I had my annual checkup today. By and large, I am in excellent health. He’ll give me a call in a few days with my blood test results and that should give me a much better sense of how I’m doing. A few facts seemed to give him cause to raise an eyebrow this time:
- I’ve been drinking more in the past year.
- I have not been exercising since I quit the gym a year ago.
- I presently weigh more than I’ve ever weighed in my adult life. Well, about that anyway.
I’m a smidge over 6′1″ and I weigh 195 pounds. That isn’t particularly heavy, but it’s ten pounds heavier than I weighed at my last physical. Combined with my lack of exercise one can only conclude that this is not healthy fat.
As much as I loathe the idea of spending money on a gym again, I have not made any effort to work out at home and the results seem to be pretty clear.
I don’t know. I think I need to either join a gym or find a really rigorous sport that I can go to at least three times a week. As things stand right now, I’m going no where, and I really do need to do SOMETHING. Here’s what I’ve thought of so far:
- Martial Arts
- Pro: rigorous, new, exotic, exciting
- Con: somewhat expensive, pretty steep arc for getting good at it
- Swimming
- Pro: fun, low-impact, rigorous, full-body cardio workout that works well with my body type
- Con: mild expense, but pretty inconvenient to where I live
- Running
- Pro: fun (yes, I enjoy running)
- Con: not really all that healthy for you, very time-consuming, somewhat seasonal unless I invest in rather expensive equipment
So, right now, I don’t know what I’m going to do, but I need to do something. Other suggestions welcome!
How about sprints? They’re quick, and they’ll kick your ass. You could do them up stairs in the winter.
However, it sounds like you need some motivation more than anything else. You could work out at home, if motivated.
When Paul and I began exercising regularly some years ago, we paid ourselves “play money” for exercising. We still do that, although we don’t really need to motivation, but I like having a single number that summarizes my workouts for the week. (We have crazy-complicated payouts.) You could use that money — and perhaps only that money — for something you particularly enjoy.
Another helpful motivator was that we would watch certain favorite television shows — only while working out. That worked far better when we were doing 40-minute cardio sessions. Now it’s harder. Notably, kick-ass-action works best. I do sometimes have difficulty rowing or running while watching _South Park_; I’m laughing too hard.
And hey, why don’t you post this to OEvolve?
I recently started to try and get myself in shape again, after a few years of letting myself go. In addition to going full-on paleo, I looked into crossfit exercises I could do at home because I both dislike the gym, and don’t really have time for it except for after 8pm and the kids go to bed. And past history shows I won’t have to motivation to do that. Once I’ve worked a 9 hr day plus an hour commute each way, and relaxed with the kids reading them books before bed, there’s just about no way I’ll regularly get back in the car to go to the gym.
So, I put a pull up bar in the basement and got myself some kettlebells. (Made the bar from 1″ steel pipe from Home Depot, a couple of 2″x6″ boards, and some lag bolts — bolted them to the floor joists) I know you don’t have a basement, but the IronGym-type pullup bars for doorways work really well too. I got one for work and it’s great. (only $30 or $40) You can do a simple, mostly bodyweight resistance-only crossfit workout in 20 minutes or less. Pullups, pushups, squats (w/ or w/o kettlebell) and you’ve just worked on shoulders, back, arms, chest, core, quads, and hams. 20 mins. Do it in a semi-fasting period before you cook dinner, 3X per week, or get up 20 minutes early and do it before breakfast. This site has a bunch of regimens in this vein, from beginner to advanced http://www.simplefit.org/bodyweight-exercises.html.
I have always hated working out; I’m much happier playing a sport. But these workouts are intense, and short, and so far it’s been easy to keep it up.
I would prefer to work out at home, but I have similar issues to what you listed, C.
Working out after work is all fine and good as long as there isn’t anything I want to do after work because if there is it either means working out really late at night or it means working out really fast and having to shower and get re-dressed to go to whatever event there is.
The morning would seem to be the best time to work out, but I am rarely motivated in the morning to do so and my stomach is almost always a bit unsettled in the morning — which is why I rarely eat anything until I’ve been awake for a couple of hours.
I already have the doorway pullup thingie, a medicine ball, and a workout mat. A kettlebell might be useful, but since I live in Manhattan and I will likely move every year or so I am reluctant to buy heavy, awkward things that have to be moved and, more importantly, stored. Space is at a premium.
I’ll take a look at the exercises you listed there and see if I can figure out something like Diana has suggested to motivate me to actually do it.
MDA’s Prison Workout might have some ideas for stuff to do at home without equipment.
http://www.marksdailyapple.com/prison-workout/
Yeah, I looked at that, but it requires jumping and I think that would be inconsiderate toward the people who live below me.
But I do need to figure something out!