Retired, forcing myself to go to a gym (milk, accident, benefits)
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I've heard this all my life and it's never been true for me. I pretty much despise forced exercise.
I started running because it took too long to walk 5 miles. I resented the time. Kept waiting to get the 'runner's high' thing. One day I went out and ran 8 miles. The only thing I got was tired.
Find a kind of exercise you enjoy and it won't seem forced. I tried a bunch of things before finding what worked for me.
If I had to go to a gym and use the machines, I probably wouldn't want to exercise either.
Last edited by Windwalker2; 01-21-2015 at 11:09 AM..
I can hardly wait to drive all the way back to freezing New England and start to go to the gym. Whoopie.
It excites me to even think of bundling up in my heavy down jacket with hat, gloves, scarf, and boots, and go trundling down the front steps, landing on my bum on the ice right beside the car. What fun!
Then I can drag myself to my feet by holding onto the hood of the car and proceed to shovel the snow off the entire car. Yeh, I'll do it in layers of just a few inches at a time. Shouldn't take too long.
Maybe there'll even be a layer of ice under the snow and I'll get to have fun with the ice scraper. Of course the engine will be running with the defroster going so I'll get some help with the ice melting. If the car will start and there isn't a lot of ice on the road, I'll even drive to the gym. It only takes about ten minutes to peel off all those heavy clothes and reveal the bathing suit that will be underneath. By then the exercise class will be over and I'll get dirty looks but so what? The gym is FUN.
You know, I think I'd much rather be exercising in the pool on a cruise ship in the Caribbean or some warm place like that. It's just a little bit easier.
I do Nia using DVDs at home. I like it because it has helped strength, balance, endurance, and aerobic conditioning. And I find it really fun, with the music. I also like that I can do the movements in the way that doesn't hurt me. I can't do floor yoga things. It always hurts my back. So I just don't do that part if a routine has it. https://nianow.com/
I also swim laps year round.
I aim for 150 min./per week of these two things.
And then my dog wants me to play keep away so that adds to it.
Am I in the minority because I really enjoy the gym?
Sure, sometimes I have to prod myself to go, but once there, I enjoy my routine. (20 minutes on treadmill, 20 minutes on bicycle), 20 minutes with free weights and some machines.
I try to tone/use all moveable parts so they don't rust out ...lol. Love running into folks I know from the community and do some catching up.
Affterward, I feel so relaxed and...righteous. And I sleep very well, most tension worked off.
Also do some bicycling outside, yoga once a week, and dog-walking as I'm a pet-sitter. I'm not much good at being sedentary I suppose.
Am I in the minority because I really enjoy the gym?
Nah, I think I am.
I'm still wrapping my head around the fact that people are going to do something they don't want to do - as the thread title implies. "Retired, forcing myself to go to a gym"
I'm still wrapping my head around the fact that people are going to do something they don't want to do - as the thread title implies. "Retired, forcing myself to go to a gym"
Not much to wrap your head around. To survive or thrive, people often have to do things they don't want to do, like give up sugar and other bad habits; exercise; move away. "The gym" is one of two reliable options in areas of the country (North or South) where at least two seasons of the year make it hard if not impossible for seniors to get exercise outdoors. If you know you're not going to invest in home equipment and actually use it, that leaves........."the gym," like it or not.
I drove to the senior center gym today and had to pry myself out of the car into the bitter cold. Frozen, I went in dreading every step. Was greeted by the receptionist who directed me to the gym, which partners with the Y. It's a big room with a lot of machines. Most pieces were being used. I stood outside the glass wall watching. There was what looked like a trainer? working with someone. Everyone looked like 80 years old. Well, not all. A few looked maybe 70. Hey, that's me almost. They had on gym clothes. I headed to the coffee shop downstairs. I guess I'll make an appointment for next Tuesday.
We started at the community gym 1 1/2 years ago. I went in today. DH was saying that we need to increase our visits to three a week, instead of 2. I agree. I want to walk an extra mile a week, for one thing.
I have never been a fitness buff, and still am not. I go strictly because I know I need to. We had a treadmill for a number of years, and I used it. But the gym is so much more interesting! There are new machines to try, for one thing. That's how I discovered the recumbent elliptical machine. Using this has helped my sore knees. And I can walk on a track, instead of on a treadmill. I prefer the track. And I lift hand weights. In other words, I don't have to do one thing for an hour. I get to do several things for an hour+. And I find doing that is less boring.
So, I want to encourage you to make that first appointment, and go. Start easy, and work up. Try new things. Ask the trainers for help.
Buy some new fitness clothes too. Good luck!
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