Ask Lemmy

Boxing. Constant movement, hell of a work out, and you get to punch shit

Walking the dog while listening to podcasts or audio books.

I like to watch shows/videos while I workout. Made a rule that I can only watch certain things while I'm exercising. I look forward to watching those things and 'tricked' myself into being excited about the exercise, too! Also I feel much better after I've exercised, so I really look forward to that post-exercise feeling.

I like to walk, I pick nice places with good/interesting scenery. It's good mentally too, helps me unwind and work out problems and come up with new ideas.

find an activity that you legitimately enjoy. that's it

By doing physical activity that's intrinsically rewarding.

If you enjoy bike riding, go ride your bike, and don't even bother thinking about it as exercise. Enjoy, and get into it.

The fitness part is just a side effect.

I started lifting for self improvement and quickly got hooked on progression and getting stronger. It didn't take long to become a habit and now it's the thing I most look forward to after a long day of work. With no more than three hours per week you can completely transform yourself..

I used to hate exercise. Then, I pushed myself to do it regularly and the benefits surpassed the negative side of it by a lot. For instance, almost all my chronic pain issues are gone, so I'm saving a couple hundreds yearly on healthcare. I also feel better physically (I can move better, I have better endurance) if I'm exercising regularly compared to when I'm not. Because, let's face it, I don't like it, so every now and then I stop for reasons and getting into it back again is very difficult. But it's always worth it.

Find sports that you actually enjoy - try out different things. In my case:

• Cardio: running fucking sucks, swimming is boring as shit. Cycling, on the other hand, is pretty fun. Feels like flying when everything aligns.
• Strength: lifting weights at the gym is doable, but boring. Climbing? Hell yeah, give me more routes where I have to tie myself into a knot while pulling up all my weight with my fingertips.

It can be an exact opposite of it for you. Or you'll find out that team sports are the bees knees because support from other people is what you've been missing.

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.

Find something you actually enjoy.

Historic European Martial Arts. Swing a sword and mace.

https://youtu.be/sMPSCb7frrc

Or you can dance, or juggle, or tumble...

Stephen Fry lost 100 pounds by listening to audiobooks while he walked.

There are game consoles that connect to a treadmill; you have to keep your legs pumping or the game stops.

I got a kid but not a car. Just walking to the kindergarten and back twice a day is movement. We spend a lot of time outdoors at playgrounds or parks and I have to do all the grocery shopping by bike or walking. I don't do other physical exercise admittedly, but this kid is a fitness machine. We be running, playing, I need to lift her, carry her, carry her stuff, clean up, wrestle - for real having a kid made me the most physically fit and active I've ever been.

When I was younger I liked to dance. Trying to lose weight I'd just put headphones on in my room and dance for hours. A friend of mine actually lost a crapton of weight this way, think obese to normal weight.

Also, making a kid (and training for it and reenacting it) is great exercise.

Knowing I won't feel like shit for the rest of the day.

Try different things until you find something that feels good even as an idea. Think about things you like doing and how you like them. For me, I dislike team sports and being surrounded by people in a gym setting. I like doing things on my own, preferably at home while not talking to anyone. I first start thinking about maybe enjoying a spooky story podcast while walking so I start thinking about the temperature and the things I like watching while I'm out, etc. Same for weight lifting, pilates and yoga (Those are my cyclical workouts. I get bored easily) I hype myself up in my head first and then use the "do it for five minutes" method.

I have NEVER said "Well I wish I didn't come to yoga. This class sucked" "That lifting routine was a total waste of time. Not doing it again"

Also, having cute/neat stuff for it helps, just beware of spending habits. Did I need to buy green yoga blocks? No Do they make me Happy everytime I look how they are the exact same shade as my pothos? Yes they do.

Hiking. I don't try to climb mountains,just get out and move. The fact I have to watch my footing and have a chance of seeing (or at least hearing) wildlife helps distract from the fact exercising sucks.

I use mental tricks as well. I had to bribe myself to get started. "Look there's a trail near that takeout place you like, if you hike you can get takeout!" If I run out of breath due to uphill terrain, I'm not stopping because I can't keep going, it's clearly to look at this neat bird/bug/plant. If I have an off day and need to turn back early, I remind myself that I've already won by getting off the couch.

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)

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.

Bike rides are the only thing that made cardio fun for me. The varied environments and the thrill of exploring massage my brain and I end up not noticing how much it sucks to bike straight up the side of a mountain. Also the alternating grind of ascending and thrilling adrenaline rush of descending keeps things fresh.

I try not to think about it as a punishment for what I ate, and more a celebration of what my body can do.

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.

Work out watch star trek. By the season 4 you'll be made of steel

Combine with work. Birds and stones.