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Going to a gym two to three times a week for small group training sessions. In terms of investment, it is not as expensive as private training and it keeps you
by wallflower 8y ago
Going to a gym two to three times a week for small group training sessions.
In terms of investment, it is not as expensive as private training and it keeps you on track. The real investment is in you. Your most important asset is your ability to produce income. Having a healthier body helps maintain that ability. The damage that I do through typing is only barely counteracted by these training sessions. I don’t take typing for granted, having had soreness and pain for many years, and going to the gym and lifting weights has been the best action I’ve done towards addressing that. For you young and older people out there, do not take your ability to pound at a keyboard for granted. One day, it may start to lead to soreness which goes away after some rest. Eventually, the soreness does not go away.
The true returns are the cumulative effects of sticking with a healthy habit. You may not become “jacked” and super muscular but you will become fitter.
After almost two years, the benefits of regular exercise are so apparent that I have to hold back getting on my bully pulpit to encourage other friends to do so.
- ohyes 8y agoI find that getting good exercise also helps me think. I feel more creative and happy if I’m getting my 30 minutes a day. But it’s also about discipline, this sort of thing can only be accomplished with discipline, which is what really lets you accomplish things.
- afarrell 8y ago> discipline For the benefit of my past self: discipline isn’t about punishment or being harsh with yourself. Discipline is the practice of saying to yourself “this is hard. This is scary. This is worth it and so I’m going to do it because I’m stronger than I think” and then following through with action. EDIT: Sometimes the "following through with action" bit also involves knowing what you need to set yourself up for success (e.g. good food, enough sleep, encouragement from friends, the ear of a therapist, guidance from a coach, clarity on a goal) and enduring the discomfort that comes from the decisions required to get those.
- cirgue 8y agoDiscipline is learning how to want to do something, not how to make yourself do something.
- afarrell 8y agoWouldn’t that be motivation?
- vertline3 8y agoHow do I make myself want to do something? Serious question
- Regardsyjc 8y agoI believe the point of discipline is to do something regardless whether you want to do it or not. My favorite quote on discipline: “A modern stoic knows that the surest way to discipline passion is to discipline time: decide what you want or ought to do during the day, then always do it at exactly the same moment every day, and passion will give you no trouble.” - W.H. Auden
- vertline3 8y agoThank you for the nice reply and quote.
- cirgue 8y agoConnecting the future outcome you want with your present experience. Running when it’s 40 and rainy sucks to start, but after your warmed up and for the rest of the day you will be glad to have done so. Starting definitely sucks, but if you’re convinced enough in the present that the future state is worth it, you will want to run and you will want to push through it. That’s a skill that can be cultivated.
- vertline3 8y agoThank you for your reply!
- iamben 8y agoI'll second this for but for any kind of exercise. If you're not disciplined enough (yet) to exercise by yourself, as the parent says, classes are a brilliant way to stick with it and keep motivated. I get to the gym pretty much every day before work. The benefits are huge - more energy, better concentration, and of course just looking and feeling better in general. Edit: for the deleted comment - I'm late 30s, not sure if that's young or not and I'm a night owl for sure. Also see a noticeable difference in those busy "I should skip the gym" periods if I don't go, as oppose to prioritising my exercise over my work (which yields far better results).
- deleted 8y ago[deleted]
- sridca 8y agoI'd recommend calisthenics instead of going to a gym. Far less chances of getting injuries with bodyweight exercises. This book is a good start: https://www.reddit.com/r/overcominggravity https://www.reddit.com/r/overcominggravity
- atom-morgan 8y agoI do calisthenics myself. How long have you been doing it? Can you do any of the more advanced movements? (Planche, front lever, back lever, handstand)
- sridca 8y agoAbout 2 years. Started out "skinny fat" (like most Indians), now have good muscle definition. I'm not in any rush to do advanced movements. For me, perfect form (and safety) comes before anything else. I also practice "greasing the groove" (doing low reps more frequently), which helps to mentally learn the form as well, and make the exercises as natural as say lifting a glass of water. I can do about 4 proper-form push-ups, though most often I train with incline push-ups. I also do bodyweight rows (using bars), and squats. Eventually I'd like to do stuff like front lever, but: petit à petit, l'oiseau fait son nid.
- maroonblazer 8y agoAuthor's website: http://stevenlow.org/overcoming-tendonitis/ http://stevenlow.org/overcoming-tendonitis/ His book on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Overcoming-Gravity-Systematic-Gymnastics-Bodyweight/dp/0990873854?tag=eatmoveimprov-20 https://www.amazon.com/Overcoming-Gravity-Systematic-Gymnast...
- leesec 8y agoI'll counterpoint this and say chances of getting injured can be pretty low if you take your time and study up on your form. I'll also say as someone who thought he didn't need the gym because I would do calisthenics/yoga/barbell exercises at home, my back pain never went away until I started lifting heavy weights. I'd say likely because it stregthened my core which supports the back, but I'm no sports scientist.
- deleted 8y ago[deleted]
- fifnir 8y ago> Your most important asset is your ability to produce income. come on
- oAlbe 8y agoThey aren't wrong. What are you going to do without your ability to produce income? Eat dirt and sleep under a bridge?
- fifnir 8y agoI don't doubt it's an important thing, I'm scoffing at "the most important". Take almost ANY very important historical figure. Was their most important asset their intellect or talent or Idon'tknow, OR their ability to convert those into income?
- bootlooped 8y agoIn Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, physiological needs are placed at the foundation. This statement is not that different, since money is the foundation of almost everything a person does in the modern world. It's not a statement on how things should be, or how we might want them to be. It's just a pragmatic acceptance of the way things are.
- EpicEng 8y agoMoney is how we survive. It's not the money itself; it's the a ility to buy necessities. When you're living on the streets you realize real quick that money is about the most important thing becuaee it enables you to do everything else.
- pnloyd 8y agoI have been the the complete abyss of creating muscular skeletal issues for myself. If you really don't want to mess around I think swimming is the way to go. Couple with curcumin / boswellia / magnesium to take the edge off. If you really nail down the exercise / nutrition etc you can slowly but surely reverse these varieties of problems (personal experience)
- cirgue 8y agoSeconding swimming, just make sure you have good form. Also, if you’re having musculoskeletal issues, maybe pick a couple different activities and do them in rotation. Diversity in workouts is good if your objective is to stay healthy/generally strong as opposed to having a particular physique or because you want to excel at a sport.
- shijie 8y agoThis is why I do triathlon + weightlifting. For me, it’s the perfect blend.
- beenBoutIT 8y agoMini trampoline rebounding for cardio + weightlifting.
- dominotw 8y ago> If you really don't want to mess around I think swimming is the way to go. I have been plauged by muscular/ligament issues too. I tried swimming and ended up hurting my rotator cuff, now I can't do repetitive overhead activities :\.
- pnloyd 8y agoI mean.. if it's really that bad you can always walk back and forth in the pool. I really do that sometimes.
- 8y ago
- Hasz 8y agoI am a big believer in regular strength training, to the point were I am generally in a worse mode for the day if I can't get a scheduled workout in. If you want to get started, find a group or a program and jump in. I like nSuns + regular cardio, but the choice is going to depend on age and overall goals. I see my improving PRs and workout sets I've completed as both motivating and addicting. StrongerbyScience has fantastic guides to most movements, and excellent, peer-reviewed training methodology.
- giantsloth 8y agoI recently started strength training as a software developer and it’s been a huge boon on my mental health, my confidence and for sticking with decent eating habits. For people looking to get started, I would suggest Starting Strength, which is a book on Amazon (pretty lengthy, but extremely thorough) or Strong Lifts 5x5 (google it to find the program it’s free on the web). The basic gist is to do full body barbell movements for 5 sets of 3 or 5 and increase the weight by 5 pounds (2.5 pound plates on each side of the barbell) per session. The basic barbell movements are Squat Deadlift Overhead press Bench Bent over row (I don’t do power cleans) Do YouTube proper form, benching especially can rip up your shoulder when done incorrectly. YouTube channels I watch to keep motivated and to learn stuff like form and nutrition (they limit the bro science as far as my untrained eye can tell): Alan Thrall Jujimufu Eric Buggenhaggen Jeff Nippard Scooby1961 Omarlsuf Remember the following: -no one is looking at at the gym -lift only what you can lift, start slow, you will progress very quickly -Commit to going every week three days a week, except for illness and injury -Carefully watch form videos on YouTube for the lifts (Alan Thrall and The Art of Manliness are the best) -If you do sustain an injury, let it heal for a weak or two, but continue lifting around the injury -strength training is not body building, but it is the ideal place for creating a foundation of strength and overall health, you will lose weight, you will gain muscle and you will be out of the gym in under an hour with the basic barbell movements. I’ve been lifting for 7 months now and I love it. I suggest everyone do it.
- rane 8y agoI would add Barbell Medicine to your list of youtube channels. They also have a podcast and produce lots of useful content.
- MisterOctober 8y agoYep! I fell out of the exercise habit for an extended period and it was awful in all regards. Finally got back in the groove with moderate weights, bodyweight exercise, and kettlebell at home. Like the man said, 'mens sana in corpore sano'
- elteto 8y agoPeople are focusing on the asset comment too much, and IMHO missing the forest for the trees. Let's add one more word: Your most important _material_ asset is your ability to produce income. Bam. No more philosophical/moral connotations. It's almost tautological: your ability to generate material value is your most valued material asset. It doesn't even have to refer to working as that value generator. If you have enough money in a bank account to live off the interest then that is your most valued material asset!