Like many people, I've had an on-again/off-again relationship with exercise. I don't want my current infatuation with fitness to be just another fling. I need to permanently integrate exercise into my life. To accomplish this, I know I need to work on my attitude along with my abs.

I'd like to know, particularly from those of you who are consistent exercisers, what's going through your mind when it's time to go work out and what are you thinking about while you're doing it? Please be completely honest.

Thank you,

Allison

hi Allison,

when it is time to exercise, I think 'oh not again!' thought, lol. I feel two feelings at the same time, slight bitterness and strong overwhelming determination. it also helps me to remember, that it is only temporary, when I reach maintenance, I won't need as much exercise as I need now to control the flab, burn the fat, and have sexy muscle definition.

while I am exercising I pretty quickly enter into trance and have silly thoughts and daydreams. I think about what will be the next development in my favorite soap opera, or in the novel I am reading before falling asleep, or how to elaborate data of the experiment and whether my research deserves the Nobel prize, lol. I certainly do not think about exercise, my body goes through the motions on its own. When euphoria hits after 30-40 min of intense aerobics, I think sex, lol.

mila

Allison, I've been working out in form or another for 14 years. It has become part of what I do every day. I went from a 278 lb couch potato to a beta-endorphin feind At first what kept me going was the feeling of accomplishment that I got from every single workout. Being barely able to walk/jog a block became running 2 blocks - until I was running for 30 minutes straight.

Now it's just part of who I am. I miss my workouts when I cant get them in. I set aside time when I travel to visit the gym - heck, I pick hotels for our meetings out east based on whether they even have a gym

About 5 years ago I started working out in the a.m. This was a great move - the statistics that state people who work out first thing tend to stick with a program are right. Getting up and getting that time in makes my day - this is "Nat Time" and it's as comforting and necessary as a bubble bath or a pedicure.

Since switching to resistance work instead of 45 minutes of cardio in the mornings I find it easier to get out of bed at 5:15 am - it's a lot more challenging and a lot more fun! Again - it is that feeling of accomplishment I first noticed. I've been able to do 45 minutes on the damned nordictrack for years; but every time I lift weights I am improving and setting new goals.

For me the most important aspect of working out was that it became a habit - whether to workout or not is not the question, it's a question of what type of exercise and when. Like the ad says I "Just do it".

HTH
Nat

Mila, you make me laugh! I appreciate your honesty in admitting to a combination of dread and drive. I've been trying to figure out if I should try to brainwash myself into enthusiasm or just be honest with myself about the mixed feelings I have. Likewise, I've been trying to decide whether it's better to focus on what I'm doing or daydream to pass the time.

Good luck on that Nobel prize!

Nat, I think you're completely right about the morning. The morning cardio has been no big deal since I've limited it to 20 min. and take it on before my shower and breakfast. The resistance training late in the afternoon is a different story. I actually like it better than the cardio, even though it takes me more than an hour. I think it's something about the getting-all-sweaty-again thing. Isn't that stupid? So typically American of me.

"Just do it" is probably the exact attitude I take on, rather than thinking about it so much.

Thanks for the replies.

Allison

What goes through my mind is this: I hate the first ten minutes. Every day I hate the first ten minutes. But once I hit 11 -12 min and the body's core temperature has risen one degree, and the brain chemicals start whizzing, then, it's FUN....and I keep going. I'll probably hate it again around 20, 30, 40 minutes, etc. The point here, is that every day, I know I just have to survive the first ten minutes. Good luck!

Hey there!

I have a treadmill and I'm up to 8 8-minute miles 3x a week. Whoda thought? Like the others, I adhere because it's first thing in the morning (no copping out) and I "just do it". After going many years without really listening to music, I now get one hour with my favorite jammin' tunes. I wear headphones, turn up the volume, and may even play "rock star" or "backup singer" on a song or two! I open the blinds and window wide to keep it cool---so I'm sure my neighbors get quite a kick out of it! It's really cool when I find a song that is just the right tempo for my pace.

When I start, I think of my daily goal and my next big vacation to Hawaii. By 30-40 minutes, I sometimes can hit my "zone" where I'm relaxed and my breathing is under control. I get and stay there by picturing myself running in the beautiful Irish countryside (have NO idea where I got that) and I'm running with a deer or a dog or a wolf pup on and on. I picture woods, bridges, streams, fresh air, nature, etc....

As a mother. wife, and full-time employee, I celebrate these hours each week---either jammin' to my tunes or making a quick trip to Ireland.

Enjoy!
K.

i haven't a clue what goes through my head most of the time--exercise is truly automatic and most of the time I just do it. My only thoughts before are things like, "oh good, it's stopped raining for a bit, so I'll walk the dog." My hard workouts are in the morning, so my mind perhaps isn't fully engaged enough to resist the idea at all. When I'm walking the dog, I think about the bulbs blooming and tell him occasionally what a nice walking companion he is and think about things I want to get accomplished. Sometimes I imagine a conversation where I explain my long efforts at weight-control--sometimes I imagine that conversation taking place a year in the future with someone who has never seen me at all overweight and finds it hard to believe I ever was.

Inside the gym, I do a lot of counting, I guess, which fills my mind pretty full (gee, that sounds awful! ) I feel compelled to count reps, even though I usually work muscles to failure. I think, "huh, I wonder why 130 feels so heavy today and it didn't last Friday." Especially on leg work when my muscles are engaged, I tend to look at them and think admiring thoughts about definition. When I'm running on the treadmill, I am doing intervals and often clock-watching. I convince myself to keep going at the current pace, "just a hundred more right footfalls" and then count them down, or "just until the timer says 13:15" and stare at the thing like it's some sort of answer to the meaning of the universe while it counts down. Sometimes I focus on a point on the opposite, far wall, and chant affirmations to myself: "building a strong body; building a healthy heart"--stuff like that. Sometimes I try think of romantic fantasies or sex--but it's hard to hold that thought and run, I find. The more I'm at the gym, the more people come up to me and chat while I'm running--I don't love chatting at the gym, but I stay friendly. Sometimes I think, "ow ow ow" in a sort of hypnotic rhythm -- especially when my calves are cramping while running. When I do yoga, I do loads of counting to keep my mind from thinking about work issues or chores. Breathe in to the count of 8, breathe out to the count of eight.

As you can imagine, my counting skills are quite good by now--forwards and backwards.

I just love these responses. I'm glad I started this thread.

Lony, I need to remember this. I hate it till I'm warmed up too, but hadn't thought to remind myself of this fact. I need to try to have as much fun with it as you do Kristin. I love the image of you having a blast in your own happy world while the neighbors watch through the window!

Raz, you kill me -- ROFL! I have those fantasies where people are amazed that I used to be fat too. I'm going to think of you from now on when I'm pointlessly counting and try to remember, what were those affirmations Raz uses? Ow, ow, ow, ow.

Allison

Oops, typo. Meant to say, "the attitude I should take on." I'm working on it.