I went jogging today for the first time in roughly 8 years.
It wasn't a long journey. I set a small goal of jogging to a bus stop and then back again, less than 6 minutes round trip. (6 Minute Cardio, huzzah!)
I am admittedly not in the best shape right now (partially due to spending months indoors thanks to COVID) and also the fact that I haven't jogged in 8 years.
I was recently conversing with a fellow archer at the Toronto Archery Range and he was telling me how he had taken a big break from archery and had not shot for years, and then only recently got back into it during the pandemic. Then I started thinking about how I haven't ridden a horse in over 20 years, and gosh it would be nice to do that again... Sadly buying a horse or getting riding lessons isn't really an option right now so that didn't make sense for me. Still it got me thinking about how many people take breaks from their various sports and/or exercise activities.
Eg. I haven't gone mountain climbing in over a decade.
Having a big break for a sport activity isn't a bad thing and is nothing to be ashamed of. It happens to many of us and often coincides with big changes in our lives.
The big change for me 8 years ago was when I moved in with my future wife and I started living in a different neighbourhood. Previously I had been living (and jogging) in downtown Toronto. The sudden change in surroundings and having a girlfriend/wife living with me caused a big change in my daily habits.
In April of this year we moved into a house, and the new neighbourhood has had a profound effect on me. Our backyard, our front yard, the closeness of the trees, the wilderness... It made me want to go jogging again. Sometimes just to explore the new neighbourhood, but that desire to go jogging had returned.
Last week I purchased a new shirt just for jogging in. A few weeks before that, new shorts suitable for jogging.
I already had suitable shoes, so that was not an issue for me.
What matters most is motivation.
Getting up, getting dressed in my jogging clothes, and then just go for a jog.
It doesn't matter if it is only a short jog. A short jog is much easier for people to get motivated for anyway.
I know some joggers out there who jog for hours (I had an ex who had an exercise addiction and it was so bad it was hurting her relationships). I don't recommend doing that. Some people may enjoy "Joggers High", but that isn't one of my goals. Still, that Joggers High can be handy for those people who enjoy hours long jogs.
In order to help motivate myself I have also decided I want to go jogging every day. Every day for 30 days.
It is possible I might miss 1 or 2 days, but I can make up for it by simply doubling the distance on any day for which I failed to go jogging the previous day.
Otherwise my plan is to "Start Small". Short jogs. Less than 6 minutes.
5-6 minutes per day for 30 days = 150 to 180 minutes of jogging.
Using a jogging calorie calculator (and my weight, which is currently 210 lbs thanks to me losing 10 lbs back in April when I was in hospital for 4 days) I then calculate my speed (5 mph) and how many calories jogging that much will burn...
1750 to 2100 calories. 1750 calories is equal to half a pound of fat.
However then there is the Afterburn Effect... wherein your heart rate becomes elevated for the next 24-48 hours and you feel more energetic. You feel more energetic because your body is burning fat reserves in order to give you more energy.
Used correctly, the Afterburn Effect can burn an extra 500 calories per day by making you more energetic for the rest of the day. (The exact results vary on the person and the exercise you did to kickstart it)
However if a person manages to activate the Afterburn Effect every day for 30 days, they will burn an extra 15,000 calories.
So instead of burning just 1/2 a pound of fat, a person might actually burn 4.78 lbs of fat.
What does 5 lbs of fat look like? Well, it is bigger than a brick. Maybe about twice the size of a brick in terms of volume.
So that 5 lbs isn't really a small amount of weight. It is a sizable chunk of your body mass. For me that 5 lbs equals roughly 2.4% of my body weight. If I could lose 5-10 lbs by jogging over a 2 month period... Wow. What a big difference that would make to my waistline.
I would have pants in my closet that would suddenly fit again.
Jogging is also a frugal exercise. You need very little in terms of "equipment". A good pair of shoes suitable for jogging is really the only important thing you need. Most of us can find an old t-shirt or shorts suitable for jogging in. You don't need to "motivate yourself" like I did by buying new clothes just for jogging.
I did that partially so that every time I look at the clothes I would be reminded that I purchased them just for jogging and it would remind me to go jogging. It also creates a "monetary responsibility" in which you feel the urge to fulfill the duty you originally committed to when you purchased the clothes or jogging shoes.
Jogging Tip - I hate crosstrainers. I don't recommend them if you're new to jogging. Instead get something more like basketball shoes which have more padding and are comfortable to run in. Crosstrainers are horrible uncomfortable. I have both, but I definitely prefer the basketball shoes for jogging in. Are they more expensive? Yes. Do I care? No.
Other Ways to get the Afterburn Effect
- Cardio exercises (cycling, swimming, etc)
- Weightlifting
- High Intensity Interval Training
Regardless of what exercises you are doing what really matters is your motivation. You have to ask yourself what are your excuses for not exercising, and then ask yourself what are your reasons for WANTING to exercise.
And then you let your reasons for win.
What are your excuses?
I am including the image below as a good example of a person who didn't let her excuses hold her back.
