Definitely agree with everything you've said here. You've got to build the habit first, and you have to make it easy enough to not give up early. Once the habit is established it gets a lot easier.
One thing I'll add is that I believe the strength/mobility side of things is generally more important for software engineers, or at least you should not ignore this as walking/running won't counteract a lot of the ill effects of sitting in front of a computer all day. This could be my bias because I always maintained some baseline cardio as a bicycle commuter, but I had some nagging RSI / back issues that didn't really get fixed until I started lifting.
The main tip I have for lifting is to find a good coach to observe and correct your form early on.
I tried lifting weights here or there during my whole life, but like the poster it never stuck. Not until I was 40 did I actually find a trainer who was skilled enough to really observe and teach me how to squat, deadlift, and even pullup/press correctly. Body mechanics and how to execute the movements and engage all the right muscles are key to avoiding injury and getting all the muscle groups evenly. It's especially tricky when you have some weak muscles that you aren't used to using, so your body does all kinds of compensations subconsciously, especially if you focus on numbers. It doesn't matter how many videos you watch if you have bad habits and you don't know what it feels like to do it the right way.
One thing I'll add is that I believe the strength/mobility side of things is generally more important for software engineers, or at least you should not ignore this as walking/running won't counteract a lot of the ill effects of sitting in front of a computer all day. This could be my bias because I always maintained some baseline cardio as a bicycle commuter, but I had some nagging RSI / back issues that didn't really get fixed until I started lifting.
The main tip I have for lifting is to find a good coach to observe and correct your form early on. I tried lifting weights here or there during my whole life, but like the poster it never stuck. Not until I was 40 did I actually find a trainer who was skilled enough to really observe and teach me how to squat, deadlift, and even pullup/press correctly. Body mechanics and how to execute the movements and engage all the right muscles are key to avoiding injury and getting all the muscle groups evenly. It's especially tricky when you have some weak muscles that you aren't used to using, so your body does all kinds of compensations subconsciously, especially if you focus on numbers. It doesn't matter how many videos you watch if you have bad habits and you don't know what it feels like to do it the right way.