I am 38 years old. I'm 6'3" and grew up an athlete. In my 20s I gained a bunch of weight and lost it all and got down to about 225 from 315. I had two kids and got lazy during covid. I am currently at 330 and want to get back down.
I know that a caloric deficit is my answer and I'm going to start counting calories every day. My problem is that I can't motivate myself to exercise in a routine. I play ice hockey on Fridays, and I want to work out 3 or so other times a week. I have a membership to LifeTime fitness for free through work, but it's 30 minutes away. I have a Peloton that I really love riding and doing HIIT. I also have dumbbells, a bench, and resistance bands for strength.
I try to wake up at 5:30 to work out. I tell myself that I'm too tired and go back to bed and that I'll work out in the evening. The evening comes and I want to hang out with my kids and then when they go to bed I want to be with my wife. So, I tell myself I'll workout in the morning. I'm full of excuses.
I know what you are going to say. You just have to do it and it if you want it so bad, you'll find a way. I've been telling myself this same thing for 6 years. I'm 4 weeks into sobriety and thought this would all fall into place, but it's not. It's too cold and snowy here to walk in the evenings.
Do you have any books that will help me figure this out? Advice?
Brother, AMEN!
A lot of my problem in past attempts has been not eating enough. I don't eat enough, get migraines, get exhausted and quit eating right. I need to track at first to get an idea of what healthy is.
Also, my work is 26 miles away. However, there is a LifeTime close to my work. Maybe I workout and shower there before work. That way I have a shorter morning commute due to less traffic.
This is all great advice. I kind of knew all of this stuff, but I think I needed someone else to confirm it. Thank you.
That's fair. I think calorie counting can play a good role in some people's body comp goals, if it is used in the short term for the purpose of learning how to eat more intuitively in the long term. I just don't think people should count on it as a long term strategy, as they tend to stop counting when they reach their goal weight and regain the weight, or burn out on it and regain the weight. Any diet strategy you use to lose weight needs to be something you will maintain for the rest of your life.
100% awesome strategy. Like I said before, since the biggest issue is often starting a habit, just make starting the goal. Don't even aim to work out at first - just aim to shower at the gym.
That's usually what we need in health and fitness, lol.