I grew up going hiking and rock climbing with my family. Since then, I've started mountain biking, competing in road races and I'm thinking about training for a triathlon this year. My parents were definitely the biggest influence on me since they're so active outdoors.

I grew up playing sports, but started dancing in college. I had fear of making my thighs big so I never started running. I don't dance anymore, but now I run regularly. I started running regularly after I had my second kid. It is not my favorite way to workout but it is certainly efficient.

I have played softball since I was 8, but was always heavy until my junior year of high school, when I fell in love with jogging. I lost 75 pounds (and kept it off for 10 years, yay!) and cannot imagine a life where I am inactive again. A 1/2 marathon in Disney World in January is my next big goal!

I played sports as a kid, but I didn't start working out until about 16 or 17. Then I quit for a few years. I just started working out regularly again a couple of months ago.

i danced, hiked and did aerobics starting in high school. then in college i started working out regularly...going to classes and using the machines. i started running then too but THAT is definitely something that waxes and wanes as i'm not a big fan of running. i've been doing a lot of spin, weight training and hiking now. i feel like something is missing if i don't get a workout in during the day.

i was a sports girl in high school. in university, I started to work out more because of the freshman 15..more like 25 in my case, but regardless, after that its been a part of my life. if i don't do something every other day or so, i get itchy and feel quite blah..

I did sports growing up but working out I'd say post college, 22ish.

I had been pretty active while growing up with dance and cheerleading. I slowed down after high school and didn't start a regular workout routine again until I was about 26. Too long....

I was a fairly active kid, too. Played sports and what not, but after high school I got waaaaay lazy. Only until about a year ago did I start working out regularly again and I keep asking myself why it took me this long to start feeling good! Now I'm 30 and I'm definitely in the best shape I've ever been.

well, I competed in gymnastics and skating and took dance til I was 16. That was my regular working out so from the time I was 4 til I was 16 it was pretty intense. After that I just worked out on my own 3 or 4 days a week.

I did gymnastics since I was 4 (4 hours daily for 6 days each week) Then I stopped when I was 12, and started running/jogging at 15. I'm 17 and I feel really good, not like my serious sports days (when I was REALLY fit) but pretty good ;D. I've always been very active.

I grew up playing sports. My father had me playing soccer at 5 or 6, then I played every sport my grade school had to offer- basketball, volleyball, cheerleading. Then I started softball at 9 in a league and continued playing through high school.

After that, during college and law school, everything went to sh*t and I gained a ton of weight.

The day after I graduated from law school I decided it was time to get in shape. I've been trying ever since, and I have to say, quite successfully. I went from not being able to run a block to being able to job at 6.2 and sprint at 7.3 when I'm doing interval. I take classes, pilates and weight train.

If I miss scheduled workouts or take a couple days off, I start to get mad about it.

I did tap/ballet/jazz, gymnastics, softball, cheerleading, horseback riding as a kid, and track & cheerleading in high school, then once I got to college I went to the gym pretty regularly. I don't think I've ever went more than 2 weeks without working out. And that was only when I was taking 19 credit hours, working two jobs (one in Bowling Green, KY where I went to school & one in Nashville, TN, an hour away). Now that I'm out of school I work out 4-5 days a week.

Whew! I'm tired just thinking about all that.

I started doing competitive team sports when I was 11. From then it was practice 5 daya/week until I left competitive track in college. I had some hiatuses with injuries but find ways to keep myself busy.

I started running regularly and hitting the gym when I was 24...before that I was involved in dance and other group activities. I don't feel normal unless I'm moving most of the time!

I grew up being physically active too. I played tennis for 6 years on my junior high and high school teams...I played field hockey for 4 years too. And when I was younger, I was a cheerleader.

In college, I went to our campus gym with my roomies twice a week I'd say...

And now, I do yoga regularly and work out on my elliptical four times a week. I'd like to get back into tennis...that's on my "to do list" for the summer.

I was an active kid, not into sports, just active. I didn't start working out until after I had my first daughter, I was 28. Now I'm in training for a 10K in October, so I'm working out pretty hard right now.

I was an active kid too...I jumped rope, rode my bike, did ballet, ran races with my friends, etc. I played basketball in middle school, but once I switched schools, I stopped doing any physical activity at all...I was a couch potato from about age 13 until I was 19 in college and I decided once and for all that I would be thin and fit...that's when I started running, biking, working out in general again.

17

It was the Monday after I turned 16. Our family was given a treadmill a couple years before then, but it had always been in the garage so it was never used cuz of the heat. Then, my mom moved it indoors so she could walk on it, and I decided to start walking, too. It was mainly for weight loss (typical teenage girl thing!) but I /was/ really out of shape. It's become more of a "being healthy" thing & not a "being skinny" thing for me now, though.

I dabbled in various sports when I was a kid: gymnastics, soccer, basketball, racquetball, and then I even tried swimming for a year in high school. I was never particularly good at any of them, but I wasn't the absolute worst player/member of the team/class (just pretty close =) )Now I just ride my bike, walk, and do Pilates on a regular basis. I plan on also doing some hiking when I'm in South Korea for a year teaching English.

This year, I'm 40.

My children are growing up in an active household much moreso than I was. I hope it rubs off on them and they don't wait until they're 40 to start working out regularly.

I was a gymnast and a ballet dancer as a kid, and I pole vaulted in high school. I think as a child/teenager being involved in competitive sports counts as working out! Throughout college I taught gymnastics and dance, so I always stretched and did strength training, plus all of the physical-ness of spotting them and helping them, with the kids I taught 5 or 6 days a week, for several hours a day. I didn't have a regular work out regimin then, because I considered my job to be excercise enough. Now I run and do strength training regularly. Like many of the posters above me, I don't think I could ever not be active!

wow, i wish i could say i was half as active as the other posters so far. I danced ballet all the time from when i was 6-16, but since then, it's been really tough for me to get into a regular workout. I'm 30 now, and I feel like I just started to get myself to the point where i exercise on a regular basis. Some of it is about getting older, but I think a lot of it is also that I go crazy sitting at a desk all day, and I need the movement of exercise to keep me sane and refocus my thoughts for awhile.

uh...gee, why are all you guys so ACTIVE? i feel so sedentary now.

i was a nerdy mcnerd nerd growing up. i was reading books and playing games most of the time, but i wasn't a fat kid...the only sport i did was swimming lessons at the Y (i did manage to get up to shark though.)

i started working out in college when the dorm food made me gain a ton of weight. it's been on and off since then but i've been pretty consistent since the beginning of the year.

I was a very active kid too, but I also was a book worm kind of student, so I wasn't that active as a teen, then at 16-17 I started dancing and walking and at 20 I started doing strength training workouts too. I enjoy hiking and climbing and I also have played badminton, ping pong and tennis, for many years.

I'm 21 and still waiting for that age. I'm really trying to work out regularly though.

I swam and did gymnastics as a kid, and then was completely inactive during my high school years. I joined a gym at 18, and have been working out 3-4 days a week since then (I'm almost 27 now).

i skiied, rode horses,swam, ran from really young through high school. In college i ran and danced.and post college i am 30 now and i am completed committed to working out 5-6 days a week. i practice yoga, take pilates, physique 57, walk and ride my bike.i am inspired by others who are committed to health and wellness!

Yeah, I wasn't as active as everyone else either. I was pretty chubby until I was 20, when I started working out a lot. Ever since then, I've had a regular workout schedule.

Glad to see a few fellow nerds who took longer to jump on the fit-wagon. I was always naturally thin and low-energy, and I was one of those kids who got picked last for team sports because I was terrible at them. I never learned to ride a bike because all I cared about, as a child, was being an artist. (I did however learn to ride a horse.) I always wanted to dance but it was frowned upon where I grew up.

I became a regular fitness enthusiast after marrying my husband - a cycling maniac and tiathaloner. I've finally found exercise that fits my temperment and body - yoga, pilates, and the elliptical machine. I have been regular with my exercise for about 5 years now and hope to reward myself soon with my first-ever dance class! What should I try: flamenco or ballet?

I was never very active when I was younger. I played soccer. Hated it. I played tennis. Loved it but sucked at it. Finally, for health reasons, I started getting serious about exercising. So at the age of 18, I exercised every single day on the treadmill for one hour. Man I miss those days when I was hardcore. I still exercise but not as much. I got to start doing it again.

I played basketball as a teenager but stopped after a couple of seasons. I really got into working out in college, that's when I started running and lifting weights. Now at 37, I had to give up running because of injuries but I definitely substitute with a variety of other cardio, weights and flexibility exercises (non-negotiable). I can say that now I am really getting into the science of exercise and nutrition.

i started when i was about 21.

I did cheerleading in high school, and started using the gym when in college. Since then I try to be active as often as possible, but as for working out *regularly*.....24 and still working on that .

Not there yet and I'll be 30 this year. My mom was thin until she had kids (or maybe it was age -- she didn't have kids until 32) and I think we have the same metabolism. She said it would have been easier to get in shape after having kids if she had gotten in the habit earlier. I heard her say that and was determined to start before I had kids, but it's just sooo hard to get in the habit.

17, when I was finally able to get in clubs to dance all night(I looked 18 I guess).

I always had high metabolism, so I never had to workout. I only starting working out this year (and I am 27) because I notice my metabolism isn't what it used to be. I feel like such an awkward newbie and am just gaining my workout confidence and learning a routine.

My family would go hiking and camping a lot. Me and my sisters could always be found riding our bikes around town. Once I got into Jr High, I fell in love with Cross Country and Track! I

I started 2 years ago at 33.

ive been playing sports or dancing since i was little like 3rd grade and played sports all through college and i was always doing my own workouts outside of practice since middleschool

I've been dancing since I was 7, playing tennis (only once a week) since 12, hiking and skiing since...ever. I started swimming and kayaking in college, but this year I've started my master, and I work out at most twice a week. I really want to change that.

I took dance, swimming, and horseback riding lessons as a kid, but I suppose actually working out in a gym I would have been 14 maybe.

When I was 15 years old. I joined team sports -- cross country and swimming. I did very well. I won the MVP award multiple times.

Truthfully, I never stopped being active. Nowadays, I jog, dance, and weight train. I'm in better shape now than I was as a teenager. I truly believe my dedication to exercise contributes to my health and youthful appearance.

i started taking gymnastics when i was 7, and switched over to ballet when i became way too tall for it at 12. i did that 6x week until i went to college, and since then i've been doing cardio, strength training and lots of stretching regularly.

i'm so glad i started early, because i really think that having a good amount of muscle on my body my whole life is at least partially responsible for my crazy high metabolism, and it's trained me to be fit for life.

I started 3 years ago cause of an ex-boyfriend. 1. He worked out there and I was obsessed with him. 2. He thought I needed to loose a lot of weight, which I didn't. I could stand to loose 15 pounds at the time but looked good otherwise. Got rid of about 180 pounds (the jerk) but I will forver be thankful to him for introducing me to regular work-outs.

10th grade...so I was what 15ish.

9 years old. I started playing soccer for a traveling team and we played year round. Games every weekend and practiced 3 times a week.

19.I figured it would be good for me.Seeing as the career I want involves me being on my feet all day and also school is so tiring.I figured maybe if I actually start working out I won't be as tired when the day ends and maybe I would have more energy