The best thing I found was having a concrete goal. In my case, I wanted to join a local festival drum crew * , who were known for performing in very little clot

The best thing I found was having a concrete goal. In my case, I wanted to join a local festival drum crew * , who were known for performing in very little clothing, and for having a high standard of physical fitness. At the time, I weighed about 235lb and the most exercise I'd done for about a decade was a gentle walk. I knew I wouldn't have a chance of keeping up. So, I got a workout program for Kinect and started doing a bit of very gentle exercise every morning. After a while I started adding my own exercises that I'd read about or remembered from karate classes as a kid. I discovered running, and slowly built my way up to running 5K. When a gym opened under my work, I started going there every lunchtime to run, or to lift weights. A year later when the big festival happened, I'd lost about 50lb and discovered how fun it was to feel strong and fit. The downside is what happens when the goal disappears: I was with the crew for three years, and when I stopped, I no longer had a reason to work out. Now, a couple of years later, I've regained a lot of the weight, although the nice thing is that I've still got a decent bit of the muscle, so I know I'll never be starting from scratch again :) The hardest thing was to make exercise a really high priority - to make it a routine part of my day, rather than something I just did when I felt like it. You need to get to the point where it hits training time, and you just automatically reach for your gym/running shoes because that is the Thing You Do at that time. That's where the strong goal-motivation comes in. As soon as that motivation goes away, it's so easy to say "well, I could go to the gym at lunch - but I'm a bit behind on work, so I'll go in the evening", and of course you never do. Best of luck with training. It really is worth it :) * the Beastie Drummers: https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=beastie+drummers+beltane&safe=off&source=lnms&tbm=isch https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=beastie+drummers+beltane&s... - note: probably NSFW ;)