ADHD

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Relevant Lemmy communities:

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ADHD-friendly sports? (lemmy.ml)

submitted 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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Hey guys, I'm looking for a sport to do because I'm super skinny and I'd like to gain at least a bit of muscle. I've done cycling and bouldering in the past, but neither made me any less skinny.
The problem with sports is it's very hard to do any sort of exercise with ADHD because beyond giving you no stimulation, it gives you negative stimulation, like when doing the plank. What's more, it usually requires a ton of logistic prep/going somewhere, which itself is boring and becomes a barrier.
One thing I can see motivating me is doing it with other people (I enjoy chilling with people and having banter), but for that I might as well go to a pub/society where there's no pesky ball I have to kick around. Team sports like football never really appealed to me for some reason anyway.
Has anyone had success making sports fun?

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[–] [email protected] 7 points 8 months ago

I've actually found weightlifting to be surprisingly satisfying. I really enjoy it because I get to compete against myself, and tracking the weights & reps gives me a very clear sense of progress. Weightlifting (and some low intensity cardio options) also allows me to do plenty of scrolling during my workout if I want to. The trick for me has been to find something that I can make a routine, and whenever I lose my routine, I work to build it incrementally. I'm actually really struggling right now because my gym made some changes that led me to cancel my membership, but having a physical location to go to seems to be a key factor for me.

Anyway, when I've needed to rebuild my routine in the past, step 1 was walking to the gym, but not going inside, and just walking back home. Since that entire process took about 30 minutes, it wasn't too difficult to squeeze in if I overslept. Step 2 meant I had to actually enter the gym and do something. Usually it was just walking on a treadmill for up to 30 minutes, depending on how much time I had available. From there, I'd start adding some time in the weight room and increasing the intensity of my cardio time (running or stairs), and eventually I'd work myself up to an hour of weights plus 30 minutes of running.

Since I've cancelled my gym membership, I'm really struggling to stick to a routine. Going to a certain location at the same time every day seems to be important in keeping me focused. One thing I did find that I'm hoping will motivate me is a running meetup. They have routes of varying difficulties, and often grab a beer together after, so I'm currently trying to build enough stamina to feel confident participating in their easiest runs, and hoping I'll eventually feel confident in their more challenging runs too. If running isn't your thing, I'm sure there's other groups for activities that you would enjoy.