[randallsquared]

I'm willing to grant that this must be true for some people. However, I don't think it's true for everyone, or maybe even most people. In the early 90s I was in the US Army for a couple years, and exercise never got better: it was always a struggle: boring, painful, and stressful. I suppose one good thing about it was that it was very rare that anything worse happened to me later in the day... :)

Looking around at the PT groups I was in during that time, I do not think most of them were looking forward to it.

[jasonwelk]

Just guessing, but maybe a difference between recreational exercise by choice vs duty or imposed regimen. Or perhaps just having choice over the kind of exercise makes a difference.

[prestonbriggs]

Yeah, well, the Army can make anything boring, painful, and stressful.

[WalterBright]

I've never been able to reach a point where weight training is anything but boring and painful. The trouble is it requires mental focus, and I cannot think about other things while lifting.

I try to mitigate the boredom by watching a movie while doing it.

[pnutjam]

I listen to headphones, music, podcasts, ebooks. I find it a very stimulating time and I feel better about it at a gym, even though I don't socialize much.

Just seeing the same people every day makes me feel like a community member and helps me stay motivated and connected.