Took the plunge

[BlueHawk]

Holy crap. Hi.

 

I must have been staring at the register screen for as much as fifteen minutes before I got my act together. For some reason, I feel really self-conscious right about now, I don't really know why. Maybe it's the fact that coming up with a good name for my super hero (I'm reading Steve's book at the moment) took me over a week and I'm still not quite convinced.

 

Anyway, as a 24-year-old college student with an IT major, I decided that it's time to get my act together and actually stick with working out this time. I've never been one for sports. I mean, I did tennis for a couple of years, practiced some judo and tried many other things, but it wasn't for me. I did start running some months ago, but as the winter closed in and I was too reluctant to buy some decent insulated clothes, it never stuck. 

 

Stumbling across Nerd Fitness two months ago actually got me really excited. Not only was I really interested in the fact that not everyone working out is an utterless tool (no offense) but actually people just like me (and probably all of you), the great sense of geeky humor and the love for all things Avengers and Star Wars really got to me. For some reason I never thought I could fit into such a world of fitness.

 

I guess I'm kind of rambling. The excitement probably. Well, after trying the Beginners Workout as an experiment I've been working the Angry Birds workout for the last two weeks. Although I have not found a way to do inverted rows and/or pull ups at home (the kitchen table is too light and will probably hit me right in the face when I hang my full weight onto it) it seems to go pretty well. Also, on my first try I tried doing my inclined push ups using a surface just below my knees, cursing myself for the fact that I could not make it in less than 4 sets. Little did I know you could also use something to the height of the kitchen counter. 

 

Anyway, as hard as I find it to do this kind of stuff with my girlfriend or roommates around, I am keeping up with working out every other day. I'm trying to hit that first month marker, before considering turning it up a notch. Maybe join a gym or something. I am also considering yoga. Tried it once and although I rather sucked, it really felt good afterwards.

 

Oh, I did eventually buy decent running clothes. All hope is not lost yet!

[Brawlrus]

You had me at your Seahawks avatar. I bleed blue and green.

 

So, sounds like you're doing well, so far. dive into the forums and become infected by other people's passion and you'll probably find yourself falling in love with at least one type of physical activity. It's good that you sucked at yoga, everyone does when they start. You want that clean slate to work with, something to build on and see continuous improvements.

 Yoga is also a  good place to start because it's a structured environment. The classes are at X time and the instructor will walk you through. All YOU have to do is show up, unlike joining a gym and procrastinating, or walking around and not knowing wth you're really doing at first.

[HedgeMage]

Try many things... one (or more) of them will be for you.

 

I totally grok the bit about being self-conscious working out with others around.  My take on that has been to find environments where the cost of sucking it up is low so I can suck it up and get on with life.  For me, that means avoiding gym bunnies and their status games.  For you, that might mean something different.  We all rate social costs differently; in the end figure out what will get you working out with the most regularity.

 

Consistency is *huge* when it comes to getting your body in line.  This means always working, even if you aren't always working on the same thing.  Experiment, tweak, or just give yourself a break from the grind and do something new for a bit...but keep moving.

 

You'll figure out the rest, and you have a forum full of smart folks here to answer questions if you need some info.

[BlueHawk]

You had me at your Seahawks avatar. I bleed blue and green.

 

So, sounds like you're doing well, so far. dive into the forums and become infected by other people's passion and you'll probably find yourself falling in love with at least one type of physical activity. It's good that you sucked at yoga, everyone does when they start. You want that clean slate to work with, something to build on and see continuous improvements.

 Yoga is also a  good place to start because it's a structured environment. The classes are at X time and the instructor will walk you through. All YOU have to do is show up, unlike joining a gym and procrastinating, or walking around and not knowing wth you're really doing at first.

 

Haha thanks! I only recently started watching American Football (I'm from Europe, not that big a thing here), didn't miss a single Seahawks game though. Thanks for the tips, Luckily I can laugh about my failed attempts at stuff, won't get me down!

 

Try many things... one (or more) of them will be for you.

 

I totally grok the bit about being self-conscious working out with others around.  My take on that has been to find environments where the cost of sucking it up is low so I can suck it up and get on with life.  For me, that means avoiding gym bunnies and their status games.  For you, that might mean something different.  We all rate social costs differently; in the end figure out what will get you working out with the most regularity.

 

Consistency is *huge* when it comes to getting your body in line.  This means always working, even if you aren't always working on the same thing.  Experiment, tweak, or just give yourself a break from the grind and do something new for a bit...but keep moving.

 

You'll figure out the rest, and you have a forum full of smart folks here to answer questions if you need some info.

 

Thanks! I haven't been to a gym except for once in my life a few years ago. Seems that going with a friend helps a lot, both to not look like a total noob and to help you with your stuff the first few times. We'll see!

[Beckyinma]

Welcome. I just joined this week as well and I'm really excited.   I'm also a shy exerciser.  I hate lifting around other people. If one of my kids comes down to the basement, my routine completely halts.  ugh... Oh well.   I do like to be outside though, and that is something I can't be shy about.  We all have our hangups.

 

Do you do ultimate frisbee?  I remember going 2-3 times a week with our housemates in college... more fun than any free gym around...  And broom ball on the ice rink...awesome!

[Flagwaver]

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away I was a gym rat.  I spent 10 to 14 hours a day at the gym between work and working out (I was a floor trainer).  That was before I joined the Army and all of the fun that happened during those nine years and the seven after I got out.  At this time, I don’t feel confident enough in my physical appearance to work out in front of others.

 

With that said, you’ve taken your first step into a larger world, just as I did a couple of days ago.  I actually felt confident enough (either that or my wife slipped something into my coffee) to post my progress pictures.  Just keep working and you’ll get there, my friend.

[Cataleya]

Stumbling across Nerd Fitness two months ago actually got me really excited. Not only was I really interested in the fact that not everyone working out is an utterless tool (no offense) but actually people just like me (and probably all of you), the great sense of geeky humor and the love for all things Avengers and Star Wars really got to me. For some reason I never thought I could fit into such a world of fitness.

This has been my biggest problem finding a fitness community to call home. I think NF has a great balance between people who are really into working out and eating healthy and people who are friendly. Like people are totally willing to help you make better choices and are super knowledgeable but not like, judge you for the one candy bar you had last week or something. And it's great being around people who have a lot in common with me other than working out.

 

I think you'll fit in great here and I look forward to seeing what you can accomplish!