Posted by alexandra_k on September 23, 2013, at 22:14:39
In reply to Re: Don't know where I'm headed to, posted by thinks2much on September 23, 2013, at 20:20:03
That winded feeling goes away with practice. It was what limited me to start with, too. In my case... I had a 30 a day over about 15 years cigarette habit to deal to, as well. When I just started out I aimed to move my legs on the stationary bike for 10 minutes. Not at a particular resistance or anything, just to keep my legs moving round. It was honestly up in the air whether I would be capable of doing that or not. Winded, yup.
But if you do it... Then you get to go 'I did it - yeah!' Then tomorrow you can try for 12 minutes. And you see that you did it. Yes, it was hard (it wouldn't actually be terribly worthwhile if it was easy) You CAN do it. Then the next day you can try for 15 minutes. Then when you get to 20 minutes you can try for resistence 1... Then gradually, over time... You get to the point of beating your old time biking for 20 minutes, or 30 minutes or for a 5k or whatever it is that you want to do...
I don't know. I just managed to find an internal motivation to do this. Got addicted to doing better than I'd done. The place I started out at was such an unfit place (winded walking up a set of stairs, yup) that that meant I made such FAST progress when I started working on it. That progress was totally addictive for me. I found I was willing to push myself (gradually over time) far far harder than I ever thought I possibly could. That I was able to endure far far greater pain than I ever thought I could - and actually come to learn to crave the endorphin hit that was my reward. It is easy once it is a habit. Making it a habit is one of the hardest things in the world, though, I hear ya.
It doesn't feel particularly good when you are doing it especially to start with, truth be told. Or... It is an acquired taste. The endorphin hit comes after. When you collapse with exhaustion in a crumpled heap. That is the part that feels great. But you have to do the stuff that gives you pain in order to earn the painkillers - you see? The winded feeling does get in the way of that, a bit, but the winded feeling can be trained away. Then you get to know all about lactate / hydrogen ions. Fun and games, I say.
Nutrition is hard. I have a lot of empathy for that one... I'm currently trying to sort out my own situation with that. Can you keep a log of how much money you spend on food? That would help you be able to figure out how much you have to play with... I find that when I eat junk food I tend to think it is the cheapest option - but then I see that actually, it starts to add up. Especially if I buy lunch out.
I've found that while meat surely does seem expensive... If I make a big pot of stew (or similar) and rice then I can put it into a bunch of different containers in the fridge / freezer. So... It looks like a couple kilo's of meat is really expensive... But if you can cook it up with a bunch of veges and then bulk it out some with rice so you get 8 or so meals out of it... Then it is a cheap (and healthy) way to eat. And you can develop a taste for it.
I think of fruit in terms of 'weekly requirements' rather than daily. As you say, fresh fruit typically needs to get eaten within a few days. Lettuce, too. Then move to frozen / canned stuff during the later half of the week. Carrots keep. Celery. Apples do if you get them crisp and keep them in the fridge... Planning...
I started a thread over on social about food.. I've been thinking about getting a slow cooker - but actually the pot on the stove has been serving me quite well. My last stew was f*ck*ng delicious. I can't wait to make it again.
I think nutrition and exercise are both massively under-rated when it comes to their impact on our energy levels / lethargy / that horrible gnawing feeling we can get about life, sometimes. there is nothing like a set of heavy squats to kick the existential angst away, i've found. i might not be able to fix the world, but i f*ck*ng well will do another pull up.
Sometimes... And this is something that I'm currently working on... What we *feel like* doing... Is actually not what it is that we need. Sometimes what it is that we need, is not something that we *feel like* doing. Sometimes your body knows what it is talking about (sometimes it is good to take some time out from the world and pull those covers over ones head). Othertimes, your body gets confused (because habits are unhealthy). It is hard... I certainly don't have it figured out...
poster:alexandra_k
thread:1051117
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/psycho/20130807/msgs/1051228.html