What made you start doing the training you're doing?

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Royal Marine PTI told me to and he wasn't the sort of person to say no too!
 


Sold a laptop bought a mountain bike and ended up doing 20 miles a day. Became skinny and got cold so joined a gym and got the cardio bug and now run like Forrest Gump
 
One of my best mate's died two years ago aged 34. When he was was waiting for a heart transplant I promised I would do the GNR with him when he got better. He never did but the lads challenged me to take up running.
Raised £1300 for his charity last year and doing the Sunderland half marathon this year. I've actually started enjoying running now which I never thought would happen. Losing the weight and feeling fitter is a big bonus.
 
I'd been stop/start on giving up tabs for years so decided to start running in January last year to help give them up. Not smoked since June 15th last year and loving the running, get a much bigger buzz from a quick 6 miles after work than I ever got from tabs
 
Titus said:
Was a fat bassa at 18 and a half stone. Started boxing and within just over a year was boxing at 11 stone. Had to pack in boxing competitively and needed something else to compete in, so I persued my interest in the sport of powerlifting.
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How come?
 
My weight had been creeping up and I was very sluggish playing 5-a-side and also started getting a sore back / sciatica playing cricket. So about 18 months ago I started running (about 5k) 3 times a week, lost about a stone and feel about 10 years younger. Doesn't sound a lot - but it's made a hell of a difference to me personally.
 
Charmless Man said:
Was just reading about male body image problems and how it's a massive problem among lads around my age, perhaps even bigger than for women but it goes unnoticed because 'boys aren't supposed to admit things like that'.

Got me thinking about why I really started training. I'd always thought it wasn't to do with self-esteem issues, I actually started because I wanted to put on some weight for Rugby but then fell in love with powerlifting as a discipline. However, I do feel a lot more confident in myself now so maybe I did have some underlying issues that made me start picking up barbells? I definitely used to feel like I was quite thin, even though I was an average, healthy weight and quite athletic.

Just wondering what got other people into it? Something to pass the time? Mates were doing it? Or did anyone feel really unhappy with how they looked?
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I was pretty overweight and had a few attempts at getting into going to the gym without really having any idea what I was doing at the time. Then started watching the Tour de France one year, and I suppose I identified with the combination of body dysmorphia, acute self-loathing and rampant egotism that is prevalent in that sport, so took up cycling in conjunction with going back to the gym to get strong and lose weight, whilst learning about weightlifting, elite performance cycling and nutrition, subsequently losing around three stone, over 20% bodyfat and increasing my strength exponentially from where I started through the training I was doing, even though I weighed far less. I started to enjoy the athletic and competitive sides of fitness training, and it was also a good morale booster getting hit on by women all of the time.
 
Started getting the early signs my depression was coming back in October exercise helped in the past.
So joined gym started stronglifts5x5
now on my third go at it I get bored easily the exercise has helped.
Well it's helped apart from ohp frustrates the shit out of me.
 
From school until my mid 20s I was ripped with a 6 pack and pretty fit (as in fitness not looks)due to being active, into sports, gym and coke and pills. I used to eat loads aswell and never put on fat. Afters years of neglect and drink my mate commented on my 'kite' at swimming. I looked in the mirror just before Christmas and I had a gut, went on the scales and I was nearly 15 stone, 2 1/2 stone more than I was in my prime. Instead of joining a gym I have bought a bike and a load of weights and have been getting back into shape again. Feels great
 
smeg said:
Do you just do running? Running is what I'm finding the hardest to do, I can only manage a few minutes before my legs start buckling but I put that down to my weight, it'd be like balancing a bowling ball on a cocktail stick.
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Try Walking when your legs get that buckling feeling and you will find that the distance you can go before starting to walk will increase over time. Kep it up remember any exercise is good exercise.
 
DurhamRifleman said:
Try Walking when your legs get that buckling feeling and you will find that the distance you can go before starting to walk will increase over time. Kep it up remember any exercise is good exercise.
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I'm able to run for 30+ minutes at a time now without feeling pain, helped by building strength along with using comfortable shoes.
 
smeg said:
I'm able to run for 30+ minutes at a time now without feeling pain, helped by building strength along with using comfortable shoes.
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There's nothing I love more than showing the 'Oh but you're unfit, what about cardio?' (which includes some friends of mine) brigade up by beating them over distances of say 3k or 5k.

Then asking them 'Fancy trying over 100m as well?' :lol:

In no way do I reckon I'd beat someone who seriously trains for it over those distances, but my mates who do park run on a saturday and maybe one or two more sessions a week and expect to be super fit are a bit daft!
 
Charmless Man said:
There's nothing I love more than showing the 'Oh but you're unfit, what about cardio?' (which includes some friends of mine) brigade up by beating them over distances of say 3k or 5k.

Then asking them 'Fancy trying over 100m as well?' :lol:

In no way do I reckon I'd beat someone who seriously trains for it over those distances, but my mates who do park run on a saturday and maybe one or two more sessions a week and expect to be super fit are a bit daft!
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It's took a lot to get where I'm at right now. I started by doing small sprints to build my stamina, then once I struggled for breathe less and less I reduced the speed so I'm now at a lower heart rate and burning fat but will still do short sprints to give the heart a bit of a scare. :)
 
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