I used to be an avid strength trainer and enjoyed working out. Recently I was injured, and now my workouts for the forseeable future include the treadmill and only the treadmill, which I deplore. I’ve also had to alter my diet quite a bit to consume fewer calories to account for my change in workout routine. As a result of all this, I’m having perhaps my most difficult battle with the sort of situation you are talking about—I’m having to do stuff I hate consistently in order to stay healthy and fit (though I don’t care about cryonics...).
Here are some things that work for me:
Build a strong plan in order to make execution mindless. I fill out a 30-day whiteboard calendar with my workouts for a given month. Then I cross them out only after I complete the workouts. Then I do the workouts. My diet is of a similar strict, pre-planned nature in an effort the make day-to-day execution mindless. I have prohibited foods (fast food, alcohol, soda, dessert) & required foods (raw vegetables, raw fruits, 2 liters water, multivitamin) & a daily framework for my meal schedule. I find it help to separate the planning phase of diet and exercise from the doing phase.
Have medium-term requirement that relies on daily requirements. I add 1-minute of treadmill work per workout x 20 workouts per month. I am only allowed to add 1 minute after each completed workout, and I must get to the forecasted requirement for the next month. Day 1, Month 1 starting requirement was 20 minutes. Day 1, Month 2 requirement was 41 minutes. Day 1, Month 3 requirement is 61 minutes, though I’ll likely max out at 60 minutes. This, in effect, is a 60-day ramp-up-phase that is (a) manageable & reasonable, and (b) forms a useful habit.
Pay limited attention to medium-term results; pay no attention in the short-term. Learn some good fundamentals on weight loss and fitness, build a strong plan you can follow, then just do it for 90 or 180 days, weighing in monthly. Weighing in (or comparing other fitness benchmarks to your starting condition) more often can be useful only if (a) you recognize how much this stuff tends to flucuate daily and (b) how much cumulative effort is needed to see significant improvement. In most cases, people weigh themselves obsessively early in a diet, lose 5 lbs after starving themlselves for a week, gain 2 lbs back after two weeks and then give up because they are hungry and discouraged ’cuz 3 net lbs wasn’t worth that two weeks of hungry, cranky hell. Instead, build the good, strong plan, mindlessly and blindly execute for 90 days, then check and (perhaps) adjust accordingly.
I’ve already started doing a few of those things on a haphazard basis, but you’ve definitely filled in some gaps.
I made a 30-day exercise plan, ever-so-gradually increasing each exercise, simply to see if I was physically capable of accomplishing the 30-day exercises by day 30 - and after having made the plan, have been doing the workouts. I’ve added and subtracted some foods, but I haven’t written down a pre-planned meal schedule yet… it’s not an approach I’d have thought of anytime soon, and it’s one I’m going to have to seriously consider.
I’m still on my first short-term plan, and when I made it, I honestly didn’t know whether I’d be able to complete it. If no other plans occur to me, I could simply extend my initially-planned 30-day ramp-up into a 60-day one, then a 90-day one, if I still can.
Wow. That’s some heroic effort you’re going through.
Can’t you use that treadmill time to read, watch or listen to something? Or meditate, you referred to buddhism in our other discussion.
If you haven’t done so already, you could automate things further via a smartphone or a computer. There’s software for almost any purpose. For example, my smartphone does my exercise plans for me and keeps track of progress and adjusts the plans accordingly, reminds me when to exercise and when to eat, reminds me to weigh myself in the morning and draws a prediction graph of my weight based on the last 7 day measurements and calculates how many extra calories have gone in or out based on the progress.
On another note, you seem to have a better grasp of current-day exercise ideas than I do; do you know of any online communities that focus on such matters, and are reasonably friendly to people who are just starting out?
Generally, I’d advise adding strength training as a significant component of your workout if you’ve not already. Cardio and fat-burning stuff is cool, but I’ve found increased lean muscle mass is helpful in staying fit consistently, as it contributes to improved BMR.
Herniated cervical disc causing nerve root compression. My pushing strength (bench press, etc.) on the right side of my body is down ~75%, and my pectoral, tricep and various shoulder/upper back muscles have atrophied and wasted significantly.
My hope is that I will be able to strength train vigorously again within the next 3-9 months. Right now I’m just trying to not to gain too much fat, keep cardio fitness, maintain active habits, etc. I do some stretching and light weight resistance stuff, but, from my understanding, that isn’t particularly useful or effective until the nerve is decompressed and the disc issue is resolved.
So, likely surgery + recovery time = treadmill/eliptical & lean diet to stay in decent shape sans weights.
I guess the silver lining is the akrasia-busting, willpower-boosting tactics I’ve been able to practice to stay physically active without my main hobbies of powerlifting (I HATE running) and eating (I was eating 3500+ calories a day and now I eat 1500...ugh).
I used to be an avid strength trainer and enjoyed working out. Recently I was injured, and now my workouts for the forseeable future include the treadmill and only the treadmill, which I deplore. I’ve also had to alter my diet quite a bit to consume fewer calories to account for my change in workout routine. As a result of all this, I’m having perhaps my most difficult battle with the sort of situation you are talking about—I’m having to do stuff I hate consistently in order to stay healthy and fit (though I don’t care about cryonics...).
Here are some things that work for me:
Build a strong plan in order to make execution mindless. I fill out a 30-day whiteboard calendar with my workouts for a given month. Then I cross them out only after I complete the workouts. Then I do the workouts. My diet is of a similar strict, pre-planned nature in an effort the make day-to-day execution mindless. I have prohibited foods (fast food, alcohol, soda, dessert) & required foods (raw vegetables, raw fruits, 2 liters water, multivitamin) & a daily framework for my meal schedule. I find it help to separate the planning phase of diet and exercise from the doing phase.
Have medium-term requirement that relies on daily requirements. I add 1-minute of treadmill work per workout x 20 workouts per month. I am only allowed to add 1 minute after each completed workout, and I must get to the forecasted requirement for the next month. Day 1, Month 1 starting requirement was 20 minutes. Day 1, Month 2 requirement was 41 minutes. Day 1, Month 3 requirement is 61 minutes, though I’ll likely max out at 60 minutes. This, in effect, is a 60-day ramp-up-phase that is (a) manageable & reasonable, and (b) forms a useful habit.
Pay limited attention to medium-term results; pay no attention in the short-term. Learn some good fundamentals on weight loss and fitness, build a strong plan you can follow, then just do it for 90 or 180 days, weighing in monthly. Weighing in (or comparing other fitness benchmarks to your starting condition) more often can be useful only if (a) you recognize how much this stuff tends to flucuate daily and (b) how much cumulative effort is needed to see significant improvement. In most cases, people weigh themselves obsessively early in a diet, lose 5 lbs after starving themlselves for a week, gain 2 lbs back after two weeks and then give up because they are hungry and discouraged ’cuz 3 net lbs wasn’t worth that two weeks of hungry, cranky hell. Instead, build the good, strong plan, mindlessly and blindly execute for 90 days, then check and (perhaps) adjust accordingly.
I’ve already started doing a few of those things on a haphazard basis, but you’ve definitely filled in some gaps.
I made a 30-day exercise plan, ever-so-gradually increasing each exercise, simply to see if I was physically capable of accomplishing the 30-day exercises by day 30 - and after having made the plan, have been doing the workouts. I’ve added and subtracted some foods, but I haven’t written down a pre-planned meal schedule yet… it’s not an approach I’d have thought of anytime soon, and it’s one I’m going to have to seriously consider.
I’m still on my first short-term plan, and when I made it, I honestly didn’t know whether I’d be able to complete it. If no other plans occur to me, I could simply extend my initially-planned 30-day ramp-up into a 60-day one, then a 90-day one, if I still can.
Wow. That’s some heroic effort you’re going through.
Can’t you use that treadmill time to read, watch or listen to something? Or meditate, you referred to buddhism in our other discussion.
If you haven’t done so already, you could automate things further via a smartphone or a computer. There’s software for almost any purpose. For example, my smartphone does my exercise plans for me and keeps track of progress and adjusts the plans accordingly, reminds me when to exercise and when to eat, reminds me to weigh myself in the morning and draws a prediction graph of my weight based on the last 7 day measurements and calculates how many extra calories have gone in or out based on the progress.
Do you mind if I ask which app(s) you’re using?
Reminders1, reminders2, body weight exercises, cardio, weight management.
I watch TV on the treadmill to try and pass time as quickly as possible. Or audiobook. I have a hard time reading and running/walking.
I’m low tech and should do a much better job of automating. The app you describe sounds awesome.
On another note, you seem to have a better grasp of current-day exercise ideas than I do; do you know of any online communities that focus on such matters, and are reasonably friendly to people who are just starting out?
I don’t, though Google will.
Generally, I’d advise adding strength training as a significant component of your workout if you’ve not already. Cardio and fat-burning stuff is cool, but I’ve found increased lean muscle mass is helpful in staying fit consistently, as it contributes to improved BMR.
What did you injure that requires such a minimal training routine? I can’t help but think you might be missing out on some other options
Herniated cervical disc causing nerve root compression. My pushing strength (bench press, etc.) on the right side of my body is down ~75%, and my pectoral, tricep and various shoulder/upper back muscles have atrophied and wasted significantly.
My hope is that I will be able to strength train vigorously again within the next 3-9 months. Right now I’m just trying to not to gain too much fat, keep cardio fitness, maintain active habits, etc. I do some stretching and light weight resistance stuff, but, from my understanding, that isn’t particularly useful or effective until the nerve is decompressed and the disc issue is resolved.
So, likely surgery + recovery time = treadmill/eliptical & lean diet to stay in decent shape sans weights.
I guess the silver lining is the akrasia-busting, willpower-boosting tactics I’ve been able to practice to stay physically active without my main hobbies of powerlifting (I HATE running) and eating (I was eating 3500+ calories a day and now I eat 1500...ugh).