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This Is Why You Don't Go to the Gym

218 points by waitwhat 15y ago

jnazario 15y ago
i can imagine that some online services are doing the same thing, or at least hoping for the same effect: users who pay a subscription fee but don't use it. of course, when they do, if they didn't expect it and can't afford to scale they go under. anyone know how big the parallels are between the economic models used by gyms and many online services?
- dangrossman 15y ago
  >90% of sites on the web pay a shared hosting company that offers unlimited disk space and bandwidth. Every Netflix subscriber that has a red envelope sitting on a table somewhere for weeks at a time. Comcast internet service comes with 1GB of storage for a personal website. They don't have 22,000 terabytes in hard drives allocated to that, I'm sure.
- tomjen3 15y ago
  I don't think most of the online services work to make you use their site less. Paying for a gym membership is a goal in itself in that you can say 'I go to the gym'. Having a paid account at $SERVICE doesn't have the same meaning since you can always switch and there is social pressure. But certainly no hosting company actually has thousands of GB laying around.
brudgers 15y ago
A little more than a year ago I found a way to get paid to get in shape when I started refereeing soccer. Indeed, the more fit I become, the higher the level of game to which I am likely to be assigned, and consequentially, the more I am paid...it's a fitness hack for someone who doesn't like to exercise, but can buy into the idea of training.
surferbayarea 15y ago
brilliant startup idea: a gym that's also a strip club :p
- tomjen3 15y ago
  I cannot contemplate the kind of mind that can make that connection but you will properly be a valuable member around here. Anyway you should properly find some other way to make it nice to be there since otherwise you will lose the female part of the equation.
phatbyte 15y ago
I workout from home, I started a couple of months ago with cardio to loose some fat, and now I'm starting p90x. The reason I don't go to the gym isn't because I gave up, it's just I don't like that "all" gym environment, plus the fact that I have to drive there, wait for people to let me use a specific machine etc... with the money I'd spent on a gym, I'm building my own little private gym. I can't recommend enough for all of us geeks to workout. I used to drink sugar drinks, eat fat food, all that crap. Even though I wasn't fat I was starting to gain weight and man, I was embarrassed of how out of shape I was. Look it as hacking your own body ;) make it better, each week you will se improvements, get in shape. Just because we are geeks doesn't mean we can't have a great body for ladies ;P
- brianmwang 15y ago
  P90X is an ok program, but it's ridiculously inefficient. If you learn basic barbell training, I guarantee that you won't have to wait much, if at all, at the gym. Most folks shy away from barbells and that's an advantage to the person who knows what they're doing.
  - brown9-2 15y ago
    The most waiting you'll have to do is when someone is curling in the squat rack.
    - matwood 15y ago
      Ugh, don't get me started. I have a t-shirt I wear on squat days and it reads in nice big letters: "Don't curl in the squat rack!"
jayzee 15y ago
how about tying your gym visits to your health insurance premiums?
- brudgers 15y ago
  The local hospital did that for employees at the health club they developed. People signed in and then hung out drinking free coffee and socializng in the juice bar.
- tomjen3 15y ago
  That seems filled with a ton of problems though: It fails to take into account what you eat. That is properly also a big part of it. Just the number of times you go doesn't necessarily matter - it is also about how hard you work out, etc, etc.
dminor 15y ago
Well right now I don't go because the parking lot has been completely full the past 2 weeks. But I expect that will resolve itself soon :)
pors 15y ago
> Recently, a couple of Harvard graduates launched a program called Gym Pact based on the simple principle that if skipping the gym is a broken contract with ourselves, we ought to pay a penalty for slacking. Hmm, this site does this for many years already: http://www.stickk.com/ http://www.stickk.com/ Tried it once with some friends and it worked perfect, even without a financial penalty.
- jrmg 15y ago
  http://www.stickk.com/ http://www.stickk.com/ is a great site. I think learned about it a while ago here on HN. I use it to motivate myself to go out running in the mornings. If I don't go running at least four days a week, $10 goes to a climate change denial charity (this was chosen by me, not a reflection of the sites politics). It certainly works - there has been many a cold, rainy morning this winter that it's been the deciding factor in getting me out the door...
- dreeves 15y ago
  Three cheers for StickK! Also would love to convince you to check out my startup -- http://beeminder.com http://beeminder.com -- which combines goal tracking with StickK-like commitment devices. Keep all your data points on a "yellow brick road" to your goal. Ie, it's StickK.com for data nerds.
Samuel_Michon 15y ago
One of the articles the author links to is a lot more helpful and concrete [1]. The meat of it: "Shaul’s guys out in Wyoming get massively strong and powerful on precisely three gym sessions a week, each lasting an hour and no more. Louie Simmons, the single biggest name in gorilla-style competitive power lifting, will tell you that 45 minutes is the max length of any smart training session. But you can’t spend the first 15 minutes watching CNN from the treadmill and the last 15 “warming down.” Every second has to count, and it all starts with understanding the four basic muscular aptitudes: strength, power, muscle mass, and muscular endurance. [...] The whole trick to athletic training — and this is true for everybody from bodybuilders to marathoners to noncompetitive athletes just in it for health, or even vanity — is timing each subsequent workout so it hits the middle of that so-called supercompensation peak, when a muscle has already bounced back even stronger than before but hasn’t yet returned to baseline. [...] It can be hard to believe a true strength coach the first time he tells you that by pressing and dead-lifting on even days, squatting and doing chin-ups on odd days, avoiding all other exercises, and adding a little to the bar each time, you’ll be stronger than you’ve ever been in only a month’s time. Thanks to the fitness industry, we’re so conditioned to equate sophistication with complexity — and to think we’ve got to “work each body part” — that our gut just says, No way; that can’t work. But it works like magic, and the entire body hardens up in unison. Finally, keep it simple; understand that variety is overrated. Variety does stave off boredom — it’s fun to mix in new exercises all the time — but a guy who hasn’t trained in a long time, if ever, will get stronger faster on the simplest program of squats, dead lifts, and presses, three times a week." [1] http://www.mensjournal.com/everything-you-know-about-fitness-is-a-lie/print/ http://www.mensjournal.com/everything-you-know-about-fitness...
- ebiester 15y ago
  If you are serious about it, there's a book by Mark Rippetoe called Starting Strength that explains this in more detail.
  - hkmurakami 15y ago
    That's the program I follow as well, and the article conveniently refers to it. I knew most everything in the article, but I thought it would be an excellent piece to show any of my gym "fuckaround-itis" friends.
Swizec 15y ago
This is silly, is it really that hard to go to the gym? I mean, you just go the first time. Then when it is "tomorrow". You just go again. Then the next day ... again. It's not that difficult a concept, the only thing you must take care of is that you don't break the cycle. When I was still going to a gym I was there two hours every evening, at the same time, no matter what. When I suddenly couldn't afford it anymore it was horrible ... all that free time and nothing to do with it. Sure, eventually new habits formed, but it was hard as hell.[1] Really the only thing it takes is a bit of stubbornness, all these silly tricks into making yourself more stubborn are just that ... silly. You don't need them. There's nothing easier in the world than making the same default decision every day. Doesn't even require much thought. [1] this was a few years ago, got into boxing when I had the money again, then became broke and am finally getting back to boxing this week ... money's a bitch like that, luxury-ish expenses are the first to go edit: why all the downvotes? Picking a habit and making sure you don't break it is one of the most effective ways of sticking to something ... http://theclosetentrepreneur.com/seinfelds-secret-motivational-technique http://theclosetentrepreneur.com/seinfelds-secret-motivation...
- mynameishere 15y ago
  two hours every evening Bodybuilders don't work out that much, you know.
  - brudgers 15y ago
    Two hours a day is a lot of family time to lose for many parents, and more than an old bum knee may take.
    - Swizec 15y ago
      So spend half an hour exercising every day. It's still a lot more than nothing and well worth it when "family time" involves saving someone from a burning building or some other sort of emergency and you have the physical strength to actually do it.
    - frasertimo 15y ago
scorpioxy 15y ago
Been going regularly for the past 2 years or so. Finding what motivates you is the key. I'm doing strength training and so my motivation are a set of goals for weights I can move. For others it might be weight, stamina and the like. I have to tell you though strength training without a partner definitely tests your willpower, its damn hard. Working out takes discipline but also keep in mind that skipping a day to simply hang out with your friends is ok. Treat the workout as something you want to do rather than something you have to do. That's what worked for me.
silentscope 15y ago
I've always found that if I just put on my workout clothes, It's really hard to convince myself that I shouldn't be going and take them off. So, to get myself to go, I tell myself that I'm just putting on my clothes, which seems like way less of a commitment when I'm sitting on the couch. By the time I've laced up my shoes, I'm in the workout mindset. Really, vI know I can trick that part of myself. Trying to swallow a bitter pill whole is difficult and can be counterproductive to positive reinforcement that will get you to go again. Break down that commitment into pieces and the initial energy threshold is a hell of a lot lower. You'll see the positive results more easily and expect them less because you've broken down your "I should be getting in shape" personal investment into smaller pieces, so it seems smaller overall. It stops being a matter of "I better see some results for all my trouble." Without the self-guilt trip you'll be reinforcing a positive feedback loop, which is the only sustainable way you're going to get in shape--if you enjoy doing it.
- Samuel_Michon 15y ago
  "To get myself to go, I tell myself that I'm just putting on my [workout] clothes" That's a great suggestion. Also, if you exercise at home instead of at a gym, you can tell yourself you're just going to do a 10 minute set. Once you're done with that one, your heartbeat will be up and you'll have enough energy to keep up for a few more. Bribes/rewards are also good motivators. If you promise yourself a minute of reading HN for every minute you work out, you have something to look forward to. (Make sure you don't let yourself take the reward before you do the work, that's a BIG trap.)
capkutay 15y ago
I usually just throw on my workout clothes and take a pre-workout product, then I'm ready to work out. I don't know if pre-workout drinks work all that well but they certainly add a placebo effect that makes me feel ready to workout...caffeine can help too.
- slig 15y ago
  Pre-workouts usually ships with a lot of caffeine (more than a redbull, IIRC), so you will get agitated.
- matwood 15y ago
  I used to drink a Speed Stacks when I could buy them cheaply from a distributor friend. They were pretty strong so I would drink 1/2 and then switch to water. Then I would use the other 1/2 for the next workout. Now that I don't have the hookup, Red Bull on sale seems to work pretty well for a low cost energy drink. Each person is different and needs to find that balance to just enough energy to go 110%, but not so much that you lose focus.
- llimllib 15y ago
  Caffeine, at least, is not a placebo, there is ample evidence showing that it improves workout performance. https://www.google.com/search?ix=sea&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=caffeine+workout+study https://www.google.com/search?ix=sea&sourceid=chrome&#38...
rickdale 15y ago
As a hacker what gets me to the gym is that I realized its all just a numbers game. I weigh x. It will take x amount of days eating x amount of calories. I do x amount of reps time the number of sets per each workout. When I go to the gym I record everything. Every rep and half rep. I wrote a program to learn python and to track my gym progress. Realizing its all just a numbers game really helped me sorta do the math on taking care of myself for the long term.
- matwood 15y ago
  Exactly. The biggest mistake most people make when starting a gym program is not tracking progress.
  - dsr_ 15y ago
    I'm going to disagree. The biggest mistake most people make is not showing up. I've arranged things so that when my kids have swim lessons, I go to the gym. It doesn't matter if I track progress or not, because I'm not looking to "make progress". I want to be in better shape. Going regularly is the key. Just as a photographer will tell you that the best camera is the one you have with you, the best workout is the one you actually do. As a side effect, I lift 150% - 250% of the weight that I did when I started, and I can do many, many more reps. I no longer get backaches, and I can't remember the last time I was out of breath from a normal activity.
    - matwood 15y ago
      Showing up obviously is key, but the underlying issue is maintaining long term motivation. I found most people need to feel they are accomplishing something in order to stay motivated. Measuring allows that. Another thing that trips many people up is they are unsure what to do. Having a written plan when they show up removes that hurdle. Much like having a TODO list helps many people complete them, having a written TODO list of exercises helps people to show up. It doesn't matter if I track progress or not, because I'm not looking to "make progress". I want to be in better shape. BTW, be in better shape is called progress. Although be in better shape isn't a very good SMART goal. While it is measurable it's not specific enough or time bound.
zcid 15y ago
I see these articles more and more lately. They aren't really saying anything new: people don't like putting effort into long term goals. This is just a corollary of the concept of instant gratification. People go to college and invest years in an education that they grind out day in and day out because they feel (not think! it's not a logical process) there is value in the long term effort. When the same people don't exercise and eat right over a long term period, they are demonstrating that they don't value their health. Sure they might think and say they do, but obviously they aren't taking the appropriate steps. They just don't care.
- randomdata 15y ago
  > People go to college and invest years in an education that they grind out day in and day out because they feel ... there is value in the long term effort. Many go to college simply because their lives will not feel complete until they can study certain subjects at the hands of masters. Much like how entrepreneurs feel their life will not be complete until they try to build that product; even knowing the odds are against them seeing it become a success. I would argue that the rest go because they've been pressured to do so, not because they see a real long-term benefit in their actions. There is a lot of negativity towards those who do not have degrees. Getting a degree is needed to fit in and not become a social outcast. People who make poor lifestyle choices do have their own fair share of pressure and negativity, but, unlike those without degrees, we generally accept them in our society. Nobody is going to pass up the world's best programmer because he has a few extra pounds on his person. Lots of people would pass over the world's best programmer because he doesn't have a degree.
tienshiao 15y ago
One trick that seems to have made it easier for me is changing the question from "Do/Should/Can I go to the gym today?" (which is just an opportunity to come up with excuses) to "How do I go to the gym today?". It seems to tie into the decision fatigue theory. Instead trying to figure out if I can based on meetings/workload/other things in my schedule, I've already made my decision to go on certain days (in my case, every other day) and I just need to make sure my schedule works.
lancefisher 15y ago
I don't really like going to the gym, but I love running outside. There are a few things that keep me going: 1. I keep in mind that I have never regretted going for a run. 2. A few times a week, I run with friends in a training group. When someone expects to see me there, I am much more likely to go. 3. I keep a training log. I mark completed days with a green dot (even rest days), and missed workouts with a red dot. 4. I read about running. It's inspiring to hear others' stories. 5. I sign up for races. If a race is coming up, I know I can't brush off workouts. I started running again a couple years ago after about 8 years of not working out. It was difficult and painful for a couple months, but it got easier and more fun. I do have to sacrifice some family time, but I want my son to see me having a fit lifestyle. Sometimes, I'll bring him along in a stoller.
- wazoox 15y ago
  Ditto, except for the group run thing or races. I run twice or thrice a year with my brother in law, but as a true misanthropic geek I simply prefer being on my own as much as possible :) I started running 5 years ago, and once I've got the habit to put on running clothes every morning, it's really quite easy.
- sliverstorm 15y ago
  I actually have a lot of trouble running outside. You see, I can't pace myself for sh*t, so I always wind up running at like a 6-minute-mile pace no matter what shape I'm in or how far I'm going. I've discovered treadmills are useful in that regard.
  - lancefisher 15y ago
    Pacing can be difficult. On a hard workout, I find I can go out way too fast. I wear a Garmin watch that lets me monitor my pace and adjust it. Some of the people I run with are really good at setting a pace, so I'll follow them. Getting a feel for setting the pace just takes some practice.
    - llimllib 15y ago
mhartl 15y ago
WHY CAN'T PEOPLE KEEP THEIR GYM PROMISES? FOR THE SAME REASON CONGRESS CAN'T PASS DEFICIT REDUCTION. Congress doesn't have the proper incentives to reduce the deficit. People do have good incentives to go to the gym. (Coincidentally, I just got back from the gym. It feels really good.)
ulisesrmzroche 15y ago
This is one of the fastest ways to get fit, and doesn't require more than 15 minutes (even giving 5 for farting around) or any equipment. 1 Round is 2-3 minutes * Burpees(pushup variation) x 30 seconds * Shadow box x 30 seconds -- This isn't rest. Treat it like a fight. Add kicks, knees, elbows, etc. * Rest 1 minute between rounds. Make rounds longer, try to beat your reps, or add a weighted vest if you really want to challenge yourself.
hippich 15y ago
article contradicts itself.. they say that majority will buy monthly pass for $70 instead of paying $10 per visit and do just 4 visit, effectively loosing money. And then they tell that people are more likely to do gym workouts if they will be taxed. But isn't subscribing to plan already form of financial incentive? I have quite different idea of gyms. Gyms are for people who build their body, not for someone who need to fix health. For someone who need to fix health - they need to change their routine to introduce physical work somewhere. This is more complicated than buying membership, I agree. But this is what will not use your willpower and give you long term results.
- brown9-2 15y ago
  The psychological difference is that 70/month is an expected expense each month whereas the $5 tax is not. You can't always argue logic with the way our brains work.
- joevandyk 15y ago
  No, the $70 a month, once paid, is a sunk cost. You can't get that back if you decide to skip today. But, if you get taxed if you don't go, then your choice of being lazy right now will cost you money.
boofar 15y ago
I'm about to leave soon, so I'll make it quick: In a previous post I already lauded the book "The Happiness Advantage: The Seven Principles of Positive Psychology That Fuel Success and Performance at Work"[1]. The book is based on scientific results. In the chapter "The 20 second rule" the author talks about the "activation energy" required to start a task and recommends reducing it as much as possible. Every 20 seconds (hence the title of the chapter) removed between you sitting on the couch and starting what you wanted to start makes a difference. I have a nice pullup bar hanging from the wall that's staring at me and every other day I follow the simplefit[2] program. Have been following it for weeks now. "Activition energy" being so low... even when I dread doing sport (yes, there are such days) I tell myself it's at most 20 minutes and I can start right away so the pullup bar is looking at me with a face and I shrug and do it. My energy and endurance has increased noticably. Gotta run now (not to the gym hyuk hyuk), I'll be happy to answer any questions tomorrow. [1] http://www.amazon.com/Happiness-Advantage-Principles-Psychology-Performance/dp/0307591549/ http://www.amazon.com/Happiness-Advantage-Principles-Psychol... [2] http://simplefit.org http://simplefit.org
- Detrus 15y ago
  I bought a weight set. It also stares at me every day. And I work out almost every day. I don't have serious motivational problems. I could go to a gym in theory, but it's at least 20 minutes away, there would be a whole ritual to dress up, go there, workout, cool off, come back. It would take an extra hour and I imagine many gym goers are paying extra in time to work out. It wears on your motivation. I know I'd skip many more days, the results would be even less apparent which would undermine my motivation. Most important exercises can be done with a barbell and 2-300 lbs of plates. At home, without a rack, you could safely squat 150 after getting there with powercleans and overhead prss. Then you could go to a gym once a week for its racks, leg press, etc. The only thing I regret is buying standard plates, barbells and dumbbells instead of olympics. Standard barbells can't handle more than 230 lbs safely. It would be nice to deadlift and bench 300 lbs at home. Pain in the ass to sell the old set. So if you go this route, I'd recommend spending more and getting olympics. And don't worry about sucky olympic dumbbells, do Starting Strength, it's fine without them.
deleted 15y ago
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patio11 15y ago
If you haven't heard me say it enough, note that bit about "Given the choice between buying X units one at a time or 2X units all at once for a modest discount, people will often buy 2X units and fail to use them all." That is very important to keep in mind when designing e.g. the packaging options of a SaaS business.
- jdietrich 15y ago
  My own utterly unscientific data suggests that this is a form of hyperbolically discounted loss-aversion - the 'loss' of the discount on additional units is felt more acutely than the more real loss of units purchased but never used. Combining this principle with a time-limited offer can be staggeringly effective, I imagine by enhancing the sense of impending loss. I've seen orders-of-magnitude difference in revenue from such "new customer only" discounts. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to have a bath in acetone to sluice off the shame.
  - sliverstorm 15y ago
    I love the retailers who try to tap in to this with the time-limited offers that never seem to expire!
    - maalox 15y ago
      Dreamhost suckered me that way. A few years ago they offered a limited time special anniversary discount (only 11 days left!!), however, the anniversary sale was still on months later and there were only 11 days left!! I will never, ever use them again for doing that to me.
      - euroclydon 15y ago
        Oh come on. They're a hosting company. How was their service? Didn't you know what you were getting for the money? Would you have waited for hosting until a special offer came along?
nazgulnarsil 15y ago
what about the fact that most people fuck around in the gym and see no results?
GBKS 15y ago
I think those theories are missing the main point. Going to the gym is not fun, because gyms have a crappy user experience. So let's say you join a gym, but don't know very much about working out. You walk into a room with hundreds of machines, and are expected to know how to structure a work-out, how each machine works, be familiar with all the muscle groups and exercises, and also really care about planning out and recording every exercise you do to track your progress on the gyms website. It's the biggest turn-off. Why can't a gym hold your hand and treat you like somebody who wants to start working out but doesn't know anything yet? "Express tracks" are a good start, where 10 machines are set up in a row, and if you do 3 sets on each one, you have a good work-out session. That's easy to understand and do. And maybe later, once people have created their habits, they are more likely to learn the finer details. But expecting every new member to care about putting a ton of effort into learning everything about working out is a killer.
- ggchappell 15y ago
  I very much agree. Your idea sounds great. However, I can guess why it isn't common. What you suggest would be labor-intensive, and thus expensive. Some people don't want to pay for the hand-holding. So the gym would have to offer multiple plans: cheap do-it-yourself and expensive hand-holding. My guess is that this has been tried, and the number of customers for the high-end plan is not enough to justify offering it. Alas.
- kemayo 15y ago
  For what it's worth, when I joined my gym they gave a free personal trainer session, and said trainer walked me through some things. (It was obviously an attempt to upsell me, by showing what a personal trainer would keep on doing for me, but it was still a helpful newbie service.) Also, all the machines have little informative placards on them explaining which muscles they work and how to use them. I think they're also laid out in a way such that by going from one end to the other they'll give you a fairly decent all-over workout.
  - dredmorbius 15y ago
    I've very, very rarely seen an intro session that wasn't an upsell. The one moderate exception was at a managed on-site gym at a workplace when I first started out. I got a training program that I followed with some success for the next nine months, losing 50# of bodyfat and gaining 12# of muscle in the process (verified by hydrostatic testing). Today I'd have done a rather different route, but, hey, it worked. That of course is the novice's advantage: virtually any crap program is better than sitting on your ass. The question is: what is going to work best. For most otherwise healthy people these days I'd say a 5x5 strength program with 2-3x weekly HIIT cardio sessions (Tabata anything after a month or two).
nhangen 15y ago
I think the reality is that most people just don't care much about going to the gym. There is a real societal pressure to feel obligated to 'get fit,' but that's not enough to create behavioral change, and it shouldn't be.
geebee 15y ago
I'm actually pretty good about going to the gym, but I'm overweight anyway. The reason is that I'm good at doing what I should do, but bad about not doing what I shouldn't do. A hard workout takes a while, but then you're done, and you feel great. Not eating the donut takes a while, but an hour later, you aren't done not eating the donut. Oh no, not at all. It still beckons.
Evgeny 15y ago
According to the theory of decision fatigue, the simple act of making any decision depletes us of a limited store of willpower. I'm a bit worried about this theory becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy. Ever since first reading about it, my thoughts sometimes go along these lines: - I should do X now. - But wait, I've already done A, B, and D. Man, I feel like I have depleted my willpower on those three tasks! So, I'm leaving it till tomorrow. And so I'm confused because I suspect I would be better off if I never found out about the theory, but there's no way to 'unread' it and make myself a control for checking the limits of my own willpower.
gavingmiller 15y ago
I'm surprised no one has mentioned the website NerdFitness (http://nerdfitness.com/blog/ http://nerdfitness.com/blog/) yet. Steve runs a really great blog for those looking to get started doing fitness. The forum there is a good place to ask basic fitness questions too.
- tomjen3 15y ago
  I have heard about them, but they seem kinda cultish to me -- once you are in, you are in for life, we don't know diet soda is bad for you, but it is not natural, so it properly is, etc, etc. But hey, if it works for you.
guard-of-terra 15y ago
There seems to be an elephant in the room: gym is boring, pointless and offers too few bang for the trouble. It's inherently boring. Walking is fun. Hiking is fun. Chopping lumber is fun. Swimming in rivers and lakes is fun (pools - less so). You see new things and move yourself around. In gym, nothing really changes, you just do some repetitive things in a big room without windows. Sitting in cubicle is probably more fun because you've got web access at least. I don't know if the problem is inherently solvable or not.
- nosequel 15y ago
  Find a gym that isn't boring. They exist. Flip tires, pull a sled, climb a rope, throw a heavy ball... Doing a bodybuilding routine is incredibly boring, but finding something you like at the gym can be very rewarding. Like anything else though, you have to work a bit to find out the good stuff amongst the crap.
  - sliverstorm 15y ago
    Yea, you can always trade off some optimality for interesting if you need. Weight lifting isn't the only way to get in shape, it's just the most methodical & straight-forward.
- brudgers 15y ago
  What worked for me as I became more serious about refereeing was reframing exercise as training. My initial goal was not to collapse running up and down the field with the players. They have progressed from there. Reframing is a useful strategy in general, increasing physical activity and improving nutrition don't carry all the baggage of exercise and diet carry for many people.
- georgieporgie 15y ago
  Podcasts. I also read my Kindle on the stationary bike in my 30min warmup cardio session. Once you develop the coordination and cadence, you don't need much active thinking to spin a stationary bike. Once you're familiar with weight training motions, you only really need significant mental energy in the last couple of reps. Personally, most of my gym time is spent mentally engaged in what's coming into my ears. A year in, I'm making fairly consistent gains, so it's working.
mixmastamyk 15y ago
I just rode my bike back from the gym, and have been going regularly for about twenty years. It's the only time I have to catch up on podcasts.
drumdance 15y ago
I've found that classes are best for me. A few years ago I started going to an aerobics class that emphasized strength. Then I did a boot camp. In 2010 I started doing Crossfit and hope to do it the rest of my life. They push me well out of my comfort zone, and the group aspect makes it both competitive and collegial. Last year I decided two times a week was good enough for me and it's worked. I'm in fantastic shape.
- artpop 15y ago
  I started doing crossfit about 3 months ago and absolutely love it. Being a global and pretty standardised thing there are gyms all around the world you can attend. Despite the language barrier you still know what to do. For instance I am in Tokyo currently and about to go here: http://chikaracrossfit.com/ http://chikaracrossfit.com/ If I were in Denmark then I’d love to drop in here: http://butcherslab.dk/ http://butcherslab.dk/ Just as being a developer allows you to network globally, crossfit does too.
rdl 15y ago
Hiring a personal trainer (who is used by an early facebook engineering director, friend, and investor of mine) is probably the best health related decision i have made in a long time. One or two times a week, plus tracking diet with her help, and advice tracking and motivation for on my own gym sessions, total bargain. It basically turns fitness from a long feedback cycle to basically daily. I would probably cover up to 1k per month in employee fitness related costs; it is a huge boost to health, motivation, and productivity.
jsskate 15y ago
We can boil it down to incentives. Are the incentives (we recognize) strong enough to get us to pay for a membership and go to the gym? Maybe yes. Maybe no. Maybe maybe. The "maybe Maybe" wins the day in most cases. It's no surprise that the gyms are winning out here. Their goal is sales not necessarily our fitness. If they make good coin and facilitate people getting fit then good show. If they make good coin and the customers fail well such is life. Free will is after all free will. So what can we say for the minority that pay the 30(+) silver pieces and actually make it happen? I say good show! To those who pay and drop off I say keep on; don't give up, go back and try again! Tomorrow is another day. Don't Judas yourself.
roryokane 15y ago
I found a link to the Harvard graduates’ Gym Pact program: http://www.gym-pact.com/ http://www.gym-pact.com/. It’s an iPhone app, and it purports to actually pay you the money paid by those who didn’t go to the gym if you really do go to the gym. Another similar program is the free online service Beeminder at https://www.beeminder.com/ https://www.beeminder.com/. It lets you track anything numeric, such as visits to the gym, and if you fall below the goal you set for yourself a week ago, you get charged money.
- dreeves 15y ago
  Thanks for the Beeminder plug! (I'm a co-founder.) As I just replied to another comment here about StickK, we think of ourselves as StickK.com for data nerds. We think we're drastically better than StickK for data-oriented goals (like weight loss, or anything you can make a graph of).
gbog 15y ago
My god, the least interesting post in years... When will we have a How to loose weight by eating three burgers a day?
donnawarellp 15y ago
I have watched this phenomenon for years now as a devote gym rat. I always thought that a virtual gym would be perfect for those people who join the gym but never show up. They could simple go to a web site, join, pay $10/mo have a membership and never feel guilty about not going since there is actually no physical gym to go to.
highlander 15y ago
I've found that paid classes or personal training beat 'the gym' as the instructors are highly motivated to keep you coming back...
yason 15y ago
I wonder if it worked to offer customers a monthly fee of $100 and give them $5 back each time they come to the gym. Going seven times a month would make it cheaper than a $70 monthly flat fee, yet very few people would probably still get there more than ten times a month.
Freestyler_3 15y ago
I am one of those people that doesn't have a reason to go to the gym so I never promise myself to go. And since I look at my money situation before spending it, I know it is too expensive due to the risk of ending up not going but still paying. People with money to spend easily spend it on things they don't need. Too bad not everyone is really conscious about their ways so they think they can promise themselves something but in reality there is a super high probability they won't keep the promise to themselves. You can tell people a hundred times they won't keep their promise and the reason and whatever, they will still think they can keep it because their motivation is still high because they haven't done anything yet. Gyms here have trials.

218 points by waitwhat 15y ago

i can imagine that some online services are doing the same thing, or at least hoping for the same effect: users who pay a subscription fee but don't use it. of course, when they do, if they didn't expect it and can't afford to scale they go under. anyone know how big the parallels are between the economic models used by gyms and many online services?

dangrossman 15y ago
>90% of sites on the web pay a shared hosting company that offers unlimited disk space and bandwidth. Every Netflix subscriber that has a red envelope sitting on a table somewhere for weeks at a time. Comcast internet service comes with 1GB of storage for a personal website. They don't have 22,000 terabytes in hard drives allocated to that, I'm sure.
tomjen3 15y ago
I don't think most of the online services work to make you use their site less. Paying for a gym membership is a goal in itself in that you can say 'I go to the gym'. Having a paid account at $SERVICE doesn't have the same meaning since you can always switch and there is social pressure. But certainly no hosting company actually has thousands of GB laying around.

brudgers 15y ago

A little more than a year ago I found a way to get paid to get in shape when I started refereeing soccer. Indeed, the more fit I become, the higher the level of game to which I am likely to be assigned, and consequentially, the more I am paid...it's a fitness hack for someone who doesn't like to exercise, but can buy into the idea of training.

surferbayarea 15y ago

brilliant startup idea: a gym that's also a strip club :p

tomjen3 15y ago
I cannot contemplate the kind of mind that can make that connection but you will properly be a valuable member around here. Anyway you should properly find some other way to make it nice to be there since otherwise you will lose the female part of the equation.

phatbyte 15y ago

I workout from home, I started a couple of months ago with cardio to loose some fat, and now I'm starting p90x. The reason I don't go to the gym isn't because I gave up, it's just I don't like that "all" gym environment, plus the fact that I have to drive there, wait for people to let me use a specific machine etc... with the money I'd spent on a gym, I'm building my own little private gym. I can't recommend enough for all of us geeks to workout. I used to drink sugar drinks, eat fat food, all that crap. Even though I wasn't fat I was starting to gain weight and man, I was embarrassed of how out of shape I was. Look it as hacking your own body ;) make it better, each week you will se improvements, get in shape. Just because we are geeks doesn't mean we can't have a great body for ladies ;P

brianmwang 15y ago
P90X is an ok program, but it's ridiculously inefficient. If you learn basic barbell training, I guarantee that you won't have to wait much, if at all, at the gym. Most folks shy away from barbells and that's an advantage to the person who knows what they're doing.
- brown9-2 15y ago
  The most waiting you'll have to do is when someone is curling in the squat rack.
  - matwood 15y ago
    Ugh, don't get me started. I have a t-shirt I wear on squat days and it reads in nice big letters: "Don't curl in the squat rack!"

jayzee 15y ago

how about tying your gym visits to your health insurance premiums?

brudgers 15y ago
The local hospital did that for employees at the health club they developed. People signed in and then hung out drinking free coffee and socializng in the juice bar.
tomjen3 15y ago
That seems filled with a ton of problems though: It fails to take into account what you eat. That is properly also a big part of it. Just the number of times you go doesn't necessarily matter - it is also about how hard you work out, etc, etc.

dminor 15y ago

Well right now I don't go because the parking lot has been completely full the past 2 weeks. But I expect that will resolve itself soon :)

pors 15y ago

> Recently, a couple of Harvard graduates launched a program called Gym Pact based on the simple principle that if skipping the gym is a broken contract with ourselves, we ought to pay a penalty for slacking. Hmm, this site does this for many years already: http://www.stickk.com/ http://www.stickk.com/ Tried it once with some friends and it worked perfect, even without a financial penalty.

jrmg 15y ago
http://www.stickk.com/ http://www.stickk.com/ is a great site. I think learned about it a while ago here on HN. I use it to motivate myself to go out running in the mornings. If I don't go running at least four days a week, $10 goes to a climate change denial charity (this was chosen by me, not a reflection of the sites politics). It certainly works - there has been many a cold, rainy morning this winter that it's been the deciding factor in getting me out the door...
dreeves 15y ago
Three cheers for StickK! Also would love to convince you to check out my startup -- http://beeminder.com http://beeminder.com -- which combines goal tracking with StickK-like commitment devices. Keep all your data points on a "yellow brick road" to your goal. Ie, it's StickK.com for data nerds.

Samuel_Michon 15y ago

One of the articles the author links to is a lot more helpful and concrete [1]. The meat of it: "Shaul’s guys out in Wyoming get massively strong and powerful on precisely three gym sessions a week, each lasting an hour and no more. Louie Simmons, the single biggest name in gorilla-style competitive power lifting, will tell you that 45 minutes is the max length of any smart training session. But you can’t spend the first 15 minutes watching CNN from the treadmill and the last 15 “warming down.” Every second has to count, and it all starts with understanding the four basic muscular aptitudes: strength, power, muscle mass, and muscular endurance. [...] The whole trick to athletic training — and this is true for everybody from bodybuilders to marathoners to noncompetitive athletes just in it for health, or even vanity — is timing each subsequent workout so it hits the middle of that so-called supercompensation peak, when a muscle has already bounced back even stronger than before but hasn’t yet returned to baseline. [...] It can be hard to believe a true strength coach the first time he tells you that by pressing and dead-lifting on even days, squatting and doing chin-ups on odd days, avoiding all other exercises, and adding a little to the bar each time, you’ll be stronger than you’ve ever been in only a month’s time. Thanks to the fitness industry, we’re so conditioned to equate sophistication with complexity — and to think we’ve got to “work each body part” — that our gut just says, No way; that can’t work. But it works like magic, and the entire body hardens up in unison. Finally, keep it simple; understand that variety is overrated. Variety does stave off boredom — it’s fun to mix in new exercises all the time — but a guy who hasn’t trained in a long time, if ever, will get stronger faster on the simplest program of squats, dead lifts, and presses, three times a week." [1] http://www.mensjournal.com/everything-you-know-about-fitness-is-a-lie/print/ http://www.mensjournal.com/everything-you-know-about-fitness...

ebiester 15y ago
If you are serious about it, there's a book by Mark Rippetoe called Starting Strength that explains this in more detail.
- hkmurakami 15y ago
  That's the program I follow as well, and the article conveniently refers to it. I knew most everything in the article, but I thought it would be an excellent piece to show any of my gym "fuckaround-itis" friends.

Swizec 15y ago

This is silly, is it really that hard to go to the gym? I mean, you just go the first time. Then when it is "tomorrow". You just go again. Then the next day ... again. It's not that difficult a concept, the only thing you must take care of is that you don't break the cycle. When I was still going to a gym I was there two hours every evening, at the same time, no matter what. When I suddenly couldn't afford it anymore it was horrible ... all that free time and nothing to do with it. Sure, eventually new habits formed, but it was hard as hell.[1] Really the only thing it takes is a bit of stubbornness, all these silly tricks into making yourself more stubborn are just that ... silly. You don't need them. There's nothing easier in the world than making the same default decision every day. Doesn't even require much thought. [1] this was a few years ago, got into boxing when I had the money again, then became broke and am finally getting back to boxing this week ... money's a bitch like that, luxury-ish expenses are the first to go edit: why all the downvotes? Picking a habit and making sure you don't break it is one of the most effective ways of sticking to something ... http://theclosetentrepreneur.com/seinfelds-secret-motivational-technique http://theclosetentrepreneur.com/seinfelds-secret-motivation...

mynameishere 15y ago
two hours every evening Bodybuilders don't work out that much, you know.
- brudgers 15y ago
  Two hours a day is a lot of family time to lose for many parents, and more than an old bum knee may take.
  - Swizec 15y ago
    So spend half an hour exercising every day. It's still a lot more than nothing and well worth it when "family time" involves saving someone from a burning building or some other sort of emergency and you have the physical strength to actually do it.
  - frasertimo 15y ago

scorpioxy 15y ago

Been going regularly for the past 2 years or so. Finding what motivates you is the key. I'm doing strength training and so my motivation are a set of goals for weights I can move. For others it might be weight, stamina and the like. I have to tell you though strength training without a partner definitely tests your willpower, its damn hard. Working out takes discipline but also keep in mind that skipping a day to simply hang out with your friends is ok. Treat the workout as something you want to do rather than something you have to do. That's what worked for me.

silentscope 15y ago

I've always found that if I just put on my workout clothes, It's really hard to convince myself that I shouldn't be going and take them off. So, to get myself to go, I tell myself that I'm just putting on my clothes, which seems like way less of a commitment when I'm sitting on the couch. By the time I've laced up my shoes, I'm in the workout mindset. Really, vI know I can trick that part of myself. Trying to swallow a bitter pill whole is difficult and can be counterproductive to positive reinforcement that will get you to go again. Break down that commitment into pieces and the initial energy threshold is a hell of a lot lower. You'll see the positive results more easily and expect them less because you've broken down your "I should be getting in shape" personal investment into smaller pieces, so it seems smaller overall. It stops being a matter of "I better see some results for all my trouble." Without the self-guilt trip you'll be reinforcing a positive feedback loop, which is the only sustainable way you're going to get in shape--if you enjoy doing it.

Samuel_Michon 15y ago
"To get myself to go, I tell myself that I'm just putting on my [workout] clothes" That's a great suggestion. Also, if you exercise at home instead of at a gym, you can tell yourself you're just going to do a 10 minute set. Once you're done with that one, your heartbeat will be up and you'll have enough energy to keep up for a few more. Bribes/rewards are also good motivators. If you promise yourself a minute of reading HN for every minute you work out, you have something to look forward to. (Make sure you don't let yourself take the reward before you do the work, that's a BIG trap.)

capkutay 15y ago

I usually just throw on my workout clothes and take a pre-workout product, then I'm ready to work out. I don't know if pre-workout drinks work all that well but they certainly add a placebo effect that makes me feel ready to workout...caffeine can help too.

slig 15y ago
Pre-workouts usually ships with a lot of caffeine (more than a redbull, IIRC), so you will get agitated.
matwood 15y ago
I used to drink a Speed Stacks when I could buy them cheaply from a distributor friend. They were pretty strong so I would drink 1/2 and then switch to water. Then I would use the other 1/2 for the next workout. Now that I don't have the hookup, Red Bull on sale seems to work pretty well for a low cost energy drink. Each person is different and needs to find that balance to just enough energy to go 110%, but not so much that you lose focus.
llimllib 15y ago
Caffeine, at least, is not a placebo, there is ample evidence showing that it improves workout performance. https://www.google.com/search?ix=sea&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=caffeine+workout+study https://www.google.com/search?ix=sea&sourceid=chrome&#38...

rickdale 15y ago

As a hacker what gets me to the gym is that I realized its all just a numbers game. I weigh x. It will take x amount of days eating x amount of calories. I do x amount of reps time the number of sets per each workout. When I go to the gym I record everything. Every rep and half rep. I wrote a program to learn python and to track my gym progress. Realizing its all just a numbers game really helped me sorta do the math on taking care of myself for the long term.

matwood 15y ago
Exactly. The biggest mistake most people make when starting a gym program is not tracking progress.
- dsr_ 15y ago
  I'm going to disagree. The biggest mistake most people make is not showing up. I've arranged things so that when my kids have swim lessons, I go to the gym. It doesn't matter if I track progress or not, because I'm not looking to "make progress". I want to be in better shape. Going regularly is the key. Just as a photographer will tell you that the best camera is the one you have with you, the best workout is the one you actually do. As a side effect, I lift 150% - 250% of the weight that I did when I started, and I can do many, many more reps. I no longer get backaches, and I can't remember the last time I was out of breath from a normal activity.
  - matwood 15y ago
    Showing up obviously is key, but the underlying issue is maintaining long term motivation. I found most people need to feel they are accomplishing something in order to stay motivated. Measuring allows that. Another thing that trips many people up is they are unsure what to do. Having a written plan when they show up removes that hurdle. Much like having a TODO list helps many people complete them, having a written TODO list of exercises helps people to show up. It doesn't matter if I track progress or not, because I'm not looking to "make progress". I want to be in better shape. BTW, be in better shape is called progress. Although be in better shape isn't a very good SMART goal. While it is measurable it's not specific enough or time bound.

zcid 15y ago

I see these articles more and more lately. They aren't really saying anything new: people don't like putting effort into long term goals. This is just a corollary of the concept of instant gratification. People go to college and invest years in an education that they grind out day in and day out because they feel (not think! it's not a logical process) there is value in the long term effort. When the same people don't exercise and eat right over a long term period, they are demonstrating that they don't value their health. Sure they might think and say they do, but obviously they aren't taking the appropriate steps. They just don't care.

randomdata 15y ago
> People go to college and invest years in an education that they grind out day in and day out because they feel ... there is value in the long term effort. Many go to college simply because their lives will not feel complete until they can study certain subjects at the hands of masters. Much like how entrepreneurs feel their life will not be complete until they try to build that product; even knowing the odds are against them seeing it become a success. I would argue that the rest go because they've been pressured to do so, not because they see a real long-term benefit in their actions. There is a lot of negativity towards those who do not have degrees. Getting a degree is needed to fit in and not become a social outcast. People who make poor lifestyle choices do have their own fair share of pressure and negativity, but, unlike those without degrees, we generally accept them in our society. Nobody is going to pass up the world's best programmer because he has a few extra pounds on his person. Lots of people would pass over the world's best programmer because he doesn't have a degree.

tienshiao 15y ago

One trick that seems to have made it easier for me is changing the question from "Do/Should/Can I go to the gym today?" (which is just an opportunity to come up with excuses) to "How do I go to the gym today?". It seems to tie into the decision fatigue theory. Instead trying to figure out if I can based on meetings/workload/other things in my schedule, I've already made my decision to go on certain days (in my case, every other day) and I just need to make sure my schedule works.

lancefisher 15y ago

I don't really like going to the gym, but I love running outside. There are a few things that keep me going: 1. I keep in mind that I have never regretted going for a run. 2. A few times a week, I run with friends in a training group. When someone expects to see me there, I am much more likely to go. 3. I keep a training log. I mark completed days with a green dot (even rest days), and missed workouts with a red dot. 4. I read about running. It's inspiring to hear others' stories. 5. I sign up for races. If a race is coming up, I know I can't brush off workouts. I started running again a couple years ago after about 8 years of not working out. It was difficult and painful for a couple months, but it got easier and more fun. I do have to sacrifice some family time, but I want my son to see me having a fit lifestyle. Sometimes, I'll bring him along in a stoller.

wazoox 15y ago
Ditto, except for the group run thing or races. I run twice or thrice a year with my brother in law, but as a true misanthropic geek I simply prefer being on my own as much as possible :) I started running 5 years ago, and once I've got the habit to put on running clothes every morning, it's really quite easy.
sliverstorm 15y ago
I actually have a lot of trouble running outside. You see, I can't pace myself for sh*t, so I always wind up running at like a 6-minute-mile pace no matter what shape I'm in or how far I'm going. I've discovered treadmills are useful in that regard.
- lancefisher 15y ago
  Pacing can be difficult. On a hard workout, I find I can go out way too fast. I wear a Garmin watch that lets me monitor my pace and adjust it. Some of the people I run with are really good at setting a pace, so I'll follow them. Getting a feel for setting the pace just takes some practice.
  - llimllib 15y ago

mhartl 15y ago

WHY CAN'T PEOPLE KEEP THEIR GYM PROMISES? FOR THE SAME REASON CONGRESS CAN'T PASS DEFICIT REDUCTION. Congress doesn't have the proper incentives to reduce the deficit. People do have good incentives to go to the gym. (Coincidentally, I just got back from the gym. It feels really good.)

ulisesrmzroche 15y ago

This is one of the fastest ways to get fit, and doesn't require more than 15 minutes (even giving 5 for farting around) or any equipment. 1 Round is 2-3 minutes * Burpees(pushup variation) x 30 seconds * Shadow box x 30 seconds -- This isn't rest. Treat it like a fight. Add kicks, knees, elbows, etc. * Rest 1 minute between rounds. Make rounds longer, try to beat your reps, or add a weighted vest if you really want to challenge yourself.

hippich 15y ago

article contradicts itself.. they say that majority will buy monthly pass for $70 instead of paying $10 per visit and do just 4 visit, effectively loosing money. And then they tell that people are more likely to do gym workouts if they will be taxed. But isn't subscribing to plan already form of financial incentive? I have quite different idea of gyms. Gyms are for people who build their body, not for someone who need to fix health. For someone who need to fix health - they need to change their routine to introduce physical work somewhere. This is more complicated than buying membership, I agree. But this is what will not use your willpower and give you long term results.

brown9-2 15y ago
The psychological difference is that 70/month is an expected expense each month whereas the $5 tax is not. You can't always argue logic with the way our brains work.
joevandyk 15y ago
No, the $70 a month, once paid, is a sunk cost. You can't get that back if you decide to skip today. But, if you get taxed if you don't go, then your choice of being lazy right now will cost you money.

boofar 15y ago

I'm about to leave soon, so I'll make it quick: In a previous post I already lauded the book "The Happiness Advantage: The Seven Principles of Positive Psychology That Fuel Success and Performance at Work"[1]. The book is based on scientific results. In the chapter "The 20 second rule" the author talks about the "activation energy" required to start a task and recommends reducing it as much as possible. Every 20 seconds (hence the title of the chapter) removed between you sitting on the couch and starting what you wanted to start makes a difference. I have a nice pullup bar hanging from the wall that's staring at me and every other day I follow the simplefit[2] program. Have been following it for weeks now. "Activition energy" being so low... even when I dread doing sport (yes, there are such days) I tell myself it's at most 20 minutes and I can start right away so the pullup bar is looking at me with a face and I shrug and do it. My energy and endurance has increased noticably. Gotta run now (not to the gym hyuk hyuk), I'll be happy to answer any questions tomorrow. [1] http://www.amazon.com/Happiness-Advantage-Principles-Psychology-Performance/dp/0307591549/ http://www.amazon.com/Happiness-Advantage-Principles-Psychol... [2] http://simplefit.org http://simplefit.org

Detrus 15y ago
I bought a weight set. It also stares at me every day. And I work out almost every day. I don't have serious motivational problems. I could go to a gym in theory, but it's at least 20 minutes away, there would be a whole ritual to dress up, go there, workout, cool off, come back. It would take an extra hour and I imagine many gym goers are paying extra in time to work out. It wears on your motivation. I know I'd skip many more days, the results would be even less apparent which would undermine my motivation. Most important exercises can be done with a barbell and 2-300 lbs of plates. At home, without a rack, you could safely squat 150 after getting there with powercleans and overhead prss. Then you could go to a gym once a week for its racks, leg press, etc. The only thing I regret is buying standard plates, barbells and dumbbells instead of olympics. Standard barbells can't handle more than 230 lbs safely. It would be nice to deadlift and bench 300 lbs at home. Pain in the ass to sell the old set. So if you go this route, I'd recommend spending more and getting olympics. And don't worry about sucky olympic dumbbells, do Starting Strength, it's fine without them.

deleted 15y ago

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patio11 15y ago

If you haven't heard me say it enough, note that bit about "Given the choice between buying X units one at a time or 2X units all at once for a modest discount, people will often buy 2X units and fail to use them all." That is very important to keep in mind when designing e.g. the packaging options of a SaaS business.

jdietrich 15y ago
My own utterly unscientific data suggests that this is a form of hyperbolically discounted loss-aversion - the 'loss' of the discount on additional units is felt more acutely than the more real loss of units purchased but never used. Combining this principle with a time-limited offer can be staggeringly effective, I imagine by enhancing the sense of impending loss. I've seen orders-of-magnitude difference in revenue from such "new customer only" discounts. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to have a bath in acetone to sluice off the shame.
- sliverstorm 15y ago
  I love the retailers who try to tap in to this with the time-limited offers that never seem to expire!
  - maalox 15y ago
    Dreamhost suckered me that way. A few years ago they offered a limited time special anniversary discount (only 11 days left!!), however, the anniversary sale was still on months later and there were only 11 days left!! I will never, ever use them again for doing that to me.
    - euroclydon 15y ago
      Oh come on. They're a hosting company. How was their service? Didn't you know what you were getting for the money? Would you have waited for hosting until a special offer came along?

nazgulnarsil 15y ago

what about the fact that most people fuck around in the gym and see no results?

GBKS 15y ago

I think those theories are missing the main point. Going to the gym is not fun, because gyms have a crappy user experience. So let's say you join a gym, but don't know very much about working out. You walk into a room with hundreds of machines, and are expected to know how to structure a work-out, how each machine works, be familiar with all the muscle groups and exercises, and also really care about planning out and recording every exercise you do to track your progress on the gyms website. It's the biggest turn-off. Why can't a gym hold your hand and treat you like somebody who wants to start working out but doesn't know anything yet? "Express tracks" are a good start, where 10 machines are set up in a row, and if you do 3 sets on each one, you have a good work-out session. That's easy to understand and do. And maybe later, once people have created their habits, they are more likely to learn the finer details. But expecting every new member to care about putting a ton of effort into learning everything about working out is a killer.

ggchappell 15y ago
I very much agree. Your idea sounds great. However, I can guess why it isn't common. What you suggest would be labor-intensive, and thus expensive. Some people don't want to pay for the hand-holding. So the gym would have to offer multiple plans: cheap do-it-yourself and expensive hand-holding. My guess is that this has been tried, and the number of customers for the high-end plan is not enough to justify offering it. Alas.
kemayo 15y ago
For what it's worth, when I joined my gym they gave a free personal trainer session, and said trainer walked me through some things. (It was obviously an attempt to upsell me, by showing what a personal trainer would keep on doing for me, but it was still a helpful newbie service.) Also, all the machines have little informative placards on them explaining which muscles they work and how to use them. I think they're also laid out in a way such that by going from one end to the other they'll give you a fairly decent all-over workout.
- dredmorbius 15y ago
  I've very, very rarely seen an intro session that wasn't an upsell. The one moderate exception was at a managed on-site gym at a workplace when I first started out. I got a training program that I followed with some success for the next nine months, losing 50# of bodyfat and gaining 12# of muscle in the process (verified by hydrostatic testing). Today I'd have done a rather different route, but, hey, it worked. That of course is the novice's advantage: virtually any crap program is better than sitting on your ass. The question is: what is going to work best. For most otherwise healthy people these days I'd say a 5x5 strength program with 2-3x weekly HIIT cardio sessions (Tabata anything after a month or two).

nhangen 15y ago

I think the reality is that most people just don't care much about going to the gym. There is a real societal pressure to feel obligated to 'get fit,' but that's not enough to create behavioral change, and it shouldn't be.

geebee 15y ago

I'm actually pretty good about going to the gym, but I'm overweight anyway. The reason is that I'm good at doing what I should do, but bad about not doing what I shouldn't do. A hard workout takes a while, but then you're done, and you feel great. Not eating the donut takes a while, but an hour later, you aren't done not eating the donut. Oh no, not at all. It still beckons.

Evgeny 15y ago

According to the theory of decision fatigue, the simple act of making any decision depletes us of a limited store of willpower. I'm a bit worried about this theory becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy. Ever since first reading about it, my thoughts sometimes go along these lines: - I should do X now. - But wait, I've already done A, B, and D. Man, I feel like I have depleted my willpower on those three tasks! So, I'm leaving it till tomorrow. And so I'm confused because I suspect I would be better off if I never found out about the theory, but there's no way to 'unread' it and make myself a control for checking the limits of my own willpower.

gavingmiller 15y ago

I'm surprised no one has mentioned the website NerdFitness (http://nerdfitness.com/blog/ http://nerdfitness.com/blog/) yet. Steve runs a really great blog for those looking to get started doing fitness. The forum there is a good place to ask basic fitness questions too.

tomjen3 15y ago
I have heard about them, but they seem kinda cultish to me -- once you are in, you are in for life, we don't know diet soda is bad for you, but it is not natural, so it properly is, etc, etc. But hey, if it works for you.

guard-of-terra 15y ago

There seems to be an elephant in the room: gym is boring, pointless and offers too few bang for the trouble. It's inherently boring. Walking is fun. Hiking is fun. Chopping lumber is fun. Swimming in rivers and lakes is fun (pools - less so). You see new things and move yourself around. In gym, nothing really changes, you just do some repetitive things in a big room without windows. Sitting in cubicle is probably more fun because you've got web access at least. I don't know if the problem is inherently solvable or not.

nosequel 15y ago
Find a gym that isn't boring. They exist. Flip tires, pull a sled, climb a rope, throw a heavy ball... Doing a bodybuilding routine is incredibly boring, but finding something you like at the gym can be very rewarding. Like anything else though, you have to work a bit to find out the good stuff amongst the crap.
- sliverstorm 15y ago
  Yea, you can always trade off some optimality for interesting if you need. Weight lifting isn't the only way to get in shape, it's just the most methodical & straight-forward.
brudgers 15y ago
What worked for me as I became more serious about refereeing was reframing exercise as training. My initial goal was not to collapse running up and down the field with the players. They have progressed from there. Reframing is a useful strategy in general, increasing physical activity and improving nutrition don't carry all the baggage of exercise and diet carry for many people.
georgieporgie 15y ago
Podcasts. I also read my Kindle on the stationary bike in my 30min warmup cardio session. Once you develop the coordination and cadence, you don't need much active thinking to spin a stationary bike. Once you're familiar with weight training motions, you only really need significant mental energy in the last couple of reps. Personally, most of my gym time is spent mentally engaged in what's coming into my ears. A year in, I'm making fairly consistent gains, so it's working.

mixmastamyk 15y ago

I just rode my bike back from the gym, and have been going regularly for about twenty years. It's the only time I have to catch up on podcasts.

drumdance 15y ago

I've found that classes are best for me. A few years ago I started going to an aerobics class that emphasized strength. Then I did a boot camp. In 2010 I started doing Crossfit and hope to do it the rest of my life. They push me well out of my comfort zone, and the group aspect makes it both competitive and collegial. Last year I decided two times a week was good enough for me and it's worked. I'm in fantastic shape.

artpop 15y ago
I started doing crossfit about 3 months ago and absolutely love it. Being a global and pretty standardised thing there are gyms all around the world you can attend. Despite the language barrier you still know what to do. For instance I am in Tokyo currently and about to go here: http://chikaracrossfit.com/ http://chikaracrossfit.com/ If I were in Denmark then I’d love to drop in here: http://butcherslab.dk/ http://butcherslab.dk/ Just as being a developer allows you to network globally, crossfit does too.

rdl 15y ago

Hiring a personal trainer (who is used by an early facebook engineering director, friend, and investor of mine) is probably the best health related decision i have made in a long time. One or two times a week, plus tracking diet with her help, and advice tracking and motivation for on my own gym sessions, total bargain. It basically turns fitness from a long feedback cycle to basically daily. I would probably cover up to 1k per month in employee fitness related costs; it is a huge boost to health, motivation, and productivity.

jsskate 15y ago

We can boil it down to incentives. Are the incentives (we recognize) strong enough to get us to pay for a membership and go to the gym? Maybe yes. Maybe no. Maybe maybe. The "maybe Maybe" wins the day in most cases. It's no surprise that the gyms are winning out here. Their goal is sales not necessarily our fitness. If they make good coin and facilitate people getting fit then good show. If they make good coin and the customers fail well such is life. Free will is after all free will. So what can we say for the minority that pay the 30(+) silver pieces and actually make it happen? I say good show! To those who pay and drop off I say keep on; don't give up, go back and try again! Tomorrow is another day. Don't Judas yourself.

roryokane 15y ago

I found a link to the Harvard graduates’ Gym Pact program: http://www.gym-pact.com/ http://www.gym-pact.com/. It’s an iPhone app, and it purports to actually pay you the money paid by those who didn’t go to the gym if you really do go to the gym. Another similar program is the free online service Beeminder at https://www.beeminder.com/ https://www.beeminder.com/. It lets you track anything numeric, such as visits to the gym, and if you fall below the goal you set for yourself a week ago, you get charged money.

dreeves 15y ago
Thanks for the Beeminder plug! (I'm a co-founder.) As I just replied to another comment here about StickK, we think of ourselves as StickK.com for data nerds. We think we're drastically better than StickK for data-oriented goals (like weight loss, or anything you can make a graph of).

gbog 15y ago

My god, the least interesting post in years... When will we have a How to loose weight by eating three burgers a day?

donnawarellp 15y ago

I have watched this phenomenon for years now as a devote gym rat. I always thought that a virtual gym would be perfect for those people who join the gym but never show up. They could simple go to a web site, join, pay $10/mo have a membership and never feel guilty about not going since there is actually no physical gym to go to.

highlander 15y ago

I've found that paid classes or personal training beat 'the gym' as the instructors are highly motivated to keep you coming back...

yason 15y ago

I wonder if it worked to offer customers a monthly fee of $100 and give them $5 back each time they come to the gym. Going seven times a month would make it cheaper than a $70 monthly flat fee, yet very few people would probably still get there more than ten times a month.

Freestyler_3 15y ago

I am one of those people that doesn't have a reason to go to the gym so I never promise myself to go. And since I look at my money situation before spending it, I know it is too expensive due to the risk of ending up not going but still paying. People with money to spend easily spend it on things they don't need. Too bad not everyone is really conscious about their ways so they think they can promise themselves something but in reality there is a super high probability they won't keep the promise to themselves. You can tell people a hundred times they won't keep their promise and the reason and whatever, they will still think they can keep it because their motivation is still high because they haven't done anything yet. Gyms here have trials.