Lessons learned: Exercise is not a dirty word
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I’ve noticed that my blog seems to have become a running and push-ups blog. That’s fine by me as it reflects my next lesson learned.
I’ve found that I HAVE to exercise to lose weight and get healthy. Some people may find that for them they can control what they eat and be in tip top shape but that just doesn’t work for me. I need to run and do my pushups. I need to go to the gym and try and lift weights every so often. I need to get on the crosstrainer, the rowing machine, my bike etc. I need to be active!
- Exercise has many beneficial effects for me. It makes me feel good about myself. There is a certain sense of smugness that sets in as I pass people sitting in their cars or cafes as I’m out running.
- It helps to keep me healthy. My cholesterol has dropped dramatically since I started exercising and eating right. My weight has dropped dramatically. 103 pounds down so far!
- It means I can eat more of finer things in life (hmm…curly fries) as I’m burning more calories. By exercising I’ve built more muscles so I’m burning more calories while I’m just doing my everyday activities!
- Exercise has transformed me from a couch potato into a runner.
Honestly folks, if I can do it then anyone can. I think the mistake some folks make is that they try to do too much at once. If you are just starting out you need to ease into it. Take it one day at a time. Before too long you’ll be one of us happy nutters who are out running in the rain! 
And so, back to pushups and running:
I did day 02 of week 02 the 100 pushup challenge this morning in the gym. The schedule called for 16, 13, 11, 11 and max (min 15). I did the first 16 surprisingly easy although I could feel my abs (or lack thereof) quite strongly. The next 13, 11 and 11 went well as well. In my previous pushup post I said that I would definitely do more than the minimum and so I told myself I had to do at least 20 and I did 20. I’m pretty sure that at least 50% of the pushup challenge is mental so from now on I’ll try and set more ambitious goals!
I also had a good run this morning. I ran for an hour and did 10.3 km at a 5:50 pace.[ad#default]
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Amen for being happy nutters! I may not have reached the echelon you have just yet, Andrew, but I finally have the right mindset I need. It’s crazy how I look forward to my runs. I want to do them every day (despite the fact that I hate it while I’m out there, but love it when I get home and am breathing hard – but good – knowing I just completed a good workout). But I know I need to pace myself and take it one day at a time.
I think I’m shocked that I’ve kept up this long, but what’s the point in stopping? If I stop exercising, I stop my heart. It’s as simple as that.
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AndrewE
reply on July 2nd, 2008 11:11 am:
You seem to be going great Johnny. Keep it up!
It gets addictive very quickly doesn’t it?
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“Some people may find that for them they can control what they eat and be in tip top shape…”
I don’t think anyone can be in great *shape* from simply eating well. Your inners might be healthy, but you cannot possibly attain physical fitness from good food. Some people are lucky enough to be able to look very slim/healthy/vibrant (delete as appropriate) simply because of their genetics – some top models, say – but that doesn’t mean that they are healthy in any biological sense, and certainly they won’t necessarily be fit.
It’s my belief that to obtain optimum health you have to:
1. Eat well
2. Exercise regularly
You don’t have to give up your life to do either, but you have to be prepared to *work hard*. I think you can achieve truly great things with an 80-20 ratio, where 80% of your week involves eating well (for me, that’s a low-GI diet) and regular exercise (for me, running) and the other 20% is basically your downtime where you can almost feel free to do whatever. This balance keeps the mind healthy and, more importantly, interested.
Because if it’s too hard – you’ll quit. And that doesn’t work for anybody.
Sheamuss last blog post..Bananas And Coke
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AndrewE
reply on July 2nd, 2008 11:10 am:
You are so right. Thanks for this well thought out comment.
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Amen to all that! Plus I need exercise to stay ;mentally sane. There is so much good that comes from exercise besides weight loss.
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Ditto to the above comment – I miss the exercise when I don’t do it. And the buzz you get when you have finished is worth so much more than a chocolate bar or junk food.
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I agree, Andrew! My trainers tell me success is in the nutrition, but from where I sit (rarely), it seems to be in the exercise. It’s made all the difference in the world for me.
Great job with the pushups!
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Nice job on the pushups. Sounds like you’re having a strong week!
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Very addictive. If running is a bug, I’ve most definitely been bitten!
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I’m doing the 100 push-up challenge, too. I’m on week 3. The first two weeks went well, but this week, for the first time, I was unable to hit all the minimums. Hopefully you won’t have the same problem.
It looks like you’re making excellent progress towards your goals. Good job.
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Everyone needs to be active, it’s just that some people (including me and you in our former lives) won’t admit it!
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ok
I have to ask
can you totally see what a role model you are?
MizFits last blog post..Viewer Mail.
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You can say that again, Andrew. I agree with your recent posting. It is imperative that we eat well and exercise well. I will go chronically insane if I miss more than two days of workout/running. Your posting said it all.
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Very good advice about the big mistake about trying to do too much at once. Small steps work wonders.
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Great post! You know before, I never really enjoyed exercising, nor did I think I needed to do it. I knew I was out of shape and a few pounds overweight, but I wasn’t “one of those people”, I thought I had better things to do.
Now, I’m like the polar opposite. Yesterday I was having a crap day, and I felt like laying on the couch, instead, I took an hour long bike ride, and you know what? When I was done, I felt so much better!
So for me, exercise is so much more!
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That’s the thing, and a very important point – assuming you don’t exercise when you’re really ill (note: and I mean ill, not just minor ailments), hurt yourself while out, or get attacked by a pack of dogs or something, you practically always – 99.99 per cent of the time – feel better after a workout.
I can’t remember a time I’ve come home and thought, “I wish I hadn’t done that.” Even if you’ve fallen short of a targeted PB or something, just having got ‘out there’ makes such a different to how you feel, in all the ways that count – physically, emotionally and spiritually.
Sheamuss last blog post..Bananas And Coke
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I am definitely still one that exercises just so I can eat more though.
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It’s quite interesting and scary at the same time I think. Usually I’m the one for whatever reason making you change (through your own will of course).
This time, it’s you and your crazy healthy habits are rubbing off on me.
I’ve just finished C25K Week 2 and I usually try to find any excuses to not say, oh I can’t go to the gym today. But now… I just go and actually look forward to the next session. Even thinking of going running with you sometime. Never though this would happen to me.
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I’ve benn getting back into the running routine myself again. It gives me much more energy to start out my day!
Have a great day! Great post!
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I think more people are an instant gratification type of person. If they don’t lose 5 pounds in a week, they think they’ve failed and give up. You totally have to ease into it. I love when people tell me their bodies weren’t made for running.. Mine wasn’t either until I made it that way!
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Wow, I’m finally caught up!
Great advice, as usual.
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Some great advice here. I agree with everything in your post, especially the part about how exercise helps you feel better about yourself. Exercise also gives me more energy throughout the day.
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i’m a happy nutter too, or wait, would you have another name for me since i run in the snow, and ice, and wind chill in the freezing range? LOL You are making amazing progress, and have now encouraged me to do the 100 push up challenge too! Since it’s almost midnight here, i will wait to do the test tomorrow though
thanks for the motivation!
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I am amazed how much my abs hurt after doing the pushups and I’m only on day two of the first week! I thought pushups were just arms but I’m not feeling it in my arms at all – just pecs and abs. Feels good though, I guess!
John’s Weight Loss Blogs last blog post..Fowl Balls & Calorie Bombs
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Not to brag *too* much but I just finished week 3.
30, 22, 22, 20, 30.
Go me!
How’s yours going?
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[...] posts this week on Lessons learned: Exercise is not a dirty word. It really isn’t, but if you don’t believe me this is an excellent post to [...]
Good post! I tend to be one that does too much, ends up hurting more often than not and then gets discouraged. Fortunately, even though I’ve backslid on the eating, I have at least been getting some exercise, even if not as regularly as before.
This morning, I got up and exercised, just a little bit, but it felt good. The lesson I need to learn is that even a small effort counts if one can be consistent about it.
Cynthias last blog post..Taking up the slack again
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I agree with above posters who say that sometimes it’s the small steps that count. When i first started losing weight last year, I didn’t lose anything for like a month – and then the pounds started coming off. I steadily lost 1-2 pounds a month until I had lost 40 pounds..
Small increments lead up to big weight loss over time!
Pete’s last blog post.. 100 Pushup Challenge: Week 2 Exhaustion Test
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