Fitocracy

Fitocracy is a website which endeavors to provide resources, community support, and motivation, for people who are trying to get, or stay, fit, by working out. It provides information on, and credit for, a very broad range of fitness activities, from dancing, swimming, biking and long walks, to barbell strength training and challenging courses like P90X. The community encourages and makes use of courses including Starting Strength, You Are Your Own Gym, and Convict Conditioning, among other things.

At present, the site is invitation-only, but I've heard that you can find invites on Google if you look.

Had enough gratuitous links yet?

I introduced myself to the community... technically, just earlier today. If you have an account on Fitocracy, you can see my introduction thread here, and feel free to follow me if you like.

Okay, I'm finished with the links now, I promise. ;)

For those of you who don't have a Fitocracy account, here is the self-introduction I posted there:

Hello, Fitocracy. Deep breath, blush, gulp, exhale, smile.

A friend of mine told me about this site because he's using it as part of his new lifestyle plan to save him from health problems, and offered to invite me when I told him I was interested in starting to work out, too.

I am 21, female, have a multitude of vague health problems mental, emotional and physical, especially anxiety, hypothyroidism, occasional symptoms of depression, etc... and am overweight.

I have never been athletic, or spent much time or energy working out - I loathed gym teachers and the popular fit kids in high school and stayed away from them as often as possible. I am a gamer (role-playing games like D&D, and video games, mostly on PC) and am proud to be labeled a geek, but I know my sedentary lifestyle is not doing me any favours, and I'm going to have to really make some changes in my lifestyle in order to get anywhere, since the cyclical situation of poverty, unemployment, laziness, helplessness, and unhealthiness is very much self-enforcing.

Yesterday evening, I sent above-mentioned friend this email (lightly modified):

~~~

Today was my second day of working out, not counting yesterday (which was a break to recover from the first workout the day before). Both times, I've done a minute (or slightly more) of planking, 15 crunches and 10 leg lifts, in two sets of five (ten seconds held just off the floor and ten seconds held up, each). My abdomen is weak and shaky, but I feel proud and relieved that I could do it again. My boyfriend had advised me not to do the second set of five for fear that I was pushing myself too hard, but I did it anyway. I think I can take it, even though it is hard. I look forward to the point at which this (or at least, just this much) stops making my body's core ache significantly for a whole day afterward. Actually doing something grants a much more optimistic perspective, even if it doesn't change many of the problems I was facing...

Would you be so kind as to send me a code to join Fitocracy?

I think I'm ready.

SS

~~~

I am not here to become a bodybuilder or pro athlete, or even necessarily to get to levels of health other people consider good - I just really need to improve my own health, reduce fatigue, develop a healthy sleeping schedule (this is going to be HARD - I sleep during the day by default and going to bed early causes me to wake up after four hours in the middle of the night... I cannot fall asleep without being very tired, and am not sure how to manipulate my tiredness to arrive at convenient times), and get my energy levels under control so that I can start doing other things effectively with the confidence it should give me.

I'm suspicious of my own start, because I'm familiar with the cycle of getting hyped about something and then quickly losing interest after a couple of days, and I really, really don't want to repeat it with this, it's too important.

I hope it's a good sign that yesterday I felt impatient and really wanted to work out more even though I knew my body needed a break. ^^ That anticipation of doing more and making progress, the anticipation of being able to do more in the future, is a really sweet feeling.

I've spent a few hours now looking at the site, reading some of the Beginners' sources here (This one looks like it could be very, very useful), etc. It's overwhelming and intimidating seeing so many of the work-out options, and how much some of the active members manage to do. I'm very anxious, but excited. So now I'm here - for advice and support, and possibly for your entertainment. I hope you don't mind the very long and expressive style of writing - I'm like this all the time, unless severely distracted. So, ah... If you'd like to comment on, or be privy to, my personal journey... Welcome! And thanks for the little bit of help that attention and affirmation bring.

SS out... For now.

Edit: Currently, the plan is to start with the above workout every other day, with a day of rest in between, and my first-steps goals are: 1) to be able to do all ten leg-lifts in one set without a break in the middle, and 2) to reach a point at which I can start working out every day rather than every other day, without hurting myself.

Once I've reached these goals, I will try to do more reps, hold them longer, plank for longer, and add more elements - perhaps some wall push ups.

If you can give me an appraisal of this plan, or would like to suggest an addition to it, feel free.