Honestly, when I'm emotionally not great, getting out of bed and showering is an achievement. Working out typically doesn't happen and that's okay. I rationalize this by telling myself that when I'm sad, I won't be that great in the gym anyways.
My heart goes out to you. Reading how you feel and that you want to get better is wonderful to hear. It shows an incredible amount of strength. Working out helps out greatly for depression. I have to agree with DreekLass. Starting the workout is the biggest hurdle. If you prefer the gym, you might want to go with a friend that will keep you on track for days that might be hard for you to go. Dance is a good way to do cardio and the upbeat music can be helpful too. I wish you all the best friend!
I have had some personal issues lately that have left me quite sad. I am not a depressed person persay, but some issues got the better of me and I found that working out helped out a lot. I am not the type of person to go to the gym, but I do like to go out into nature on a long hike. Being in nature is so therapuetic.
I like to go play tennis or bowling when I am stressed. I feel like the best reliever for me is hitting something. The loud sound of serving or hitting hard, and the loud sound of the pins crashing down sooth me.
Also I think its nice to get outside and exercise a little bit more in the fresh air-and I must say, I am not much of a gym rat either. I think just looking at pictures of nature can really lower my blood pressure-but some beach or trail running is nice if you can get to it. I think being amongst nature can revitalise you-and when exercising, you can really bring down your blood pressure, also these nature workouts can be just as good for our brains and minds as well and not just the body.
When I am depressed, it is really very difficult for me to do anything much. Doing my routine chores itself takes a lot of efforts. I would rather spend my time in bed lying around and reading some books or watch tearjerkers or some mindless, bloody action movies on the TV. So working out when I am in a dark place is quite out of the question.