Hacker News Reader

Comment by mikestew | Hacker News Reader

Ya know, I used to be in your boat, wondering why folks don't just get off their ass. But it occurred to me that if I didn't actually like running, I don't know what would motivate me to do so. It's like telling people to quit smoking. You don't think they don't already know it's bad for them? But for some reason they keep puffing away.

So we've established that people are lazy, and that "just exercise" would do them wonders (or at least be a lifestyle improvement). And they still don't take the dog for a 30 minute walk. Given that, rather than chastising and feeling superior about our own fitness (for example, I ran ten miles yesterday; mmm, I'm practically marinating in smugness right now), what can we do to get people out the door?

Of course, if I could answer that, I'd be at my book signing and not shouting at the wall on HN.

View on HN

Another aspect most of the "just exercise" folks don't get is what it feels like to be 300+ lbs and weak. Get out and walk for 30 minutes? Why, so I can expose my gross body to the world? Running? Cycling? Haha, get out of here. And after exercising I'm going to come home and make up for it by eating more.

Diet is more important than exercise. A 300+ lb person can lose 100 lbs in half a year just by changing their diet and doing no more exercise than they currently do. (I advocate the keto diet, especially if one has tried other diets and failed, but it's not the only way.) You can't out-train a bad diet.

Another aspect most of the "just exercise" folks don't get is what it feels like to be 300+ lbs.

I have no idea, I can only imagine. Skinny all my life, competitive runner since I was 12, I've never once put on a pair of skimpy shorts and a singlet, and headed out the door for a run worried about my body image. But let me tell you a story...

Buddy of mine on Xbox, played with him for years when we mutually worked at MSFT, but never "met" him. I remember he once mentioned that he weighed 400lbs. Well, one night we're playing Halo as we do on Friday nights, and he's cutting out early. "I've got a 5K to run tomorrow." Wait a minute, what? Hey, $GAMER_TAG, am I remembering right that you weigh about 400lbs.? "Used to. Doctor said to lose weight, so I started running. Lost 175lbs. so far, still have XX to go."

I had to mute my microphone because I cried. I was so proud of this person I'd never met in person, but knew for years. No, I don't know what it's like to be 400lbs. But I can imagine. I can imagine what it's like to walk around with another me riding piggyback. And I can imagine the mental hurdles to overcome, the body image issues, and the other barriers that make it easy to just sit back down on the couch and say, "who am I kidding?". Instead, this person said one day, "today, I am a runner" and went out and did it. And then did it again, and again until the weight started to come off.

Why, so I can expose my gross body to the world?

Fuck 'em. Tell 'em this sub-3:00 marathoner said it's okay, and they can just look the other way if it bothers them. And if you see a skinny guy with a brindle pit bull dog running by you, don't worry about what he's thinking about you, because he's silently cheering you on.

On the cycling side, I'd have to disagree. It's one type of exercise you can get into while being very overweight: the gearing means you can start out really gently and very gradually work up over time. You can start out pottering around short distances at a very slow pace without it being too stressful. I have a friend who was unhealthily obese who started cycling, and in a year they were utterly transformed. To the point they could actually enter cycling races. And they were healthier in both mind and body--looked very healthy, and noticeably changed positive outlook.

Diet is definitely important for sure, but so is exercise. Diet is controlling what's going into your body. Exercise will improve your body's metabolism, and have a host of other benefits.

I have to agree here about motivation being an important factor. When I injured myself running, I tried experimenting with a few other types of cardio (cycling, swimming, rowing, stairmaster, etc.) but they were all miserable experiences compared to running. It was beyond frustrating and the only thing that kept me going was the anticipation of running again.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, several of my coworkers lift weights exclusively and can't believe I prefer running. It bores them out of their minds.

I have to wonder if many people don't exercise because they find it boring and unsatisfying, not because it's difficult.

exercise has always felt like work to me. all types of exercise, too -- you name it, i've tried it, often for months at a time on a rigorous schedule. i simply do not like doing it. i don't like the time it takes, i don't like dealing with the laundry, i don't like the equipment, i don't like the monotony of cardio, i don't like the sound of weights slamming, i don't like dealing with the other people at the gym/courts/whatever, i don't like any of it (i'm not lucky enough to have have my own gym, that would probably help quite a bit). high intensity interval sprinting is the only thing i don't massively despise, but it's still a pain in the ass and can produce injuries, which i also don't like.

don't even get me started on swimming...

so as you can see, i've done plenty of exercise in my life, and at this point i'm 100% comfortable saying that i just don't like doing it. i admit it is a major personality shortcoming of mine. i'm not a negative person, this kind of stuff doesn't leak into areas of my life -- i just wasn't born with that selection of genetics that drives me to love this stuff. to me it's basically like a second job, a manual labor job, i have to do.

yes, i feel good afterwards, but to me sitting my ass down on the couch also feels good. as i understand it, to some people, sitting down for an hour feels disgusting, like a physical revulsion in their body. they're very lucky. i could sit on my couch for days on end and it takes effort to not actually do that.

my desire to make money, be presentable, and contribute to society override my natural laziness, but i totally understand how those people get to 800 pounds and are couch-locked. they simply do not have any kind of social drive, which is the built-in mechanism that is supposed to balance your built-in human condition of laziness (in my case).

be thankful that you take to running/exercise like we take to computers/technology -- it's definitely an asset in life. it's something i have to constantly overcome, i'm envious of people who get the urge to get up and move around without any kind of outside motivation. i've spent a lot of money on extrinsic motivation and it's clearly the inferior choice!

This pretty much describes my experience with exercise as well.

What worked for me was to stop associating exercise with working out. Instead, I just started seeking out more physically demanding hobbies/activities. I enjoy yard work; when I had a yard, I spent a lot of time creating a garden and pathways and trimming trees and whatnot. In an apartment now, but still help friends out with that because I genuinely enjoy it. I also like woodwork and building things, but again apartment. So I volunteer for Habitat for Humanity frequently. I also frequently rearrange parts of my apartment when I get bored.

I can't stand the gym - to me it feels like wasting time because I don't independently enjoy the activities the gym offers. Or running, or cycling. But I enjoy what I mentioned above, so the "exercise" stemming from them are ancillary benefits rather than the primary purpose.

There are lots of fun ways to exercise - I hate running, but love to ride bikes, for instance.

I'm not a fan of running either, but I love to play soccer.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com