyes: And as mentioned, everything in moderation. Except, of course, for sticky chocolate cake!!!! :D

*mrkgnao*
 
Gem said:
A friend is going HERE for two months in November, I may go with him - but just as cheerleader - I wouldn't wanna break my nails with all that training :D

I wanna go. :(

I notice there are no costs listed.
 
I wanna go.

I notice there are no costs listed.

Stewart, along the left handside of that link there is list of options, including fees etc, I think 2 months training and accommodation is around £300.00, which seems very cheap,perhaps my maths is dodgy though.
I booked a flight for someone last week to Bangkok and it cost £450.00, so a flight to Phuket won't be too different, depending on season though.
If you want further details I can ask my friend.

Libre,
I get the feeling that those of you that are playing badminton and doing kick boxing, and other actitivies that are not strictly "working out" are still in your youth.
You may find that once you hit the dreaded "middle age" it is going to be much harder to stay motivated and to stay fit. That's what I found, at any rate. It's hard to beat the gym for a good hour or hour and a half work out that will cover most everything.
You're probably right about the age thing, I'll let you know when I hit my mid thirties ;)
Although I would say that Kickboxing is a proper workout.
 
I used to run about three miles three to four times a week. On the off days I'd walk with friends at least six miles. Lately, I haven't had the time or opportunity, and things aren't going to get better until the fall. Starting tomorrow I'm planning on visiting a friend down the road to run on her treadmill. I'm also going to try getting back to yoga two or three times a week. I feel myself getting increasingly unhealthy, and I know that I need to take more time for caring for myself rather than spending all my time caring for others!


Libre said:
The treadmill is boring, that's true. Hard to overcome that.

I must be weird, but I actually love the treadmill. I never trip over bumps in the pavement. I can listen to a book on tape without worrying about getting run over. I also don't need to worry about pollen counts, heat indexes or ice. Plus, if I visit my friends' treadmill one of them can watch the kid while I run, or I can just pop her in her exersaucer and let her watch me.
 
I've been addicted to team sports ever since I was a kid. Of course, certain parts of my body are paying for that now.

Currently, the only activity I get is softball and some pilates. But I am giving my knee some time to recover from tendonitis, so this fall I should be able to ramp it back up a little.

When I am fully functioning, I play basketball, softball, and volleyball. I also run and train for triathlons.

But with baby #2 coming in January, I think I'll be giving up some of those activities for a while. :D
 
mehastings said:
I must be weird, but I actually love the treadmill. I never trip over bumps in the pavement. I can listen to a book on tape without worrying about getting run over. I also don't need to worry about pollen counts, heat indexes or ice. Plus, if I visit my friends' treadmill one of them can watch the kid while I run, or I can just pop her in her exersaucer and let her watch me.
Weird, not at all. I use the treadmill 5 days a week, 45 minutes a day. It only takes "discipline". I enjoy the treadmill while listening to music, especially the rock n roll from the 50's and 60's.
 
I go in cycles when it comes to working out. I'll get to a certain point and then after letting myself gain back some weight, then I'm all into it. Lately, I've been using an elliptical machine that we were gifted, a very slick one at that. Five days a week, half an hour to forty-five minutes, followed by four to five routines on the bench and weights. We've cut out pop entirely and have replaced it with flavored water. I only allow my caffeine consumption to be enjoyed on the weekends. It's tough to back into it, and I agree that "discipline" is very important. My inner drill instructor does wonders.:D
 
SFG said:
I go in cycles when it comes to working out. I'll get to a certain point and then after letting myself gain back some weight, then I'm all into it. Lately, I've been using an elliptical machine that we were gifted, a very slick one at that. Five days a week, half an hour to forty-five minutes, followed by four to five routines on the bench and weights. We've cut out pop entirely and have replaced it with flavored water. I only allow my caffeine consumption to be enjoyed on the weekends. It's tough to back into it, and I agree that "discipline" is very important. My inner drill instructor does wonders.I hate the idea of the gym, but when I get there it's okay. You can take it easy there, which suits me, as I don't think I've put much effort into exercise since being at school, or something.
Be careful then, because the discipline could easily go, and then you'll be stuck. ;)

I hate the idea of gyms, until I get there. And then, something to do with everyone else suffering just the same, makes you put the effort in.

I flit a lot. I'm big into all the Eastern ways of looking after your health, and all that, at the moment. Their principles focus on stretching your muscles, and gently massaging your organs, such as with yoga and some martial arts. Running, and other high energy sports such as badminton, football etc, cause the muscles to produce lactic acid, which is toxic.

Anyway, enough of the lecture. I used to run a lot, and still do occasionally, but now I'm looking at more gentler activities. I walk for miles every day, out in the open air, which is lovely, if a little scary at certain times of the day. I miss cycling a great deal, even though I hardly did it at all when I had a bike. I do at least 40 minutes of yoga, and stretching, every day.

I used to do trampolining, which was great fun, and not as easy as it sounds, but for some reason don't do that any longer. Oh well.

I like to stay fit, because despite practising kickboxing for a few years as a teenager, I know that should someone attack me, I would never be able to defend myself. Therefore I need to be able to outrun them.
 
I flit a lot. I'm big into all the Eastern ways of looking after your health, and all that, at the moment.

I'm amazed at the number of participants in yoga classes, as well as "guided meditation" sessions. I'm not certain when that became all the rage, but I must have missed the memo.;)
 
SFG75 said:
I'm amazed at the number of participants in yoga classes, as well as "guided meditation" sessions. I'm not certain when that became all the rage, but I must have missed the memo.;)
Because my mum is weird I was brought up doing meditations anyway, so the breathing and stillness of your mind etc, I could already do, which while not essential in practising yoga, will give you a lot of benefit anyway.

Yoga is good though. Unlike activities where you really exert yourself, which makes you want to die and gives you a boost only after participating, yoga (and pilates, and Tai Chi or Qi Gong or whatever) makes you feel good while you're doing it. Really good.

20s87sh.jpg


That is hard though. ;)

Besides, Madonna is the age of my parents. There must be something right about yoga.
 
Ha ha, I wish (that I could do it, not that I could marry you, though I'm sure that's a very attractive proposition, but... oh help).

No, nowhere near looking like that, my attempt at The Locust. :eek:

The Locust for those who daren't risk breaking their back, looks like this:

awww.sivananda.org_images_locust2.gif
 
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