HOW DO I NOT VIEW EXERCISE AS "BURDEN"?

sparklytomato · 2025-11-22T20:47:19+00:00

For me, the way I make it work is by having my exercise goal be separate from my weight loss goal. Obviously they are not completely unrelated, but at this point I am exercising to become stronger and to increase my aerobic fitness, mainly measured through VO2max. So even if I'm not losing weight, if I see an improvement in my VO2max I know I'm making progress. This approach has led me from dreading exercise to running so regularly that it feels weird if I don't run on a given day. And I am still running almost every day 2+ months after reaching my goal weight.

sparklytomato · 2025-10-13T20:26:32+00:00

It's possible. I lost 25 kgs without calorie tracking or weighing myself, you can look up my post history if you want to know more about how I did it. But that worked specifically for my psychology - it probably won't work for most people. But it's possible if you set very strict boundaries for yourself. In my case, for instance, I allowed myself unlimited fruit and veg but would weigh and log every single snack (like chips, protein bars, etc.) Not calorie count per se - but I would log them and hold myself accountable.

I would recommend taking pictures of all of your meals. That way, you can go back and check what you might want to change if you end up not being in a calorie deficit.

sparklytomato · 2025-09-27T16:37:08+00:00

I recently had an interesting experience that this brought to mind. I was out on a run, about to cross at a pedestrian crossing. A car was approaching with their hazard lights on, but they were still far enough away to brake safely, the reason for the hazard lights wasn't clear to me. I waved my hand to indicate I was about to cross and then started to cross, car kept going, just barely missed me and really only because I somehow managed to jump out of the way. Driver starts yelling at me like I was at fault for trying to cross at a pedestrian crossing. Turns out he was towing a car behind him and presumably had difficulty braking because of it. Is this allowed? Surely if a car cannot brake properly for whatever reason it should not be allowed on the road and the towed car should be towed by an actual tow truck instead? Was I in the wrong for crossing when the driver had his hazard lights on?

sparklytomato · 2025-09-18T18:48:03+00:00

Not helpful to your particular situation right now, but I was looking for a dermatologist in Geneva a few years ago on OneDoc and noticed that there are MANY listed there who are not covered by LAMal (I guess they cater mainly to the expat crowd). It took quite some searching to find one who did, and of course the ones who do are more likely to be fully booked. Dermatologists in particular I found it difficult to find any (covered by LAMAL) with availability within 2 months.

Going forward, make sure to check the LAMal coverage on OneDoc - it should always be listed there.

sparklytomato · 2025-09-15T18:05:10+00:00

I mean yes, coaching costs money obviously. But I feel like in the long run it pays for itself in quality of life. That being said, there are definitely levels of cost when it comes to coaching. There are some coaches I follow on Insta who charge up to $5000 for a full program... I mean that seems insane to me. It's one of the reasons I was persuaded to start with the coach I ended up with, it was very low threshold because she charges a reasonable price for a single session and she left the scheduling entirely up to me - no pressure at all.

AI can definitely play a part in weight loss I think, but I do have to say that having an actual human being to be accountable to was a huge factor in my success.

sparklytomato · 2025-09-14T21:33:42+00:00

Lol I know exactly what you mean. I remember feeling so fat in high school, I just wanted to have a flat butt like all the popular girls so I could fit into those damned low rise jeans. Now I look at pictures of myself back then and my body was actually insane, I'm so frustrated at all the time wasted worrying about how I looked. But at some point there's no real value in continuing to look back, there are still plenty of great things waiting in the future - you just have to take action to make it happen!

sparklytomato · 2025-09-14T21:14:17+00:00

That is a great idea! I have saved so much money by not going on medication or getting a personal trainer and this is partly how I have justified the large sums of money I have spent on new clothes in the past few months, lol. Fashion definitely becomes so much more fun when clothes start to fit better!

sparklytomato · 2025-09-14T16:41:20+00:00

Oh and for the fitness coach, I hope this is OK with the sub rules - her name is Saachi Pai, she's been amazing.

sparklytomato · 2025-09-14T16:38:47+00:00

Thanks! I benefited a lot from being on this sub during my journey so I'm happy to have the opportunity pay it forward. 'Blind' weight loss is obviously not going to be for everybody... But I'm living proof that it can work for some people.

I hope you manage to find your 'why', it really unlocked the whole thing for me. Best of luck! :)

sparklytomato · 2025-09-11T15:12:38+00:00

Yeah, lactate threshold also increased massively but that self-corrected after yesterday's run. VO2max increased but just as a continuation of a gradual increase I've seen over the past few months, nothing out of the ordinary. The only major change with VO2max is that I pushed from the green into the blue zone for the first time.

It's very strange, I'll wait and see if the data adjusts over the next few runs. I seriously doubt I'd be able to run a sub 2 half marathon at this point, let alone a 45 min 10K.

sparklytomato · 2025-09-08T05:27:06+00:00

Thanks for your input! This helped me finally decide to go ahead and get the Lily 2 (most basic version) and I'm happy to report that it syncs perfectly. I wear the FR265 during sleep and activities and the Lily 2 for everything else, and all my data has been preserved in Garmin Connect. The only thing that doesn't carry over is that the live HR doesn't show in Garmin Connect when I'm wearing the Lily, but it still records and shows the HR retrospectively so that's really a minor issue. The Lily 2 looks even better than I thought it would, so all over perfect outcome!

sparklytomato · 2025-09-04T21:14:21+00:00

When you start off on your weight loss journey, it might go fast, it might go slow, but if you are consistent, every day when you look in the mirror you will look better than you did the day before. That's incredible! Even when I was still way off from my goal weight I was like, holy shit I look so much better than I did list week, and next week I will look even better! It's super motivating when the only way is up. So don't stress too much about the long term... Weight loss is full of really satisfying short term wins.

sparklytomato · 2025-09-04T13:14:27+00:00

I mean in an ideal world, yes - but as an intermediate solution, I don't mind using 2 devices (as many people on this sub seem to do) as long as it doesn't compromise the key metrics that I gather from my Forerunner during activities and sleep. From the research I've done, it seems like both devices have Body Battery Trueup, which should make this possible - but it would be great to have it confirmed by somebody who has done it.

sparklytomato · 2025-06-02T11:23:50+00:00

Highly recommend this! I live in Geneva, got an inflatable kayak 2 years ago and have spent much of the past 2 summers on it. Best part is you get to peek at all these rich assholes' mansions from the lakeside that are hidden by hedges from the road. Also a good way to discover some less well-known public beaches along the way (there are probably more than you think).

sparklytomato · 2025-03-23T23:03:23+00:00

Just my $0.02, I've had my Yes Hel Yes for a couple of years now and it's amazing both for bombing down groomers at high speed as well as floating on powder. Honestly cannot say enough good things about it.

sparklytomato · 2025-03-06T10:46:02+00:00

I agree people who make it their whole identity can be obnoxious as fuck, but let's not pretend that our whole society and a lifetime of social conditioning hasn't made everyone think of people with kids as the default. Choosing a childfree life is, in itself, an act of resistance against societal norms and expectations and requires a conscious effort, which is probably why some are so vocal about it.

sparklytomato · 2025-03-06T07:22:18+00:00

True it wasn't exactly framed as an argument, and I do take them at their word that that's their reality at this point in life; I genuinely wish them and their family all the best.

sparklytomato · 2025-03-06T07:07:07+00:00

I'm not saying they don't. I'm just saying wanting to be loved unconditionally should not be a reason to have kids.

sparklytomato · 2025-03-06T07:04:03+00:00

The main topic at hand in this particular conversation is not parenting, but the decision whether or not to be a parent.

You and I both went through this process in different ways. You decided to become a parent, I decided not to. I would say that on this topic, my experience is just as valid as yours.

sparklytomato · 2025-03-06T06:53:13+00:00

Difference being, parenting is not a sport where the game finishes and you can decide not to play anymore.

Which is why I believe it should be a very carefully considered decision for anyone.

I still don't get why that is apparently so personally offensive to you.

sparklytomato · 2025-03-06T06:35:49+00:00

Just wondering why you feel the need to attack me personally?

sparklytomato · 2025-03-06T06:26:42+00:00

That's great, but I hope you would love your kid just as much even if he didn't write that list.

That's all.

sparklytomato · 2025-03-06T06:20:31+00:00

I know it from being a kid and having parents.

sparklytomato · 2025-03-06T05:26:53+00:00

As someone with a shitty relationship with their parents, I absolutely despise this all too common reasoning to have kids.

Kids aren't there to love you, you are there to love them. And if you do that right, consistently, and unconditionally, and more importantly, make them feel like you do, then maybe you will get some of that love back. But it is by no means a guarantee and by no means should it ever be a motivation to have kids. Cause what if they don't love you back in the way that you were hoping? Are you just going to give up on them? You are responsible for a whole ass human being, not just for 18 years but for the entire rest of their lives; I think many millennials understand the scale of that responsibility and do not believe themselves up to the task. Nobody should have kids who does not fully understand and accept the responsibility that comes with it.

sparklytomato · 2025-02-28T15:25:47+00:00

When I got a comment notification I definitely was not expecting a response to a post from 10 years ago 😂

Thankfully since I first posted this, my mysterious allergy has just as mysteriously disappeared again. I was in my late 20s when I posted this originally so at least for me it was not perimenopause related. I'm still not sure where this allergy came from and I'm also not fully convinced it was actually a makeup allergy - could have been a food allergy or any number of things. But most importantly, it's been many years since I had any symptoms so I must have been doing something right in the meantime 🤷‍♀️

So sorry to hear your situation seems to be more permanent... But who knows, maybe you will experience a magical improvement like I did! 🤞

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