Hi Everyone!

So I was thinking today, woah, without going out to eat all the time, and since I can't eat much...food is not a hobby lol.

Then I thought, what do I do that's considered a hobby? And then I had another thought of "Oh my God I'm such a loser! I HAVE NO HOBBIES?"

I'm always doing what everyone else wants to do and just going with the flow to make others happy but what am I doing to make myself happy?

Getting my nails done and shopping are not hobbies lol. Any ideas?

I used to love DIYing stuff and fixing things up but then I started hoarding things and spending wayyyy too much just to refurbish things as a hobby lol

I'm also the type of person that is extremely lazy and bad at sticking to things so things like knitting and hiking or spinning classes sound super unappealing.

I was thinking about a dance class, but by the time I get home from work its like 7pm and it's just not realistic.

I'm 25 and live in Los Angeles. Any ideas for hobbies? Tell me what you all do as hobbies to keep busy and stay happy. Any suggestions are welcomed! lol

Winter in Florida, walk the mall, walk the beach. Read by the pool. Enjoy the yard and outdoor work. Too much to do, just look around. Paint the inside of your house, currently doing at my pace!!!!

I used to think I was super lazy. Then I realized I was just super fat. I used to ride my bike, swim and all kinds of things as a child.

Now that I have lost weight those are my new hobbies. Swimming, Kayaking, Rowing, Biking, Hiking. I love being outside.

When I used to get bored in the middle of the afternoon at my desk I would have a snack, now I take a walk and have a snack.

I am not trying to be rah rah exercise, but it just kind of happened. I had a ton of excess energy and that is what I ended up doing with it.

Other than that, shopping is my cardio. I have spent a lot of time over the past year learning my new body and that involves trying on A LOT of clothes. I had to learn my new body shape, and adjust my personal style. Shopping can be a serious hobby. Last year I started with bargain shopping trying to dress my changing body for the cheap. Now it is more about getting high quality wardrobe pieces.

If I lived in LA, I would be swimming, surfing and kayaking every day. OMG

Personal question, if you think you are lazy and can't stick to things, how do you plan on managing your weight loss long term?

Los Angeles has multiple canyons where you and your partner can go for weekend hikes or trail walking.

There's Laurel Canyon, Topanga Canyon, Runyon Canyon, Fryman Canyon, Bronson Canyon, Malibu Canyon, Sullivan Canyon, etc.

You are also within 20 miles of multiple beaches. Many people in Flyover Land (a.k.a. the Heartland) would kill to be near so many gorgeous, scenic beaches.

I was not an outdoorsy person prior to the sleeve, but now I enjoy trail walks and city hikes. Being in nature bestows a certain energy upon the psyche.

@OutsideMatchInside lol people say that if they were in LA they would be doing all these things, but when you have LA traffic and it takes you an hour and a half to get to work and then you work a 10 hour day, and then you have another hour and a half drive back home, thats 12-13 hours out of your day gone. Then, you get home, eat dinner and wind down to sleep just to do it again the next day. On the weekends, I have to study and do homework since I work full time and am a student full time.

While on the weekends I am only 20 minutes from the beach... I find the beach dirty and gross. I don't enjoy the beach especially since I'm fair skinned and also still dealing with body issues. Also, sharks and sand up your crack. I hate the salt water. I'm more of a lake kind of girl.

My family has a lake house and I kayak and water ski but that is a 2 hour drive and can't do that all the time.

LA isn't as glamorous or convenient as people think it is, honestly.

When I drive as much as I do every day, the LAST thing I want to do is drive 20-30 minutes away just to get sunburned and have sand all over my car lol.

As for my weight loss, just because I'm lazy, doesn't mean I'm not eating healthier or keeping up with eating healthy snacks vs. fast food or junk food. I can be lazy laying down in bed, but instead of chips and soda, I have string cheese or beef jerky and vitamin water zero lol

@Introversion There's a hiking trail near my house that leads all the way to Topanga Canyon (santa monica mountains) but it can be kind of scary by myself honestly...it's super desolate and no cell service...also, it's hard to get my boyfriend to come on hikes with me, especially now that football season has started lol. Him and I have such busy and opposite schedules so Sundays are really our only day to do something together and hiking is the last thing he wants to do.

Thank you guys though!

@sleevedshereen Oh I know all about LA traffic. I work for myself though so I set my own schedule. I drive 45 minutes to an hour now just to kayak a couple times a week. My friend lives on a lake and we won't even kayak every day when we are there, but still... A girl can dream.

What I meant about maintaining your weight loss is long term, post-op VSG is boring AF. Once the weight isn't dropping you are just watching what you eat and your macros with no active new rewards (like weight loss or losing a size). You just had surgery aren't fully healed yet, you have a lower BMI and might get to goal fairly quickly. Maintaining your weight loss is the boredom of knitting/scrapbooking/quilting X100, and I don't even find those that boring.

@OutsideMatchInside I'm still healing? How long is the healing process? lol I had no idea. I guess it will get boring, but I'd rather be bored of maintaining weight loss and dealing with plateaus then feel the way I felt before surgery. I just need to try to do things that involve me being a little more active and maybe I'll actually enjoy it, who knows lol

If your surgery date is right, the first 6 months the sleeve is healing, that is why people lose the most in the first 6 months. The swelling and healing creates more restriction than a normal healed sleeve has.

Walking was boring for me at first, once I made it a habit by doing it every day even if I did not want to, it became very normalized. Also, I got a dog one month post-op and that forced me to be active and outdoors, even though he is a total lap dog and would never leave the house left to his own devices.

@OutsideMatchInside lol my dog is 13-14 and has arthritis in his hips...he can barely walk up the curb now a days. I wish he were able to walk with me.

This isn’t a active/physical type of hobby but I am into painting rocks.

It’s an offshoot of the Kindness Rocks project.

I paint rocks, then hide them around town. I’ve yet to find my first one, but find that painting them is relaxing and a lot of fun. And it keeps my mind off food.

This isn’t a active/physical type of hobby but I am into painting rocks.

It’s an offshoot of the Kindness Rocks project.

I paint rocks, then hide them around town. I’ve yet to find my first one, but find that painting them is relaxing and a lot of fun. And it keeps my mind off food.

What a neat idea... are there others who do this and you try to find theirs? How does this work?

What a neat idea... are there others who do this and you try to find theirs? How does this work?

Yes. You can get really creative or basic and write words of encouragement, like “You’ve got this!” Or the like.

Or just paint a pretty rock and maybe add some glitter. Then use something like Rustoleum to seal it so when you hide it outside the rain won’t make the paint bleed.

You hide them in plain sight in places like local parks, outside businesses or walking trails.

If you are in a rock painting group for your local area on Facebook they usually have you tag the back of your rock with the group name so when someone finds it they can go to the group and post a pic of it and say they’ve found and are either keeping it or hiding it again.

Just a neat way to make someone smile.

You can get really into it or just play around with it. I’m in between because I can’t draw a line to save my life LOL. But I’m trying my hand at dotting. If you google mandala rocks you’ll see what I’m trying to do.

I’d check Facebook as I’m sure there is a group close to you. And YouTube has tons of videos on the different ways to paint them as does Pinterest.

Yes. You can get really creative or basic and write words of encouragement, like “You’ve got this!” Or the like.

Or just paint a pretty rock and maybe add some glitter. Then use something like Rustoleum to seal it so when you hide it outside the rain won’t make the paint bleed.

You hide them in plain sight in places like local parks, outside businesses or walking trails.

If you are in a rock painting group for your local area on Facebook they usually have you tag the back of your rock with the group name so when someone finds it they can go to the group and post a pic of it and say they’ve found and are either keeping it or hiding it again.

Just a neat way to make someone smile.

You can get really into it or just play around with it. I’m in between because I can’t draw a line to save my life LOL. But I’m trying my hand at dotting. If you google mandala rocks you’ll see what I’m trying to do.

I’d check Facebook as I’m sure there is a group close to you. And YouTube has tons of videos on the different ways to paint them as does Pinterest.

Thanks for this! I don’t have Facebook but I’ll check out youtube!

I cruise Pinterest for craft ideas. I love painting with alcohol ink on washers and make necklaces- just type in alcohol ink washer necklace and you'll see. It's so much fun and cheap. You can mix the colors like paint so you don't have to go crazy buying too many supplies. I'll post some pics when I pull them out for the craft fair next week. You have to seal them with acrylic seller though.


Mich W
Hw 223, SW 217 CW 179.8 GW 135

Knitting is one hobby for me that keeps me out of food. I can't eat if my hands are busy! It's also kind of meditative, so it's good for me when I'm feeling anxious or panicky (which is like....75% of the time). I'm also starting an Etsy shop to sell some of the things I make.

Thanks for all the ideas guys! I love the rock idea, and jewelry and knitting hobbies! I might give it a go!!