Biggest challenge?

[Mikeleesyd]

Hi

My name's Mike and I've just started my fitness journey. I've become fed up with being out of breath in climbing a couple flights of stairs, I'm struggling to keep up with my kids and it's not a pretty sight in the mirror.

I'd like to throw a couple questions out there to help me along and it'd be great to hear your stories.

What was your single biggest challenge or difficulty in starting off in becoming fit? How did you overcome it?

Thanks for sparing the time to read this.

Mike

[bri88col]

Recurring tendinitis until body adapted

[KyleAaron]

I have a medical condition, it's called laziness.

Honestly that is the biggest challenge. Injuries, health conditions, whatever - people with far worse than you or I have done a lot despite them, people with far less have thrown up their hands and said it's impossible. Laziness.

You'll need to squat, Mike.

[Plateauplower]

Getting started and being consistent until training becomes a part of your normal routine is the hardest part IMO. Once you get enough consistency under your belt it becomes easier to do better and better things.

[Jtbny]

My biggest issue when I first started was coming to terms with the fact that I couldn't out train a bad diet. Tracking everything I ate helped me more than any rep on the bar ever did.

[Smelly bull]

My biggest obstacle was jumping from routine to routine. I didn't know what I wanted to focus on. In the end I choose powerlifting, found some good routines (Bill Starr) and hammered away.

[kimm4]

Your biggest challenge will be staying consistent with your diet/training. Do this and you won't need to worry about anything else.

[SteveWright1]

when you want it badly enough - then its no longer a challenge, its just a focus on a goal

if your half hearted at all, then after a few hard sessions, the craving for the sofa, beer and chips, will overcome the desire to get into better shape
if you are competitive by nature that will give you an advantage, as you will want to do better than you did on previous training sessions
If you have an addictive type personality, that can also work to your advantage, the same addictive personality that got you caught up in the sofa,TV, Beer and chips lifestyle , can be directed towards, training , eating right and getting fitter, stronger, leaner lifestyle ( if any of those are your aims - for the power lifters,strongmen types, leaness is a luxury they may not require)

finding a routine as suggested above is a very good 1st step
as is tracking your calorie intake Via Myfitness pall or similar

giving yourself a virtual pat on the back for every day you achieve your targets in the gym or in the kitchen

focus on positives, do not dwell on negatives.We all have off days in the gym or with our diets - work hard to ensure they are the exceptions and not the rule

make a commitment - tell everyone you know about it, that will help keep you accountable, as nobody wants to go back to their friends/ family a few weeks later and admit they failed.

[carrollcarroll]

Couldn't agree more with all the above posts...just do it, and keep doing it. My biggest screwup when i was young enough to have made a bigger difference was in nutrition. Like above poster said. "you can't out train a bad diet". I just did't 'get' it. At my age diet is a HUGE part of the program, without which I'm spinning my wheels.
One thing I can offer is to get to a point where the routines are on a sort of autopilot, where you genuinely enjoy the lifting and miss it if you don't make time for it in your schedule. At that point you will see results, slowly but surely. Many get caught up in "ultimate" routines of sets/reps, unless you're at championship levels ***getaboutit. Secret is, there ain't one....eat good stuff, lift heavy ****...repeat!

[Mikeleesyd]

Getting started and being consistent until training becomes a part of your normal routine is the hardest part IMO. Once you get enough consistency under your belt it becomes easier to do better and better things.

What do you think was key for you to be consistent in your training?

[Mikeleesyd]

when you want it badly enough - then its no longer a challenge, its just a focus on a goal

if your half hearted at all, then after a few hard sessions, the craving for the sofa, beer and chips, will overcome the desire to get into better shape
if you are competitive by nature that will give you an advantage, as you will want to do better than you did on previous training sessions
If you have an addictive type personality, that can also work to your advantage, the same addictive personality that got you caught up in the sofa,TV, Beer and chips lifestyle , can be directed towards, training , eating right and getting fitter, stronger, leaner lifestyle ( if any of those are your aims - for the power lifters,strongmen types, leaness is a luxury they may not require)

finding a routine as suggested above is a very good 1st step
as is tracking your calorie intake Via Myfitness pall or similar

giving yourself a virtual pat on the back for every day you achieve your targets in the gym or in the kitchen

focus on positives, do not dwell on negatives.We all have off days in the gym or with our diets - work hard to ensure they are the exceptions and not the rule

make a commitment - tell everyone you know about it, that will help keep you accountable, as nobody wants to go back to their friends/ family a few weeks later and admit they failed.

Thanks Steve, that's some great advice there. Was wanting to be in better shape the problem for you to start off with? If so, what inspired you to really go for it?

[shaneinga]

Diet. Working out is fun. Dieting sucks.

[Braindrop]

The three hardest things are diet, diet, and not eating the whole kitchen.

[Neostoic]

Hi Mike

Nice one deciding to make a change...

Biggest challenge is not believing how simple it is. I can't post links but go to the losing fat forum and read the sticky 'Losing fat for noobs Part II' by Wavelength.

Three short sentences contain it all, I think.

All you have to do is figure out how to do those three things in your unique life.

And I said simple, not easy

Welcome and best of luck

Neo

[wesleysh21]

Showing up...consistently. I found that if I want to train consistently, I have to move my workout around my life, not the other way around. I'd love to have the kind of life where I can say "I lift at this time on these days, and life better get outta my way!" But that's not the case. Life will provide excuses for most of us to skip workouts. One of the things that separates the people who's bodies we envy and the rest of the world is...they make it happen. If it means getting up super early, I do it. If it means working out super late, I do it. If it means working out with no equipment, I do it.

[gfocker]

Hi

My name's Mike and I've just started my fitness journey. I've become fed up with being out of breath in climbing a couple flights of stairs, I'm struggling to keep up with my kids and it's not a pretty sight in the mirror.

I'd like to throw a couple questions out there to help me along and it'd be great to hear your stories.

What was your single biggest challenge or difficulty in starting off in becoming fit? How did you overcome it?

Thanks for sparing the time to read this.

Mike

Stopping drinking sodas was difficult. I had to change the context from perceiving them as good to perceiving them as unhealthy.

[Mikeleesyd]

The three hardest things are diet, diet, and not eating the whole kitchen.

ha! Yep this will be my problem.

[Mikeleesyd]

Hi Mike

Nice one deciding to make a change...

Biggest challenge is not believing how simple it is. I can't post links but go to the losing fat forum and read the sticky 'Losing fat for noobs Part II' by Wavelength.

Three short sentences contain it all, I think.

All you have to do is figure out how to do those three things in your unique life.

And I said simple, not easy

Welcome and best of luck

Neo

thanks Neo, i'll definitely have a look at that forum.

[Mikeleesyd]

Showing up...consistently. I found that if I want to train consistently, I have to move my workout around my life, not the other way around.

thanks Wesleysh21. How did you go about ensuring you did the workout even though your life wasn't giving you the consistency to make the training an easy habit to develop?

[Plateauplower]

What do you think was key for you to be consistent in your training?

Just going and doing it. I wake up at 3:15am just about everyday to make myself have time to train. It was a big adjustment to change my sleep pattern etc, but I just made myself go and do it. I have about 2.5 years in now and have yet to miss a single workout. If I need to move one for recovery etc, I will but I have yet to just blow one off....You just make it happen at first, as time goes on you look forward to it (most days).

[Mikeleesyd]

Just going and doing it. I wake up at 3:15am just about everyday to make myself have time to train..

That's awesome. 3.15am, I'm well into my deep sleep at that point. You're obviously pretty motivated, was there a massive goal you've got that keeps you going or is just a habit of maintaining what you've built up now?

[SteveWright1]

Thanks Steve, that's some great advice there. Was wanting to be in better shape the problem for you to start off with? If so, what inspired you to really go for it?

yes that was exactly why I started
a single incident got me to want to make the changes
I had been obese for a decade and it had not concerned me
but on this particular day, I was out in the park with my son and our small dog
Dog slipped the lead and ran off - 4 year old ran after it, I could not catch either ( I was only concerned about 1 of them )
eventually out of breath and concerned that my son was getting further and further away in his attempts to recapture our dog, I had to resort to shouting loudly at him to stop ( I was not angry, I was just concerned)

that one incident fired me up to diet and lose 45lb in 12 months also was jogging and cycling regulary, until I got to the stage, my son could not out run me or run for as long as I could ( I know this because I put it to the test occasionally LOL)

sadly I went a full 12 months without picking up any weights, so whilst my fitness improved and I was no longer obese
I was a Lawn Dart , and after finding this site and realising I was a lawn dart, I have spent the last 2.5 years attempting to gain a bit of weight but not all around my midrift

[Fishman15]

Your biggest challenge will be staying consistent with your diet/training.

^This all day long. You need to grind it out until the above becomes a habit. Unfortunately, I think 95% of people never get to this point before they give up. Once the training becomes a habit...it will actually be enjoyable. I know I look forward to my time in the gym every day. I never would have thought that in the beginning. Consistency with your diet will be the harder of the 2 imo. It never really becomes enjoyable but with time and consistency it will become tolerable.

[Fishman15]

when you want it badly enough - then its no longer a challenge, its just a focus on a goal

if your half hearted at all, then after a few hard sessions, the craving for the sofa, beer and chips, will overcome the desire to get into better shape
if you are competitive by nature that will give you an advantage, as you will want to do better than you did on previous training sessions
If you have an addictive type personality, that can also work to your advantage, the same addictive personality that got you caught up in the sofa,TV, Beer and chips lifestyle , can be directed towards, training , eating right and getting fitter, stronger, leaner lifestyle ( if any of those are your aims - for the power lifters,strongmen types, leaness is a luxury they may not require)

finding a routine as suggested above is a very good 1st step
as is tracking your calorie intake Via Myfitness pall or similar

giving yourself a virtual pat on the back for every day you achieve your targets in the gym or in the kitchen

focus on positives, do not dwell on negatives.We all have off days in the gym or with our diets - work hard to ensure they are the exceptions and not the rule

make a commitment - tell everyone you know about it, that will help keep you accountable, as nobody wants to go back to their friends/ family a few weeks later and admit they failed.

Very good stuff right here!

[Fishman15]

Showing up...consistently. I found that if I want to train consistently, I have to move my workout around my life, not the other way around. I'd love to have the kind of life where I can say "I lift at this time on these days, and life better get outta my way!" But that's not the case. Life will provide excuses for most of us to skip workouts. One of the things that separates the people who's bodies we envy and the rest of the world is...they make it happen. If it means getting up super early, I do it. If it means working out super late, I do it. If it means working out with no equipment, I do it.

Very well said. Don't make excuses OP...make it happen!

[KyleAaron]

Once the training becomes a habit...it will actually be enjoyable.

In an interview Dmitry Klokov was talking about how since his father was a lifter, he was basically conscripted into lifting at 12 or so. "At first," he said, "it was like hard labour camp. But after jut four or five years it started to become fun."

[Plateauplower]

That's awesome. 3.15am, I'm well into my deep sleep at that point. You're obviously pretty motivated, was there a massive goal you've got that keeps you going or is just a habit of maintaining what you've built up now?

Maintaining, nope still trying to improve. It's just a constant long drive to get bigger, stronger and leaner. I pretty much started back to training after a decade of getting fat. The driving factor was primarily having kids and wanting to be around to see them grow up.

[writefast]

Hi

My name's Mike and I've just started my fitness journey. I've become fed up with being out of breath in climbing a couple flights of stairs, I'm struggling to keep up with my kids and it's not a pretty sight in the mirror.

I'd like to throw a couple questions out there to help me along and it'd be great to hear your stories.

What was your single biggest challenge or difficulty in starting off in becoming fit? How did you overcome it?

Thanks for sparing the time to read this.

Mike

I think my biggest challenge has been financial. I can't afford to join a gym or get coaching and I've nearly damaged myself/ nearly killed myself often enough that unspotted weights in the garage is finally and for sure out. Overcame that by finally saving up $100 dollars and tracking down a decent cable machine.

Next biggest challenge is going to be program ADHD. I am constantly trying to maximize effort/results so I migrate between programs like you wouldn't even believe. I was able to stay with a high weight program for almost two years but some things about that had to change and I've never been able to go back. It will either be that or frustration with the lack of weight on the machine. I've had it a week now and been really happy with it so for so hopefully wont have to deal with that for a while.

[ntrllftr]

For me it's patience and trying to keep my sanity. Although, my body fat is on the lower side I don't see my abs fully yet. I've been dieting and doing cardio for some time now and seem to be getting nowhere. I know what I'm doing is working by whey of tape measure around waist and scale but not at the rate I'd like. I've been in this situation many times and know I'll get to stage ready condition on time but it still is challenging each and every time mentally.

Consistency is the key!

[EjnarKolinkar]

yes that was exactly why I started
a single incident got me to want to make the changes
I had been obese for a decade and it had not concerned me
but on this particular day, I was out in the park with my son and our small dog
Dog slipped the lead and ran off - 4 year old ran after it, I could not catch either ( I was only concerned about 1 of them )
eventually out of breath and concerned that my son was getting further and further away in his attempts to recapture our dog, I had to resort to shouting loudly at him to stop ( I was not angry, I was just concerned)

that one incident fired me up to diet and lose 45lb in 12 months also was jogging and cycling regulary, until I got to the stage, my son could not out run me or run for as long as I could ( I know this because I put it to the test occasionally LOL)

sadly I went a full 12 months without picking up any weights, so whilst my fitness improved and I was no longer obese
I was a Lawn Dart , and after finding this site and realising I was a lawn dart, I have spent the last 2.5 years attempting to gain a bit of weight but not all around my midrift

<Team lawn dart post fat loss.

My biggest challenge getting in shape was my own ignorance. Had I just read the sticky topics in the major forums here I would have had a lot more to go on.

I underestimated the importance of more, higher quality resistance training.