Exercise every day and have for 30+ years. I was a fat kid til mid teens and did not like it at all. Didn’t help that I had two in shape athletic brothers. I was an everyday runner for years and never really enjoyed it but didn’t hate it either. Then 40 happened and stuff started to hurt. Switched to an elliptical and did that for a while. Then one day DS commented while we were in the pool that I looked like a skinny fat guy. After that, I started going to the gym with him. Again I don’t really enjoy it but I absolutely love the fact that I got bigger in all the right areas and got smaller in all the right areas. And I’ve got bad back genes in the family so I am doing everything I can in middle age to build up core muscles and make sure my golden years aren’t going to be spent in an OxyContin induced haze.
@fendrock, I would say none of those factors are true for me. In 8th grade, all 200 of us ran a mile. Our results were listed on a poster in the gym. I WAS THE VERY SLOWEST PERSON!! But now I run every day. Slowly, like 13 or 14 minutes per mile. I am overweight, so I don’t look good in workout clothes. My right foot sticks way out to the right, so I look funny running. One time, I went to physical therapy, and the guy actually said, “Well, some people just aren’t built for running…”
What I’ve done to make exercise bearable is to make a game out of it. I log all my runs on RunningAhead.com (I highly recommend that site - the sense of community is similar to CC). I run streaks, to see how many days straight in a row I can do. I completed 111 days in a row in March, but had to stop due to a serious kidney infection. I can create graphs on the site to chart my progress.
I also joined a game on RunningAhead.com. Each person chose a running goal for the year - I picked 1,000 km (621.4 miles). The site’s developer placed everyone on a team, so that each team’s total goal for the year is very close. Then every team competes with one other each week to see who can make their weekly goal. If I don’t make my goal, it can hurt my team. So I’m motivated to get out on the road even if the weather is bad or I don’t feel like running.
I also get together with a bunch of women from the website (including MomofWildChild!) once a year or so to run a race. I’ve made meetings in Las Vegas, St. Louis, Toronto, and North Carolina so far. I will run a half marathon in Pennsylvania with the group in September.
So it IS possible to make exercise fun! You have to make the effort, though. 
There are many, many days I don’t want to run. There are also days I don’t want to get up and go to work, or go to the dentist, or have eye surgery. I like enough things about running that I fight through the times I don’t think I can make myself do it.
Exercising is so important to one’s health that I think it is imperative to find something you can tolerate on a very regular basis. When I am injured or am grounded for some other medical reason, I immediately find out what I CAN do and I make myself do it. Sometimes it’s hot yoga, sometimes spin class and sometimes it’s just living my life on crutches! I am not thrilled with these alternatives, but I do them anyway. Sometimes you just have to suck it up.
“I think those who really enjoy exercising should stop and consider why - is it something that you are good at? are you fit enough that you get that endorphin rush? Do you like to play team sports and be a valued member of the team? Do you like to run in races and win? Do you look really good in workout clothes or in any clothes?”
I’ll tackle this one. As a kid I was chubby and was uncoordinated. Avoided exercise besides riding bikes - which itself took me a long time to learn. Kids in the neighborhood used to love to do relay races - I always had the excuse that I was “too tired cause I didn’t get any sleep last night” - Used that one a million times. We would swim at the local pool a lot but it wasn’t strenuous, just play.
Am I good at my exercise activity? I don’t need to be good as long as I’m willing to do it. I’m not trying to beat anyone at age 56 - it’s for ME. I run 8-12 miles a week - but I’m not breaking any records FOR SURE - I don’t care how I look to the neighbors, I’m still going to do it for ME.
Endorphin rush - I don’t know about that. I know I’m super pleased when I’m done and I’m glad I did it! I feel pretty darn good, but endorphin rush? I don’t think so.
Team sports - just NO. 
Everything I do I do on my own. Not even a big class person though I will do a little bit of classwork. I actually prefer to exercise on my own - with earphones in - so I can basically tune everyone else out!
Run races and win - see above “didn’t sleep last night”. I have run races - NEVER any intent to win - give me the participant award and I’m happy! I actually don’t enter many races because I DON’T like them - and I know I can rely on myself to get the “work” (exercise) done on my own.
Look really good in clothes - I’ll say this - SINCE exercising, I look better in clothes and am comfortable wearing appropriate exercise clothes.
But it was all a process. A step one. Then a step two. My fitness journey started at age 53. It’s moderate, but regular. No champion here except getting it done.
^^^That’s my recipe. I believe it’s up to each person to find the recipe that works for them. Seek and you shall eventually find?
I really respect anyone out there who attempts to exercise. I don’t care how fast you are or what you are wearing or if your face is beet red (I sweat like a hog!) - high five to YOU for the effort.
But I truly am interested in the roadblocks or stigma behind not exercising. And I like hearing about the journey of progress anyone has made.
I can see what fendrock is saying. Everyone is different. For example, I’m an introvert, so turning exercise into a social event is the very LAST thing that would make it enjoyable for me.
I wouldn’t even say that exercise is enjoyable for me at all, but it is satisfying. For 59 years, that voice in the back of my head nagged at me that I should be doing something, and now the voice is saying, “Hey, good job, you’re doing what you’re supposed to do.” I don’t get endorphine rushes, and because of my age, progress is sometimes frustratingly slow. Plus it takes a big chunk of my very scarce free time, and there’s the sweat factor. I don’t actually enjoy the pain of a deadlift or the sore muscles the next day. But those things are a marker of what I’m accomplishing, so they are satisfying.
Glancing through this, I don’t think anybody else has mentioned the prep time (plus whatever the converse of prep time is). I don’t wear sneakers in my everyday life—so if I’m going to exercise, I have to put on tennis shoes. I have to change clothes, almost certainly. I have to actually put in the effort to block out the time. Given that I have a very strong tendency to overexert myself when I do exercise, I need to put on my heart rate monitor and sync it up. Once I’m done, I have to cool down. I have to peel off sweaty clothes (at the very least the socks!). Not necessarily immediately, but I have to shower, and if that’s not immediately done I have to get myself to dry out a bit before doing anything else.
None of this is huge. However, for me it’s a death by a thousand cuts.
Personally, I don’t get the get into a car, drive to a gym, change, exercise, shower, change back and drive home. Why not just rake the yard, vacuum the house, walk to the grocery store, run after the grandkids on the playground? The thought of running, inside or out, for no good reason borders on insanity. What a waste of time. Time and physical effort that could be put to so much better use.
And no, I don’t hate it because I’m overweight, out of shape or don’t look good in work out clothes. I hate it because it’s boring. I’m 5 ft and weight 105 pounds. Have never had a weight problem and stay active all day. Just not active in a mind numbing way. My mother doesn’t exercise either. She’s 93 and still cleans her own house.
For me, the motivation is seeing the differences between my elderly patients who have always stayed physically active and those who have not. The active ones still have “pep in their step” even into their 80s. They are on very few medications. They still go, see, and do. They seem happy. They don’t complain about having lots of aches and pains.
My patients who have been sedentary most of their lives are, as a general rule, the complete opposite. They have multiple illnesses or chronic conditions. They take so many medications, it’s alarming, especially when one considers the issue of interactions. They deal with constant aches and pains. Many of them are wheelchair bound, or need canes or walkers to get around. They have more dementia or other similar issues. They seem less happy.
I have come to believe that you have to make exercise completely NOT dependent on “motivation.” You do it whether you feel like it or whether you don’t. Just like I don’t want to pay bills, I don’t make being motivated to do so a condition. I just pay them. Same with getting into the shower on a cold morning. It’s a non negotiable deal.
I’m not saying I have this down perfectly; I have struggled with it. But when I DO take on the attitude that I’m going to exercise x days a week regardless of whether or not I feel like doing it that day, I usually get it done. And barring an injury or accident, I have never finished a workout and said, “Gee, I really wish I hadn’t exercised today.”
It has helped me to have the mindset that I will run EVERY day, no excuses unless I am very, very sick (and I was, in March). Then I don’t have to argue with myself about whether I’m going or not. I know I am.
I don’t like sweating, the pounding heart, the boredom of just doing repetitive things. I have integrated it into my life for health reasons mainly, weight secondary. I watch TV while walking the treadmill and weight lifting. I have a lazy streak, too.
I have never enjoyed exercising, For a good portion of my life I was skinny but I’ve never been athletic or coordinated.my nickname as a teen was the 100 lb weakling. I’ve gained weight in the last ten years but I still can wear athletic clothing and not feel out of place. I have a spine and hip alignment issue and it has resulted in a decrease in strength in one leg and poor flexibility. It also can case knee and hip pain when I go up stairs and bouts of bursitis. So hiking with incline is no longer pain free. I also used to enjoy biking but a few yrs ago I had a fall where I could not get up due to no strength in my leg. I admit that scared me from getting back on the bike. Physical therapy with routine maintenance visits help but I get out of alignment pretty quick. My Ortho Dr says I was born this way and not much can be done. So for me exercise takes a lot of physical work and is not pain free. What I can do is walk and I walk at a brisk pace. I can add in sprints to increase my heart rate. I’m not a great swimmer having not learned to swim till I was an adult. I would like to try a water exercise class.
My H on the other hand would never take up running or go to the gym. He finds walking boring and when we go walking for pleasure he loves to find a bench and rest. He rests because he is bored. He plays 2 man beach volleyball 4 days a week. Plays single tennis 4 days a week. One day a week he plays tennis in the am and volleyball at noon. Those activities he plays hard and doesn’t get out of breath or tired. For him his exercise needs a purpose. My oldest is a gym rat and goes daily. My S loves to play basketball. Youngest child is more like me.
Me, too-- I just don’t like exercising in company (maybe self conscious about not being at good at some parts of the workout, or having to modify because I am NOT going to herniate that disc again that I worked so hard to heal up!) but for some reason the deep water exercise class works well for me. Maybe because we are underwater? 
We use buoyancy belts – and jog, do cross country ski motions, jumping jacks, flutter kicks in place, etc. for aerobic activity. Then we have hand buoys (look like barbells with buoyant ends, several different types with different amounts of resistance available) – and we do various activities pushing the hand buoys down for upper body strength. I always feel like I have had a good workout, yet almost like I have had a massage after the workout – something about exercising in the warm water, I guess. Don’t need to put your head under, either, and there is no sweating. There are lots of people who are on the heavier side, some pregnant women, people rehabbing from injuries, some older people – a good mix. You only do what you can – my back doctor said to always skip exercises with toe touching involved, it is terrible for the discs in your back – so I just do partway on those exercises, and no one even really knows.
Just yesterday I was talking about how a “quick 30 minute run” is not - as you say, get dressed, pull up the running app and music, add on time for crossing streets, waiting for cars, the cool down - the time to “stop sweating before I take a shower”, the shower, etc. - but I still do it. Maybe the shower doesn’t come till a few hours later - maybe I cook dinner in my exercise clothes and clean up later.
@MaineLonghorn I actually make quite a “bit of effort” in terms of exercise, and what I do works for me.
I would not enjoy doing what you describe.
Not everybody likes the same things.
^^^^ Right. But do you think there IS a “right thing” for most people - something they can find to be willing to do (notice I didn’t say “enjoy”). That’s what I’m getting at - who WANTS to find the right thing or thinks they should. Who doesn’t care at all? That kind of thing.
Did I say everyone likes the same things? I don’t think so. I’m just giving an example of something that DOES work. Everyone is on their own journey. I just agree with others who’ve said it’s vital to exercise. My mom never exercised much, and she’s struggling at age 77. My dad will turn 79 this month. Even though he has a type of chronic leukemia, he is doing well because he has always exercised regularly. He has been a professor at UT-Austin since 1965 and will retire next month. He is a role model to me. He always had a tremendous amount on his plate, but still made it a priority to exercise.
I agree with what the committed exercisers are saying - you just do it.
I generally walk six days out of seven, and frequently go for two week stretches without taking a day off.
I do it because I know it is good for my health, and also know I would be heavier if I did not do it.
I suspect that I also sleep better at night and that it does help relieve stress.
However - there are people who truly enjoy exercising, just like I enjoy reading a good book, even if I have to slog through the boring parts.
I’ll never be one of them.
Editing to add: I also understand the doing something even when you don’t really want to do it. But I would still maintain the experience is different if you can be satisfied with the result of your sticking to it (ie, you win a race, you improve the time it takes to run a mile, etc.) versus just sticking with it because it is good for you even though you can’t define any way to get satisfaction out of a “win.”
I have a hobby that is also a great deal of effort and provides me with the satisfaction of accomplishment that others get from exercise.
I actually like sweating and feeling my heart and lungs work. It’s the rest of my body that complains sometimes. And I don’t like that part of it.
I love to listen to audiobooks when I ride my bike. When I go to the fitness center, I do the stationary recumbent bike, and I watch youtube videos. Really makes the time fly by.
I do know some committed exercises who have had knee replacements at a relatively young age. I gave up running a while ago (partly because my dog got too old to run to trail run, which I did enjoy, and seems easier on my joints than road running), but suspect given the knee issues I have had even with hiking this year that I probably won’t take it up again. I do love, love, love cross country skiing, but I (duh!) misplaced my boots when I moved (I swear I put them someplace so I would find them easily) and never found them this winter. Then my knee issue kicked in, and I figured I probably shouldn’t ski on it anyway. But next winter I will buy new boots if necessary. Agree most interesting exercise has some prep time, but I have a pretty good routine for skiing – always pack the same bag of stuff
I did find having a dog in some ways increased my activity. She only loved me, and needed to be on a leash most of the time outside to keep other people and dogs safe. So I had to get out and take her for a walk every day, and shorter business trips a few times a day. But I also had to go right home after work, so then it was hard to stop and ski or do something else. I’ll probably stay pet free until retirement, then we will see. For now I just pet everyone else’s dogs.
I don’t know. I can’t run, never have been able to. Even though I don’t have asthma or any respiratory condition, I simply cannot breathe enough and/or end up coughing my head off, gasping for breath. Not fun. Found this out by being forced to run laps in p.e. Also, I sweat buckets and turn red as a beet. It doesn’t exactly inspire me. Plus, I’m basically lazy. I don’t know why. I was very active as a kid even though not athletic. But I rode bikes, played baseball/kickball, swam (not competitively), roller skated. I push myself these days now that I am retired. I certainly enjoy the “glow” after exercising and I tell myself a dozen times a day “it will be worth it, it will be worth it”.