Main reason why people fail their weight loss or other exercise/gym related goals. Instant gratification and short term pleasure seeking

[iloverachel]

The pursuit of instant gratification, while tempting, can significantly hinder your fitness goals and contribute to fat gain and a generally less active lifestyle. Here's how:

1. Dietary Choices:

• The Trap of Convenience: Fast food, processed snacks, and sugary drinks offer immediate satisfaction but are often high in calories, unhealthy fats, and added sugars. These provide a quick dopamine hit but contribute to fat storage and can lead to cravings for more of the same.
• Nutrient Deficiency: These convenient options are often low in essential nutrients like fiber, vitamins, and minerals. This can lead to feelings of fatigue and sluggishness, making you less likely to be active.
• Overconsumption: The instant gratification from these foods can override your body's natural hunger cues, leading to overeating and exceeding your calorie needs.

2. Physical Activity:

• Sedentary Lifestyle: Choosing instant entertainment like scrolling through social media, binge-watching TV shows, or playing video games over physical activity reinforces a sedentary lifestyle. These activities provide immediate pleasure but contribute to inactivity and calorie surplus.
• Lack of Motivation: When your brain is constantly seeking instant rewards, it can become less sensitive to the long-term benefits of exercise, like improved health and fitness. This can lead to a lack of motivation to work out.

3. Sleep Patterns:

• Delayed Sleep: The allure of instant gratification from screens and other stimulating activities can lead to staying up late and sacrificing sleep. Lack of sleep disrupts hormones that regulate appetite and metabolism, making weight gain more likely.

4. The Cycle of Instant Gratification:

• Reinforcement: The quick rewards from unhealthy choices reinforce these behaviors, making them harder to break. This cycle can lead to a pattern of prioritizing instant pleasure over long-term health and well-being.
• Decreased Self-Discipline: Constantly seeking instant gratification weakens self-discipline and the ability to make healthy choices, even when you know they are in your best interest.

5. Long-Term Consequences:

• Weight Gain and Obesity: The cumulative effect of these choices can lead to weight gain, increased body fat, and eventually obesity, which significantly increases the risk of various health problems.
• Reduced Energy Levels: A cycle of instant gratification often leads to poor nutrition, lack of exercise, and sleep deprivation, all of which contribute to chronic fatigue and low energy levels.
• Decreased Quality of Life: The long-term consequences of these choices can negatively impact your overall quality of life, affecting your physical health, mental well-being, and ability to enjoy life to the fullest.

Breaking the Cycle:

• Mindful Consumption: Pay attention to your food choices and be aware of your screen time.
• Set Realistic Goals: Start with small, achievable goals for diet and exercise.
• Focus on Long-Term Benefits: Remind yourself of the long-term benefits of healthy choices.
• Find Healthy Enjoyment: Discover healthy activities you enjoy and make them a regular part of your routine.
• Practice Self-Discipline: Gradually build self-discipline by making conscious choices that align with your long-term goals.

Breaking the cycle of instant gratification takes effort and conscious choices, but the long-term benefits to your health and well-being are well worth it.

 

[Moonglow]

If you want to lose weight that is.

 

[odanny]

The trick to staying with lifting weights is to learn to enjoy it. You enjoy it because it makes you feel good. You can't force yourself into the gym every other day, you have to look forward to it. I look forward to it, and I am not going to miss a workout because I have what I need at home if I don't make it to the gym.

The thing with working out is you really don't even need weights, you can use your own body weight to get a great workout if you learn what exercises to do.

 

[DGS49]

It is a myth - promoted by many for commercial reasons - that you can lose weight by exercise. If you are obese and want to get in shape, exercise is only half of it.

And as stated above, you have to find some sort of exercise that you enjoy. Otherwise you will not keep at it.

 

[August West]

It is a myth - promoted by many for commercial reasons - that you can lose weight by exercise. If you are obese and want to get in shape, exercise is only half of it.

And as stated above, you have to find some sort of exercise that you enjoy. Otherwise you will not keep at it.

When my wife was an RN, she asked a woman how she took off 30lbs. She didn`t exercise, but she stopped eating cookies, candy, cake etc. It only takes a few minutes to put on the lbs. that take several hours of exercise to lose.

 

[Woodznutz]

I was doing rehab after my bypass surgery, by peddling a stationary bike that had a calorie counter on it. It only took me a short time to realize that exercise was a terrible way to lose weight (not that I needed to lose weight).

If you burn 2000 calories per day, 1500 of them are used to maintain internal body functions. The remaining 500 are used up on activities and movements. Do the math. This why Dr. Now (My 600 Pound Life) puts his patients on an 1100 calorie diet. Doing nothing else will cause weight loss equivalent to 400 calories per day without doing a lick of exercise.

 

[braalian]

The thing with working out is you really don't even need weights, you can use your own body weight to get a great workout if you learn what exercises to do.

Eh, not really

If you want to really build muscle, weights are definitely necessary

 

[SweetSue92]

I was doing rehab after my bypass surgery, by peddling a stationary bike that had a calorie counter on it. It only took me a short time to realize that exercise was a terrible way to lose weight (not that I needed to lose weight).

If you burn 2000 calories per day, 1500 of them are used to maintain internal body functions. The remaining 500 are used up on activities and movements. Do the math. This why Dr. Now (My 600 Pound Life) puts his patients on an 1100 calorie diet. Doing nothing else will cause weight loss equivalent to 400 calories per day without doing a lick of exercise.

This is true, and weight is key to that for the most part. People wonder why I don't eat much....well, at my weight, I don't need to. Even with 2x daily brisk walks and weights, at BEST I burn 1500 calories a day.

 

[SweetSue92]

The pursuit of instant gratification, while tempting, can significantly hinder your fitness goals and contribute to fat gain and a generally less active lifestyle. Here's how:

1. Dietary Choices:

• The Trap of Convenience: Fast food, processed snacks, and sugary drinks offer immediate satisfaction but are often high in calories, unhealthy fats, and added sugars. These provide a quick dopamine hit but contribute to fat storage and can lead to cravings for more of the same.
• Nutrient Deficiency: These convenient options are often low in essential nutrients like fiber, vitamins, and minerals. This can lead to feelings of fatigue and sluggishness, making you less likely to be active.
• Overconsumption: The instant gratification from these foods can override your body's natural hunger cues, leading to overeating and exceeding your calorie needs.

2. Physical Activity:

• Sedentary Lifestyle: Choosing instant entertainment like scrolling through social media, binge-watching TV shows, or playing video games over physical activity reinforces a sedentary lifestyle. These activities provide immediate pleasure but contribute to inactivity and calorie surplus.
• Lack of Motivation: When your brain is constantly seeking instant rewards, it can become less sensitive to the long-term benefits of exercise, like improved health and fitness. This can lead to a lack of motivation to work out.

3. Sleep Patterns:

• Delayed Sleep: The allure of instant gratification from screens and other stimulating activities can lead to staying up late and sacrificing sleep. Lack of sleep disrupts hormones that regulate appetite and metabolism, making weight gain more likely.

4. The Cycle of Instant Gratification:

• Reinforcement: The quick rewards from unhealthy choices reinforce these behaviors, making them harder to break. This cycle can lead to a pattern of prioritizing instant pleasure over long-term health and well-being.
• Decreased Self-Discipline: Constantly seeking instant gratification weakens self-discipline and the ability to make healthy choices, even when you know they are in your best interest.

5. Long-Term Consequences:

• Weight Gain and Obesity: The cumulative effect of these choices can lead to weight gain, increased body fat, and eventually obesity, which significantly increases the risk of various health problems.
• Reduced Energy Levels: A cycle of instant gratification often leads to poor nutrition, lack of exercise, and sleep deprivation, all of which contribute to chronic fatigue and low energy levels.
• Decreased Quality of Life: The long-term consequences of these choices can negatively impact your overall quality of life, affecting your physical health, mental well-being, and ability to enjoy life to the fullest.

Breaking the Cycle:

• Mindful Consumption: Pay attention to your food choices and be aware of your screen time.
• Set Realistic Goals: Start with small, achievable goals for diet and exercise.
• Focus on Long-Term Benefits: Remind yourself of the long-term benefits of healthy choices.
• Find Healthy Enjoyment: Discover healthy activities you enjoy and make them a regular part of your routine.
• Practice Self-Discipline: Gradually build self-discipline by making conscious choices that align with your long-term goals.

Breaking the cycle of instant gratification takes effort and conscious choices, but the long-term benefits to your health and well-being are well worth it.

Eating healthy and exercising regularly has to become a habit and a way of life. Then it's okay to take the odd day off working out or treat yourself. You get back on track quickly because that's just the way you live.

 

[Woodznutz]

This is true, and weight is key to that for the most part. People wonder why I don't eat much....well, at my weight, I don't need to. Even with 2x daily brisk walks and weights, at BEST I burn 1500 calories a day.

I read a story in Reader Digest years ago written by a researcher who calculated the energy used by some south American men during a multi-day foot race across the high mountain trails where they lived. Their rations were cornmeal cakes sweetened with honey. Her findings were astounding in that the average energy consumption was about 1100 calories per day during a grueling race of several days with no sleep. The men were lean and fit and lost no weight during the race.

 

[Seymour Flops]

The trick to staying with lifting weights is to learn to enjoy it. You enjoy it because it makes you feel good. You can't force yourself into the gym every other day, you have to look forward to it. I look forward to it, and I am not going to miss a workout because I have what I need at home if I don't make it to the gym.

The thing with working out is you really don't even need weights, you can use your own body weight to get a great workout if you learn what exercises to do.

Yes, very true. You must find a way to make it enjoyable every time you go to the gym, because the results come so slowly that you will give up waiting for those muscles to start showing.

I tried to start and stick with a weight lifting program probably six or seven times over my life. About nine months ago I started again. This time I was more motivated by the fact that I'm past sixty, and I'll either be a strong old man or a weak one.

I track my strength gains and make progress in well over ninety percent of sessions. That keeps me going, AND I look forward to the gym, just as you said.

 

[Woodznutz]

The pursuit of instant gratification, while tempting, can significantly hinder your fitness goals and contribute to fat gain and a generally less active lifestyle. Here's how:

1. Dietary Choices:

• The Trap of Convenience: Fast food, processed snacks, and sugary drinks offer immediate satisfaction but are often high in calories, unhealthy fats, and added sugars. These provide a quick dopamine hit but contribute to fat storage and can lead to cravings for more of the same.
• Nutrient Deficiency: These convenient options are often low in essential nutrients like fiber, vitamins, and minerals. This can lead to feelings of fatigue and sluggishness, making you less likely to be active.
• Overconsumption: The instant gratification from these foods can override your body's natural hunger cues, leading to overeating and exceeding your calorie needs.

2. Physical Activity:

• Sedentary Lifestyle: Choosing instant entertainment like scrolling through social media, binge-watching TV shows, or playing video games over physical activity reinforces a sedentary lifestyle. These activities provide immediate pleasure but contribute to inactivity and calorie surplus.
• Lack of Motivation: When your brain is constantly seeking instant rewards, it can become less sensitive to the long-term benefits of exercise, like improved health and fitness. This can lead to a lack of motivation to work out.

3. Sleep Patterns:

• Delayed Sleep: The allure of instant gratification from screens and other stimulating activities can lead to staying up late and sacrificing sleep. Lack of sleep disrupts hormones that regulate appetite and metabolism, making weight gain more likely.

4. The Cycle of Instant Gratification:

• Reinforcement: The quick rewards from unhealthy choices reinforce these behaviors, making them harder to break. This cycle can lead to a pattern of prioritizing instant pleasure over long-term health and well-being.
• Decreased Self-Discipline: Constantly seeking instant gratification weakens self-discipline and the ability to make healthy choices, even when you know they are in your best interest.

5. Long-Term Consequences:

• Weight Gain and Obesity: The cumulative effect of these choices can lead to weight gain, increased body fat, and eventually obesity, which significantly increases the risk of various health problems.
• Reduced Energy Levels: A cycle of instant gratification often leads to poor nutrition, lack of exercise, and sleep deprivation, all of which contribute to chronic fatigue and low energy levels.
• Decreased Quality of Life: The long-term consequences of these choices can negatively impact your overall quality of life, affecting your physical health, mental well-being, and ability to enjoy life to the fullest.

Breaking the Cycle:

• Mindful Consumption: Pay attention to your food choices and be aware of your screen time.
• Set Realistic Goals: Start with small, achievable goals for diet and exercise.
• Focus on Long-Term Benefits: Remind yourself of the long-term benefits of healthy choices.
• Find Healthy Enjoyment: Discover healthy activities you enjoy and make them a regular part of your routine.
• Practice Self-Discipline: Gradually build self-discipline by making conscious choices that align with your long-term goals.

Breaking the cycle of instant gratification takes effort and conscious choices, but the long-term benefits to your health and well-being are well worth it.

Much of these problems stems from indecision. For example, people are taught (or learn) that they can't eat the same thing meal after meal no matter how much they enjoy that food, and that they must agonize over "what to have for dinner" because it is unthinkable to have the same thing over and over. Which is ironic because most people start the day with the same breakfast over and over. But when it comes to lunch or supper they go into a tailspin over what to have. Of course this indecision permeates the rest of their lives as well; what time to go to bed, what tv shows should I watch, what should I wear today, etc. Routine and regularity, which would relieve one of these angsts is unacceptable in a world where everything changes almost on a daily basis. The simple, orderly life doesn't compute in the scatterbrained modern world we live in.

 

[Woodznutz]

It is a myth - promoted by many for commercial reasons - that you can lose weight by exercise. If you are obese and want to get in shape, exercise is only half of it.

And as stated above, you have to find some sort of exercise that you enjoy. Otherwise you will not keep at it.

I have a workout routine that I have used for years. However, I only seem to be motivated in the spring when days get longer. But as the weather improves, I find things to do outdoors and abandon the workout. This happens nearly every year. Oh well.

 

[odanny]

Yes, very true. You must find a way to make it enjoyable every time you go to the gym, because the results come so slowly that you will give up waiting for those muscles to start showing.

I tried to start and stick with a weight lifting program probably six or seven times over my life. About nine months ago I started again. This time I was more motivated by the fact that I'm past sixty, and I'll either be a strong old man or a weak one.

I track my strength gains and make progress in well over ninety percent of sessions. That keeps me going, AND I look forward to the gym, just as you said.

For me, weightlifting releases the dopamine, so I have this motivation to look forward to.

Getting the dopamine hit is addictive, so you naturally want more of it, and it's not even getting big that motivates me, it is getting strong, and staying strong. But we all have our reasons, and motivations, for weight lifting. I encourage you to add chin ups to your routine, daily, even on your rest days. You will be surprised at their effect on your upper body strength of this simple exercise. It's the best upper body exercise I've found yet for building strength, because it works multiple muscles.

 

[odanny]

 

[Blaster]

This woman is in great physical condition.

 

[Blaster]

Another muscular marvel.