It's crazy to me how many people have miserable health, complain about their body and mental state endlessly, but still put up any roadblock they can think of to avoid exercising of any form.
It's crazy to me how many people have miserable health, complain about their body and mental state endlessly, but still put up any roadblock they can think of to avoid exercising of any form.
I know that is a hurdle I have with my kids. They complain that jogging/running hurts. It is hard to convince people that that never really changes, and that it also hurts for the people that are doing it every day. Obviously acute pains are a different thing, but there is a reason recovery is a vital part of exercise. We all have to recover from pushing limits. You can't expand your limits without pushing, though.
As I've gotten older, I've found other activities to fill the void such as rock climbing and mountain biking. Both can be strenuous when you want them to be, but you can also take it easy. Combined with low level weight training, I've found it a lot more enjoyable since both require your brain to be 100% engaged when doing it so there's also a mental boost as well.
You reference that they can be strenuous. My bet is that you often choose to push to a strenuous feeling often during the training period of each of these. My further bet is what you call "strenuous", I'm asserting that those unfamiliar would call "painful."
To be clear, I'm not claiming that you are constantly hurting yourself. I am claiming that if you weren't familiar with the feeling, you'd call it a pain. I'm thinking back to the original Matrix, "why do my eyes hurt?"