Making myself go to the gym

[mviel]

Good morning, this is my first post.  I have been lurking for a while, and have tried to find someone with my issue, so far not successful.  So here it is.

 

For years I had worked out hard and loved it  It was my new hobby and I felt like a kid in a candy store.  I started out at 368 pounds and got down to 243 and was happily looking forward to my next goal.  One day while I was pushing it hard on the elliptical, my "weight loss mentor" came up to me and told me that I should quit killing myself in the gym every day because after all, after all that hard work I was still fat.

 

I took her words to heart (stupid of me) and stopped working out. For more than 5 years.

 

A year ago, I found myself in need of a second job. I was doing okay but noticed that when I stood at the cash register my back would begin to hurt.  The little twinge became a deep throb that took my breath away.  I also had horrible knee pain and closing the store became more than I could bear.  I did it for a year, took alot of pain meds but finally had to quit.

 

Not long after that I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia, degenerative disc disease, and a severe case of arthritis.  I am now kicking myself and crying every day because i can no longer do the workouts I loved so much. I have gone from 2 hours on the eliptical, a turbo kick class, then wander over to spin class just for fun, to very short slow sessions on the elliptical (less than 30 minutes) and light weights if I haven't started hurting yet.

 

I cannot accept my new normal, I cannot accept that I can hardly work out any more.  Exercise is important to treat my condition, lack of it will decrease my mobility, hence being able to walk.  I just don't know how to make myself go to the gym.

 

Thank you for reading my ramblings and my venting. 

[Raincloak]

well, don't give up, there's some good news.  Like you said, if you lose some weight, the pain will decrease.  You really, really don't want to take to the couch and wind up in a wheelchair, right?

 

Since exercise is tough right now, you might start by adjusting your diet.  What do you eat now, and what's your current height/weight?

[mviel]

I eat terribly right now.  I am working on getting the carbs down and adding protein.  I eat junk food at work when I get bored, I eat junk food at home when I am stressed, right now I am a mess.  But I am trying to dig out of the hole I dug for myself.

[mviel]

I am 5 feet 10 inches and I weigh *gasp* 291 pounds.  I want to at least get back down to 243 again, then see if I can go lower.

[Nedwin]

I know it's not easy and probably not what you want to hear, but you really need to get your diet under control. There are plenty of resources here to get you started; it's all up to you to tell yourself enough is enough. You can do it!

[Max Power]

Changing diet is definitely a good place to start, but I think you can do some decent workouts in the small window you've got.  I started out by setting a goal of working out every day, and to consider it a workout I would either walk for 30 minutes or I had to do three sets/ten reps of three different workouts.  I think doing something like that and a diet change would set you going in the right direction. 

[mviel]

Thank you for your suggestions, I went to the gym yesterday and after 30 minutes on the elliptical, it was all I could do to limp out of the building, vanity wouldn't let me take my cane inside...*sigh* but I am sure that it will hurt less tomorrow.

 

I did not buy any junk food for the weekend, and while I feel strange and a little anxious, I'm okay.  First step in my life change.

[Nedwin]

You're doing great so far! Nobody would give you a second look if you had your cane, I don't think. Everyone is in the gym for the same reason and that is to improve themselves.

[Gogor]

Don't forget to drink lots of water.

And have you considered doing yoga for flexibility?

Check out DDP. You can do it from home

Keep on fighting!

Yes, you can!