Ex unfit, never do any exercise types-can you motivate me with your stories?

[BananaGio]

I am 40. Totally unfit. Toyed with exercise for 3 weeks here, 4 weeks there occasionally in the past but nothing long enough to make any difference. I suppose because I have never been fit I find it hard to visualise myself as being able to be fit and can't imagine what it would feel like. Exercise and sport has never been a constant part of my life. So all you ex unfit MN-ers - come and motivate me and tell me how you have changed your life, fitness level, body,weight, health etc because if I am worried that if I don't change now I never will!

I am unfit and 40. At Christmas I felt terribel - extremely unfit and lardy and swore I would do something about it, even though I am bone idle and hate the gym. Salvation arrived in the form of outdoor bootcamp sessions in the local park. They are totally hardcore, but have different levels for different levels of fitness and I feel fitter already after only a few weeks. Being outside is loads better than being in a sweaty gym. I am the unfitt-est person in the class, but my aim is to eventually not be. Getting there is a bit hard sometimes, especially if it's raining and cold, but the thought of going back to how I felt at Christmas usually gets me going. Even better, I am starting to eat healthier too (not a diet though, can't stand the things).

I suppose what I'm saying is, I'm only a few weeks ahead of you and can feel the benefit already - once you get started the momentum builds and you find you want to do more.

MotherAbigail, bootcamps are great for kick-starting your exercise routine - I did an early morning one, three times a week, for a few months last year and loved it. It really toned me up and it was nice to exercise with other people for a change (when I run, I always prefer to run on my own - miserable sod that I am!). It's great when you start to notice the difference to your fitness. Our bootcamp instructor is a nutrional adviser too, so we got lots of guidance and a link from her website to recipes, which we could add to if we wanted. A nice holistic approach to getting fitter, I think. Glad to hear your enjoying bootcamp!

Thanks SweetestThing. 'Enjoying' may not the right word for what I feel like during a session, but I do feel a bit smug when I finish still in one piece

you're, not your.

I'm only a month into it, so still pretty fat and unfit, but am managing 1 hour per day exercise each week day (mix of brisk walking, wii games and exercise DVDs), which is more than I ever thought I would do. I started off with C25K, but didn't persevere, for various reasons, but it was v useful at showing me I could fit exercise into my routine easily (eg walking to/from school for school run at mega speed!)

I think rubberducks approach of 30 minutes a day as a starting point is a fantastic one. Challenge yourself to keep that up for a whole month, trying as many different things as you can access, then see how you feel. You will almost definitely feel more energetic, look better and hopefully will have found a few forms of exercise that you enjoy, or at least enjoy the effects of, most. Take your measurements at the start of the month and compare them at the end for hard evidence of changes, it is amazing what can be achieved. Then set yourself another challenge from there based on that (5k run, 50 lengths swim, first karate belt, sprint triathlon !?)

I think what is also vitally important is that you change your perception of yourself as someone who isn't fit or sporty. There is some form of suitable exercise out there for most people, but you do have to visualise what you want to achieve, whether that is how you wish to look, feel or be able to do. Also accept that regular exercise is a part of life, like brushing your teeth or eating meals! It is not a quick fix and it should be thought of as time for you, without any interruptions or demands from others. Everyone close to you will benefit from it, but you especially will. Hold this idea in your head to motivate yourself and also remember that even the fittest, sportiest people need to force themselves to get off the sofa sometimes, it is human nature to find excuses to not exert ourselves (for most people anyway). The difference is the regular exercisers know they will feel better afterwards and reap the longer term and ongoing benefits, so nine times out of ten, they will drag on their trainers

Good luck, you can do it, let us know how you get on!

Thanks for all your posts. I agree re the 30 minutes a day idea. I am going to start doing that as of today. If anyone else out there wants to start with me let me know and we can encourage each other

Try Cardio Tennis.
It's a great work out to music. It has just started at Redbridge Sports Centre.

I did C25K recently and agree with others that it's addictive. I feel a zillion times fitter, happier, healthier and more energetic - and recently discovered I could fit back into a dress I've not been able to wear for nearly 3 years! s

You don't need to kill yourself. Just start 3 times a week and stick at it. You'll notice results very quickly. I actually found the first 4 weeks of C25K maybe the most rewarding because I could actually feel such dramatic improvements week-on-week in how much I could do: first 60 seconds running, then 90 seconds, then before I knew it I could run for 10 minutes without stopping, and without feeling too uncomfortable either.

As others have said, so much of it is in your head: if you build up slowly and persistently you never hit such a pain barrier you put yourself off, and wake up one day to realise you can run for miles while actually enjoying it.

so here is my bit of inspiration
I'm 42 and as of last autumn did no significant exercise. I felt really horribly blobby & unfit.

I am a single mum and I work full-time, so opportunities to exercise are very limited. I have a knackered medial cruciate ligament in my knee, so can't run or do high impact stuff.
First of all I started to walk more. I forced myself to go for hour long walks at the weekend, dragging my DCs with me, then I made myself walk for half an hour at lunchtime. Then I started climbing the stairs. Yup literally walking up & down the stairs until I was gasping for air.
Since Christmas I have been keeping up with the walking and doing an hour of Callanetics every second day.
I feel sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo good for it. I am getting back muscle tone, shape and flexibility. My clothes fit better. I have more energy.
Find what works for you & go for it.

I set myself a challenge. Then I knew that when the challenge was over I would have aquired a habit.

A habit is something you need to do for 40 days/seven weeks, once you have aquired a habit it becomes harder to give it up. The more you preform the habit the easier it becomes to do and the hard it is to give up

wanted to revisit to say that in the nearly a month since I started this thread I feel so much better already. I started off doing brisk walking every weekday for the first week and a half and then my 30 day shred dvd arrived and have been doing that. I havent been able to do it every day but am doing it 4-5 times a week, coupled with tracking everything I eat on MFP. So far I have lost half a stone, I feel fitter already, there are slight signs of muscle tone that noone else could tell but I know and amazingly am enjoying it. I also feel younger! I think what was scaring me was I was actually starting to feel middle aged. I was getting aches and pains for no reason, had no energy etc. That is all very much improving already. So once again thanks for all your stories (which gave me the push to start)