it effectively turned sedentary 55-year-olds into 30-year-olds when viewed through heart activity monitoring equipment.
Being that heart disease is the leading cause of death for most people in the United States, and cardiac strength is inversely correlated with heart disease, it’s probably one of the most significant studies on exercise ever carried out.
Two years of repeated intervals of making yourself feel like shit to get more time you can only keep by keep making yourself feel like shit multiple times a week. Yeah no, I prefer not making things actively worse for even longer, thanks.
as someone who was fat, then wasnt fat, then was again i can tell you that when you’re fit exercising feels pretty great.
Getting fit sucks hard though
As someone who’s been fat and unfit, thin and fit, and thin but not especially fit, I’m seconding that fitness is the key. Exercise feels better thin than fat, but it’s not nearly as fun when you’re out of shape as when you’re fit.
I don’t have the body type to be fat and fit, though, so no idea about that combo
So the body just doesn’t release dopamine for exercising unless you already do it for months? That’s what I’m getting from this. 🤔
If it sucks you’re doing it wrong. You don’t have to run a marathon on day one, do 5x3 push ups everyother day until it’s too easy
I don’t get it, in my experience it sucks no matter how short or long you do it. Like, if I put my arm into a 100°C oven for longer and longer it doesn’t suddenly start feeling good, it’s the same uncomfortable-to-stressful experience every time (and at some point it causes physical damage). Obviously with exercise your body can build up muscles to make the experience less awful, but it doesn’t prevent it from being a purely stressful one, both mentally and physically (and at some point all the constant stress causes mental damage). Even after weeks there’s no difference, except that I was so stressed I lashed out against everything and everyone.
I do not understand (on a subjectice level) how this can be any different for others. I’ve read about dopamine being supposed to be released, and it truly has to be copious amounts to block all the stress signals and somehow turn it into something positive. Basically the only sane explanations there is to me why people would do this to themselves are either external necessities or the desire to get high on built-in drugs which only works for some people (who then believe it’s that way for everyone).
It sounds like you have a drastically different experience with exercise than others, to the point that you might want to talk to someone about it? Very few people get as mentally stressed when exercising as you seem to be describing.
Speaking from experience, I would say being kind to yourself is the #1 top priority. So if it hurts… don’t do it!
But I enjoy watching TV, or playing mobile games, and doing that while going super slow on a treadmill or better yet an elliptical works even after a surgery.
Or possibly just take the stairs instead of an elevator, if that’s an option, like when leaving work. It is not always though, for all people. Opportunities are never equally distributed aka “fair”.
Anything helps though. I breathe better, not the day of but the next day, so have come to really miss it when I can’t do something. Much like eating healthy, it is a lifestyle change, which as this article suggests, has an even bigger pay-off for a significantly smaller investment than people previously realized. Maybe you can’t due to your work schedule or heavy mental load (parents mess us up BAD, I get it), but at least now you / we know just how good exercise is, and how beneficial it is to make up for lost ground. Those are very helpful facts! 😄
It was basically 1.5-2hrs at the gym twice a week, plus 1.5-2hrs doing some physical activity (hiking or the like) once a week for the first year, then what was probably light cardio a few times a week the next year for the benefits. Not too much effort for feeling the benefits of improved heart benefits, as well as probably lowered risk of heart attack.
I mean, different strokes for different folks I guess, so no judgement!
To anyone debating whether to get into exercise: This is anecdotal of course, but exercise has greatly improved my quality of life. Doing the exercising itself sucks, sure, but I am a firm believer that exercise not only builds up physical fitness, but also mental strength. I can move around easy, nothing hurts (except post-exercise muscle fatigue after a good lift- but even that is temporary and a different type of “hurt”), my body and mind feel fantastic almost 24/7, and I look younger than I am.
1000% worth the 3 hours of pain each week.