Having lost 40lbs in the past couple of years, diet and walking have been key. It's just so much easier to burn fat by not eating it, than it is to try to burn it off with exercise. You'll find that burning 500 calories on a treadmill feels like an eternity, but eating one chocolate chip muffin? You can do that and gulp down a big glass of milk in 5 minutes like it's nothing.

▲

SirMaster 2 days ago | parent [-]

>You'll find that burning 500 calories on a treadmill feels like an eternity

That's because you are doing it on a treadmill...

Try doing a more fun activity outside in the world and in nature. Like cycling.

I can cycle for 120 miles outdoors in about 6 hours in a single day and have a positive experience and memory of doing it and that burns about 8200 calories according to a calculators for my weight.

▲

kelnos a day ago | parent | next [-]

Unfortunately I think you'll find that many people just don't actually enjoy these sorts of activities. To me, cycling 120 miles (or even just 20 miles) is not something I'm interested in doing regularly.

I've tried various things, and I've found that I can get myself to go outside running (usually 3-5 miles in one session) a few times a week, but even that feels like a chore. I've been doing hot yoga (as well as a yoga-adjacent class that I think of more as "strength training and cardio with yoga features") for the past year and a half, which I actually somewhat enjoy. But it took me double-digit years to find exercise activities that I can actually get myself to do.

Go to the gym regularly? Really hard to find the motivation, though I do my best to go if I'm traveling in a place where I can't go to my (national chain) yoga studio. Cycling? Not my cup of tea. Playing a sport? Nope. Climbing? Tried it, didn't find it interesting. Hiking? Sure, on occasion, but not regularly enough to count as regular exercise. I'm just not really interested in any of those things enough to do them multiple times per week. And I think that's the case for many people.

If I could maintain my weight, leg muscle tone, and cardiovascular health without running, I'd never run ever again. I don't get that "runner's high" that people talk about (or if I do, it's not very intense, and fades very quickly). In addition to whole-body muscle tone, the yoga gives me some nice mental benefits, so I'd probably keep that up, but if it didn't, I'd drop it immediately.

	▲	SirMaster a day ago \| parent [-]
		I used to do pretty much nothing outdoors. Running is actually the one I find the most boring and I don't run. I am not even sure I can comfortably run that well anymore with part of my leg and foot being permanently numb after a disc herniation, I never really tried. But I found that I love all the rest of it. I love cycling and hiking for hours and playing all sorts of sports. In the summer I play pickleball like 3-5 days a week for usually 3 hours at a time at local parks. I mean I can't stand cycling on a bike in a gym, but go out to local trails and I love it. I think it's the fresh air, the wind rushing past me, the sights and smells and being out in nature that make it all fun for me. Also exploring new places all the time too to hike and bike though are what seem to keep it exciting and interesting for me.

▲

post_break 16 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

I live in Houston. Cycling is too dangerous.