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'Exercised' Explains Why It Can Be Hard to Commit to Working Out

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Re: 'Exercised' Explains Why It Can Be Hard to Commit to Working Out

#111

Post by ogre_codes »

chrisseaton wrote: post #100
geophile wrote: post #33

I hate exercising, but I do it religiously. I am 64 years old, and in the best shape of my life. Same weight (and weight distribution!) as in college, good muscle tone. I think three things were critical, for me: 1. Absolutely no soft drinks at all. Not with sugar, not with artificial sweeteners. Nothing. Just seltzer. I used to drink a LOT of Dr. Pepper, and was told that they were contributing to my frequent kidney…

> Absolutely no soft drinks at all. I don’t get this - what do you drink then? You can’t literally mean you only drink alcoholic drinks? Is water not a soft drink? Surely you drink water?

Soft Drink: A soft drink is a drink that usually contains carbonated water, a sweetener, and a natural or artificial flavoring.

Water is water. Juice is juice. Soft drinks are fucking diabetes in a can.

Re: 'Exercised' Explains Why It Can Be Hard to Commit to Working Out

#112

Post by analog31 »

ogre_codes wrote: post #110
analog31 wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Riding my bike to work kind of filled in items 2 and 3 for me, since work requires me to show up, and I usually have nothing else going on in the morning that can interfere. In the evening, well, now I can only get home if I ride. Eventually it got to be a habit and then something that is hard to live without. I've substituted taking long walks while working from home.

YES, so much this. When I worked from home for a few years and now again with COVID, I have to think about working out. When I ride to work it's just natural. I always thought of it as free workout because it only takes a little more time on bike than driving. Plus you save a bunch of money on gas and wear on your car.

While working from home, I've slotted my morning walk for a time when it's too early for me to think. ;-)

Re: 'Exercised' Explains Why It Can Be Hard to Commit to Working Out

#113

Post by vikiomega9 »

the_only_law wrote: post #103
throw7 wrote: post #78

"Do mostly cardio, but also some weights." Disagree. I'd recommend the opposite, do mostly weights and some cardio. You don't need to buy equipment, barbells etc., bodyweight exercises is weight/strength training. However, both should be done! Cardio is good for your heart. But it's easy and healthy enough to maintain a good aerobic fitness just once a week. Weight training keeps you burning calories and I think stre…

> I'd recommend the opposite, do mostly weights and some cardio. You don't need to buy equipment, barbells etc., bodyweight exercises is weight/strength training. Is this, along with diet, sufficient to put on weight? I really need to gain 50 or so pounds at least and have never been able to do so. Even my brother, who routinely works out now is still pretty thin for his height. I've had a lot of people tell me you h…

If you're intention is to gain weight (not just muscle) you need to eat more than your BMR, no two ways around that. A decent surplus (say 200-300 calories above BMR) and a good program is key.

Re: 'Exercised' Explains Why It Can Be Hard to Commit to Working Out

#114

Post by gonehome »

graeme wrote: post #89
gonehome wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’m not sure why 1 is critical - regular soft drinks sure, but diet soft drinks are fine.

Jury is out on that. Diet coke doesn’t have calories but it may affect satiety. Studies on its weight loss effect seem inconclusive.

I have heard some of that, if you consume more calories then you will gain weight. If you don't then you won't.

Maybe the taste of artificial sweeteners encourages people to eat more, but as long as you don't then the diet soda is fine.

Re: 'Exercised' Explains Why It Can Be Hard to Commit to Working Out

#115

Post by the_only_law »

TACIXAT wrote: post #106
the_only_law wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I'd recommend the opposite, do mostly weights and some cardio. You don't need to buy equipment, barbells etc., bodyweight exercises is weight/strength training. Is this, along with diet, sufficient to put on weight? I really need to gain 50 or so pounds at least and have never been able to do so. Even my brother, who routinely works out now is still pretty thin for his height. I've had a lot of people tell me you h…

I've done calisthenics for a lot of my life, I'm lean and strong (6'1" 160lbs). 50lbs is a lot and would be a serious gain even with weights unless you're really thin. I would focus more on ability, can you do 10 pull ups? Can you do 10 sets of 10 pull ups in a day? Can you do 50 body weight squats? Can you do 20 sets of 50 body weight squats in a day? Get those numbers up rather than having a weight goal.

Maybe. I used to be a lot more active than I was before and my primarily sedentary life doesn’t help. I’m the same height as you, but 30-40 pounds less. I’m not sure how worried I should be at this weight.

Too add, while many people in are rather thin (I mentioned my brother). My father is pretty well built nowadays. Although he was also thin in his younger days, he managed to get into the Marine Corp later, so I imagine that helped.

Re: 'Exercised' Explains Why It Can Be Hard to Commit to Working Out

#116

Post by the_only_law »

vikiomega9 wrote: post #113
the_only_law wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I'd recommend the opposite, do mostly weights and some cardio. You don't need to buy equipment, barbells etc., bodyweight exercises is weight/strength training. Is this, along with diet, sufficient to put on weight? I really need to gain 50 or so pounds at least and have never been able to do so. Even my brother, who routinely works out now is still pretty thin for his height. I've had a lot of people tell me you h…

If you're intention is to gain weight (not just muscle) you need to eat more than your BMR, no two ways around that. A decent surplus (say 200-300 calories above BMR) and a good program is key.

Yeah I need to figure this out. My appetite is pretty small and I’m very convinced I have some undiagnosed IBD (due to some rather specific symptoms). It doesn’t take much to make me feel close to vomiting if I eat too much.

Re: 'Exercised' Explains Why It Can Be Hard to Commit to Working Out

#117

Post by dilyevsky »

disposekinetics wrote: post #49
itsagavin wrote: post #4

Marijuana was pivotal to me being able to live a life of daily exercise. I dropped 140lbs and run a daily 8k on trails from being extremely obese in the span of 2 years. If it is legal for you to try it I highly recommend it for its ability to help you push through mental blocks and it's appreciable aid in recovery.

Could you elaborate on how it helps? This is so far outside what I know I don't even know what to ask more specifically.

Don’t do this - it will trash your sleep and consequently recovery as well motivation to get out of bed the next morning.

Re: 'Exercised' Explains Why It Can Be Hard to Commit to Working Out

#118

Post by torresmo »

the_only_law wrote: post #103
throw7 wrote: post #78

"Do mostly cardio, but also some weights." Disagree. I'd recommend the opposite, do mostly weights and some cardio. You don't need to buy equipment, barbells etc., bodyweight exercises is weight/strength training. However, both should be done! Cardio is good for your heart. But it's easy and healthy enough to maintain a good aerobic fitness just once a week. Weight training keeps you burning calories and I think stre…

> I'd recommend the opposite, do mostly weights and some cardio. You don't need to buy equipment, barbells etc., bodyweight exercises is weight/strength training. Is this, along with diet, sufficient to put on weight? I really need to gain 50 or so pounds at least and have never been able to do so. Even my brother, who routinely works out now is still pretty thin for his height. I've had a lot of people tell me you h…

You definitely need proper diet to put on weight, and lift heavy weights. I was always skinny pretty much all my life, and I was able to gain 5-10 pounds of lean mass during last year (mostly summer). Because of Covid, I had to move outdoors, and discovered calisthenics. That changed everything. I feel so much more motivated to work out now. During the summer I used to go to Stanley Park (Vancouver) and stayed there working out for hours listening music/podcast. And here is the thing: you need to find some sort of exercise that you like to do, or you will stop doing it. Regarding gaining lean muscle, the general advice is to reach muscle exhaustion when doing the reps. I found that to be the key, not so much rep count (even though I follow the traditional 6-12 rep count). Anyway, you should find a lot of advice on the web.

And of course, the diet, which has been the most challenging for me. I have a hard time eating a lot of healthy calories. It's just too much food :P! I read some recommendations on drinking a lot of milk, but I guess we all have have a limit of lactose we can handle [citation needed], and it did not go well.

Anyway, I am trying to make it into a habit/hobby, studying my body and my mind, trying to find what works for me. Hope it helps.

Re: 'Exercised' Explains Why It Can Be Hard to Commit to Working Out

#119

Post by gonehome »

crashbunny wrote: post #93
gonehome wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’m not sure why 1 is critical - regular soft drinks sure, but diet soft drinks are fine.

jump on google scholar and have a read https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=artificial+sweeteners https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=artificial+sweeteners+i... https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=artificial+sweeteners+g... https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=artificial+sweeteners+w...

I'm open to be persuaded, but initial impression is a lot of bullshit there.

The main finding from an admittedly quick look is that drinking artificially sweet soda may encourage people to eat more calories and gain weight. If you're controlling your calorie intake then that's irrelevant.

Outside of that other claims seem highly questionable.

I push back a little on this, because most of the time I've heard people say diet soda is as bad or worse than regular it's because of unsubstantiated woo. Is drinking only water better for you? I'd guess almost certainly.

Is diet soda particularly harmful? I doubt it - and it's almost certainly better than regular soda (or all of those high sugar fancy juices). It can also be really helpful when losing a lot of weight as a zero calorie snack.

Re: 'Exercised' Explains Why It Can Be Hard to Commit to Working Out

#120

Post by jacksonkmarley »

ubertoop wrote: post #44

Fellow programmers - If you have a standing desk but find it difficult to stand for hours, I highly recommend an under desk treadmill. I picked up a Treadly treadmill a few years ago and have logged hundreds of miles of walking while programming. It's thin and can easily slide under my bed, or be propped up against a wall when not in use.

That is a pretty cool idea. I would never consider standing still at a standing desk (uncomfortable for me), but walking would make it bearable at least for a while. Probably couldn't do it all day though.
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