HN Explorer

Poll: How do you get physical exercise?

22 points by solipsist ↗ HN
I'm interested in seeing the hacker community's main source of exercise. Not only does exercise clear one's mind, it's often used as a relaxation tool when away from work.

Please only choose one type of exercise - the one that you think you get the most out of.

Let us know in the comments how often you exercise and the type you do (if it is not listed as one of the choices). It'd also be great to learn about the motivation keeps people continuing that exercise on a regular basis.

Note: The choices listed can refer to indoor or outdoor activity. Feel free to vote for Running even if you only run on a treadmill.

59 comments

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keiferski
I have my road bike hooked up to a trainer right by my desk. Works super well for watching interviews and listening to podcasts.

(A bike trainer essentially converts your 'normal' bike into a stationary bike. http://www.amazon.com/b?ie=UTF8&node=3403551 )

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declancostello
Martial Arts
senectus
what sort.. does this really work? Doesn't seem overly cardio to me...
sli
I had a friend quit training with us for a couple months and he can no longer keep up. I lost at least 10lbs in the first six months of training.
scott_s
Depends on how you train.
revolvingcur
I dance capoeira, and although it isn't full-bore cardio, you spend enough time in the right zones (over the course of an hour) for it to count. Plus, it's good for all-around strength training. I didn't start out with any extra weight, so I've put on a few pounds of muscle across all the major muscle groups.
declancostello
Bujinkan (japanese budo, similar to jujitsu ) I've been in more than one school and the most recent puts a big emphasis on fitness, with fitness tests every few months. Depends on the teacher/dojo more than the art, I reckon.
alinhan
I do judo. It definitely works. I have better cardio, I'm stronger, more flexible, thinner and more confident. And it helped and inspired me to lose even more weight and try out other sports as well (alongside judo). Having a good trainer, and a good group of colleagues, helps a lot.
atgm
I walk everywhere as much as possible; when that's not possible, I bike. If that's not possible, I take a bus and then walk. It represents a huge amount of time "wasted" in transit, but I find that it helps me clear my mind and appreciate other things, like a sunset or a nice sky.

Sometimes the de-stressing is worth more than the exercise!

I also selected "Other" because I do push-ups and other assorted exercises/stretches that don't involve weights.

fr0sty
My office has a physical trainer that does a one hour interval workout twice a week. We rotate through stations constantly and each workout is different so there is no boredom, only griping.

I really should do at least one more day of excercise, but it is hard to find motivation by myself most days.

In previous years I was a medium distance runner (ran 5k and 10k races, finished around 50th percentile) which was great but hard to keep up during the winter (Chicago).

olalonde
Soccer match once a week (indoors during the cold season)
jjcm
A combination of all of the above. Learn to enjoy things that get you active, and you wont have to worry about exercise.
sanswork
A colleague of mine and myself have a joint personal trainer session 3 times a week. Being a joint thing we both save some money plus its a lot more fun with the three of us there to joke around with between sets.
andre3k1
Crossfit. Anyone else?
dschobel
+1. Most efficient program I've ever seen. We have lots of lawyers and finance people in my gym so it draws people with little time and a tolerance for abuse (which should make it perfect for startup people).
rje
Been doing crossfit with the paleo diet for the last 5 months. Lost 40lbs so far and never felt better.
dotBen
I think you should have added "gym" as an option. I spend a lot of time on the elliptical trainer because you can balance an iPad on it while you work out - but I don't really consider that 'running' as I assume that means real running outdoors.
trefn
Climbing (indoor, almost exclusively bouldering)
bigsassy
There probably should be an "I don't" option. C'mon, I can't be the only person with dumbbells covered in cobwebs, right?
wyclif
"Walking is the best possible exercise. Habituate yourself to walk very fast." ~ Thomas Jefferson
nomad2986
I've been doing P90x, and I love it. It's not your typical exercise from an infomercial.
orenmazor
same. I did the 90 days last year, and after that just went down to the chest/shoulders, plyo, and back/biceps days from the second phase for maintenance.

works great if you maintain a healthy diet, and you only waste an hour or so three-four times a week.

MarkSimpson
Stopped using the car and started going (almost) everywhere by foot and public transport. I probably end up walking about 1 or 2 hours per day.

The best motivation is the fact that I save money, don't have to worry about traffic, and feel more awake after walking. The physical fitness side of it doesn't concern me that much, even though I know it should.

DrStalker
I like weight exercises with dumbbells because it's easy and cheap to get everything you need to work out at home with some adjustable dumbbells.

Swimming is great cardio, but harder to do at home without a pool :-)

NathanKP
I unicycle for exercise. It is a fun sport, with about the same exertion as jogging, but low impact. It took me about three weeks of 1-2 hours a day to master the unicycle.
there
i recently bought a fitbit and wearing it everyday encourages me to walk more than i would otherwise. the growing flower icon on it is good positive reinforcement.

when i ride my bike long distances, i use mytracks on my android phone to track my course and speed.

askedrelic
Installed a pullup bar on the door at work!
mkramlich
My answer: by moving my body, for free, in various kinds of open volumes of space, whenever I make time for it. Which is how pretty much everybody should be doing it. Not hard, not complex, not expensive, and exactly as time consuming as you'd like it to be.
donw
I've only ticked 'weights', but I also run and climb as I can fit it in, and really want to take up brazilian jujitsu again once I'm back stateside.
_topher
Running [to catch buses], walking [because I missed the bus], and stair-running [to get to my next class]. Not sure if the yoga required to sit in the lecture hall seats counts.
azrealus
I play soccer twice a week :)
Dn_Ab
I do bboying. I love to dance. used to do it 3 hours a day, 5 days a week for a few years. these days i only have time for a couple hours a day, 2 or 3 times a week. Planning to up it back to about 4 days/week.