I'm struggling to exercise because I'm too heavy.

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Replies

  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
    You aren't too heavy, you are just woefully out of shape.

    That first half of your sentence was very supportive. Second half got away from you a bit there at the end.

    You've had experience exercising while heavier, why don't you share it instead of insulting the OP?

  • cerise_noir
    cerise_noir Posts: 5,468 Member
    At 240lbs, I started with HIIT, but walking helps, too.
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  • NH_1970
    NH_1970 Posts: 544 Member
    edited September 2015
    Denise Austin - xtra lite workout for beginners. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0wW-Us2B1Y (or any of her beginner videos really)

    can't squat or lunge because of knees. https://blog.myfitnesspal.com/cant-squat-or-lunge-due-to-bad-knees-this-workout-is-for-you/

    There's a lot of videos on you tube.

    But walking, it's your friend and you'll go further in time. Best of luck!
  • PinkPixiexox
    PinkPixiexox Posts: 4,142 Member
    You aren't too heavy, you are just woefully out of shape.

    Not helpful. And mean?!
  • shadowfax_c11
    shadowfax_c11 Posts: 1,942 Member
    edited September 2015
    At 287 I took up martial arts. Practicing for an hour twice a week was the best I could do at first and I would sweat gallons and very very winded. I was always extremely sore for a couple of days after a class. But after a couple of months I was doing 3 1-hour classes a week and after about 6 months I was and still am doing 3 2-hour sessions a week, plus 3-4, 3-day seminars(total for a weekend of training is about 8-9 hours of steady training) a year.I lost a little weight but still had to get calories under control. Down to 242 now and I am really amazed at how much better I a moving and feeling.

    Just move. Do what you can and as you feel better do more. Do something that you really enjoy so when you are tired and sore you will still want to do it. Walk, swim, dance, take an aerobics class whatever. it is also easier if you chose a thing you do with other people. It helps a lot with motivation.
  • PrizePopple
    PrizePopple Posts: 3,133 Member
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    You aren't too heavy, you are just woefully out of shape.

    And the point of pointing she's not in shape is what exactly? There are plenty of people that are not in shape that do what they can. It's not wise to criticize people with the same criticism that can be reciprocated.

    What, because I am ignoring your attacks you find someone else to pick on?

    You have not posted a single thing to try and help the OP. Not one. All your posts are attacks on me and others that don't agree with your lame brain way of thinking.

    You're pathetic, and I am going to report you yet again. Maybe if I report you enough times you will stop picking on people.

    "For example, taking advice like do reps until you can't do another way is a great way to end up injured. You do what you can and progress as time goes on. If today you walked for 30 minutes and felt like you could do more then that's great, next time add a couple of minutes. Eventually you can pick up the pace. Maybe some day soon you'll find yourself jogging for a block or 2. You don't need to throw everything at the wall and hope it all sticks. Work your way up at a pace you find reasonable."

    Funny, that seemed like totally helpful advice from CitricAcid, and reasonable as well.
  • mumblemagic
    mumblemagic Posts: 1,090 Member
    That is great news and keep up the good work. You may want to not rush weight loss. We are all different so do some Googling and read research and the experiences of others and pick what sounds good and test it.

    I just walk at least a quarter mile daily and have been doing that for a year now. In my case I have learned doing exercise to lose weight is counter productive to keep lost weight off long term. In life things can happen making exercise next to impossible from time to time. Now I do weight loss by my eating lifestyle and I move to build body strength.

    +1, especially for the Googling!

    Weight loss and fitness should be an educational journey as well as a transformation for you :smile:

    RE: "minimum training effect" or whatever.... I certainly felt the effects of going from 10 mins walk per day to 10 mins walk per day + a 30 min run/walk 3 x per week when I first started, so ignore people trying to overload you with too much. This is literally a case of don't try to run before you can walk :smile:

    I was 190 ish when I started and I did a C25K. I did the NHS one (below) but there are lots to choose from. It was a real struggle the first couple of weeks but now I go running very regularly and enjoy it (just ran 4 km in fact :sweat_smile: ). If you don't like running, do something else - anything that adds physical activity to your life will improve your fitness and help weight loss; it doesn't have to feel like hard work and you don't have to do 100s of hours of exercise per week to shed weight as long as you also keep your diet in check. Dance classes, pilates, swimming, ice skating, walking, horse riding are all fun and good.

    http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/c25k/Pages/couch-to-5k.aspx

    Good luck, have fun, and don't be too hard on yourself!
  • DeguelloTex
    DeguelloTex Posts: 6,652 Member
    bcalvanese wrote: »
    You aren't too heavy, you are just woefully out of shape.

    And the point of pointing she's not in shape is what exactly? There are plenty of people that are not in shape that do what they can. It's not wise to criticize people with the same criticism that can be reciprocated.

    What, because I am ignoring your attacks you find someone else to pick on?

    You have not posted a single thing to try and help the OP. Not one. All your posts are attacks on me and others that don't agree with your lame brain way of thinking.

    You're pathetic, and I am going to report you yet again. Maybe if I report you enough times you will stop picking on people.
    Wait, the guy who's saying lift until failure on every set in order to get any benefit is critiquing someone else's contributions? Do you not have any idea how mentally and physically taxing lifting to failure on every set would be? Just no.

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  • 999tigger
    999tigger Posts: 5,235 Member
    You aren't too heavy, you are just woefully out of shape.

    And the point of pointing she's not in shape is what exactly? There are plenty of people that are not in shape that do what they can. It's not wise to criticize people with the same criticism that can be reciprocated.

    I made the point earlier and its a very valid point. The OP is under the impression that its her weight thats causing all the problems, but 200lbs isnt big at all it doesnt prevent her from using any equipment, if she was 500lbs then she might jhave trouble. the reason the OP cnat manage the exercise is becayse shes out of shape, which is easily dealt with by starting small and then building up consistently till her fitness improves. Its all together a positive message becayse shes not as limited as she believes and she will be able to make good progress.

    So completely disagree with you. If you understood what people were saying and why then you wouldnt have to be so defensive,
  • AspenDan
    AspenDan Posts: 703 Member
    You aren't too heavy, you are just woefully out of shape.

    Don't worry about this sort of stuff, we all have varying degrees of out of shape-ness.

    My advice is what worked for me, try to find something you can do for even just 5 minutes(for me was stationary bike), keep doing it as often as you can and feel proud of yourself for it =)
  • little_rika
    little_rika Posts: 3 Member
    Walk and try zumba just moving at your own pace..I'm out of shape, can't run, feel like dying on the elliptical, but I can do those things. I have a normal bmi of 21 but a low fitness level.

  • AspenDan
    AspenDan Posts: 703 Member
    999tigger wrote: »
    You aren't too heavy, you are just woefully out of shape.

    And the point of pointing she's not in shape is what exactly? There are plenty of people that are not in shape that do what they can. It's not wise to criticize people with the same criticism that can be reciprocated.

    I made the point earlier and its a very valid point. The OP is under the impression that its her weight thats causing all the problems, but 200lbs isnt big at all it doesnt prevent her from using any equipment, if she was 500lbs then she might jhave trouble. the reason the OP cnat manage the exercise is becayse shes out of shape, which is easily dealt with by starting small and then building up consistently till her fitness improves. Its all together a positive message becayse shes not as limited as she believes and she will be able to make good progress.

    So completely disagree with you. If you understood what people were saying and why then you wouldnt have to be so defensive,

    I completely disagree with you disagreeing with me.

    The issue hear is you're looking at the words I typed and thinking I believe one thing and not something when in fact that's not true. I don't disagree that what the OP believes and what her actual restrictions are match up.

    Now we'll take it to me understanding what people are saying, I invite you to dig a little deeper behind the messenger that delivered the message that I replied to and maybe you could piece together the facts that would separate maybe you pointing out a little bit of reality to the OP and the other person simply taking a cheap shot at another user with the lazy and fat approach as has been so frequently seen.

    Then, just then, after you do all that I invite you to come back and address me once again if you feel that I'm being defensive. It's always good to have a little more information before we start getting involved attaching labels to certain people. And don't assume that just because you don't know me that I don't know you.

    But you take care now.

    Reading this rabbit hole of text just made me laugh so hard.
  • AspenDan
    AspenDan Posts: 703 Member
    999tigger wrote: »
    You aren't too heavy, you are just woefully out of shape.

    And the point of pointing she's not in shape is what exactly? There are plenty of people that are not in shape that do what they can. It's not wise to criticize people with the same criticism that can be reciprocated.

    I made the point earlier and its a very valid point. The OP is under the impression that its her weight thats causing all the problems, but 200lbs isnt big at all it doesnt prevent her from using any equipment, if she was 500lbs then she might jhave trouble. the reason the OP cnat manage the exercise is becayse shes out of shape, which is easily dealt with by starting small and then building up consistently till her fitness improves. Its all together a positive message becayse shes not as limited as she believes and she will be able to make good progress.

    So completely disagree with you. If you understood what people were saying and why then you wouldnt have to be so defensive,

    I completely disagree with you disagreeing with me.

    The issue hear is you're looking at the words I typed and thinking I believe one thing and not something when in fact that's not true. I don't disagree that what the OP believes and what her actual restrictions are match up.

    Now we'll take it to me understanding what people are saying, I invite you to dig a little deeper behind the messenger that delivered the message that I replied to and maybe you could piece together the facts that would separate maybe you pointing out a little bit of reality to the OP and the other person simply taking a cheap shot at another user with the lazy and fat approach as has been so frequently seen.

    Then, just then, after you do all that I invite you to come back and address me once again if you feel that I'm being defensive. It's always good to have a little more information before we start getting involved attaching labels to certain people. And don't assume that just because you don't know me that I don't know you.

    But you take care now.

    Reading this rabbit hole of text just made me laugh so hard.

    The question then becomes, how many calories did you burn and what percentage do you eat back? If it takes you to 1,215 do you eat do you laugh a few additional times to compensate?

    I think I probably burned a solid 6 cals from that laughter =)
  • ziggy2006
    ziggy2006 Posts: 255 Member
    Leslie Sansone's Walk Away the Pounds video series is great for beginners and especially helpful when the weather doesn't allow for walking outdoors. Several of her videos are available on YouTube, which will give you a chance to see whether they are something you might be interested in purchasing.
  • Merkavar
    Merkavar Posts: 3,082 Member
    Victœria wrote: »
    Hi MFP community

    I'm happy to say I have managed to keep off the alcohol for 2 whole weeks and I'm starting to see some small results already :-)

    I am however struggling to exercise at my current weight. What can I do that won't kill me or take too long but has good results. I have thought about weights and swimming ?

    Walking, elliptical.

    I took up kick boxing when I weighed 150kg or more. Not sure how tall you are.

    But there are always options, just take it easy at first, so you don't injure your self.
  • daniwilford
    daniwilford Posts: 1,030 Member
    I started walking at 237 lbs. 15 minutes twice a day. A little over four months later I was down to 201 lbs and up to a 2 hour over five mile walk. I just went a little farther and a little faster little by little. I started strength training in July and so my time for aerobic walking has decreased to accommodate that. I love it and if I can't exercise, I miss it now. I hope you come to love it too.
  • Teamhynes
    Teamhynes Posts: 31 Member
    Agree with everyone else. Walking. Didn't care how long it took, just that I got it done. Try 15 minutes. Then try 20, etc. Then I started moving into swimming and water aerobics. Getting into day hiking now and kayaking. My new goal is really variety.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,168 Member
    Victœria wrote: »
    I just came back from a short walk. 30 mins slow pace. I feel it a little bit but I could have done a bit more. So I plan to use the 5kg kettle bell and do a little workout using workout trainer by ski blue I found in the App Store :smile:

    Hooray, you! This is *exactly* how it's done. Move; do what you can; challenge yourself a little. If you keep at it regularly, you will surprise yourself with what you can accomplish!
  • choppie70 wrote: »
    Your profile says you were 201 lbs. starting weight? I was 226 lbs when I started. I actually love Jillian Michaels 30 day shred. It is tough at first and I took a lot of little breaks, but I saw results fairly quick and it got better even after 1 week.

    I agree with the Jillian Michaels videos. I felt the same way when I started working out. As long as you keep your body moving and she has a modifier. Plus the moves become easier eventually. I have a cousin that lives across the country and we use the app Tango to video call each other and workout together. We do a bunch of Jillian Michael videos. I can definitely tell I'm a lot stronger than when we started and I can do a lot of the moves I couldn't when we first started.
  • jsmestflowers
    jsmestflowers Posts: 52 Member
    My .02 in order to do all that stuff about zones and such, you have to get in shape to do them. I had a friend of my tell me that I should start going to the gym, I told them that I was not in shape to go to the gym yet, I had to lose some weight first and could do it better without all the "help". I put myself on a program that I can do everyday and its working well for me. Is it hyper effective - nah, I am certain that I would lose more with a killer program but I am also certain that I would quite that killer program when I was so sore I could not walk. Point being, do something you can do, do it often, and when you can do more do more. It will give you results. Exercise should not be torture.
  • jsmestflowers
    jsmestflowers Posts: 52 Member
    Also I would note: Losing weight is 80% about calories and 20% about activity. Just watch those calories and you can score and 80 on the "test" every day..and in my book 80 PASSES! :) Keep up the good work and keep moving! Your doing great on your becoming and we are all cheering for you!!
  • azulvioleta6
    azulvioleta6 Posts: 4,195 Member
    You aren't too heavy, you are just woefully out of shape.

    That first half of your sentence was very supportive. Second half got away from you a bit there at the end.

    You've had experience exercising while heavier, why don't you share it instead of insulting the OP?

    It wasn't meant to be insulting--I just didn't have time to write about this in detail when the thread first came up. I've also shared my experience with this here many times before and did not feel like repeating it all and boring everybody to tears. :)

    Anybody who is just getting back to exercise is going to struggle. It doesn't matter how much you weight. It takes a while to get back into the swing of things and to develop endurance. To some degree, it doesn't matter how much you weigh in the beginning--you just have to START and work to slowly to add more intensity and time as your skills progress. The key is to develop an exercise habit and to keep finding new ways to challenge yourself over time. Start wherever you are and just keep getting better.

    I began exercising again at 300 pounds. I gained weight due to a serious and disabling illness which prevented me from moving much at all for several years. My disease causes muscle wasting, so I needed to slowly redevelop muscle in a careful way. Before that, I had always been active and was a serious athlete in my youth.

    I began my exercise regime by swimming three times a week. At first it took me approximately forever (well, more than an hour) to swim less than half of a mile. I just kept going, adding distance and getting faster. I began walking regularly, 15 minutes at a time. Later, I started lifting weights. By the time I weighed 260, I was able to try Zumba. By 250, I was getting pretty good at it and was able to keep up with the most challenging instructor in my area. Eventually I was able to go back to doing authentic Latin dancing, which had been a passion in my youth. I keep adding new challenges and trying new things.

    I've been at this for more than three years now, and at this point I can swim a whole mile (5280 feet, not a "swimmers' mile") in 30 minutes, backstroke.

    I still weigh more than the OP, even though I am fairly close to my goal weight. I can beat just about anyone at just about anything physical, running excepted due to a bad knee. Several times a year, I go to three-day dance conferences (Congresos de Salsa) where I take workshops all day, dance all night and keep up with professional dancers who are half my age. I have insane endurance and I am strong. I weigh more than 200 pounds.

    The actual number on the scale has NOTHING to do with your level of fitness. It's just a mental block. Everybody struggles and it is completely normal to have a hard time when you first start working out. Do it anyhow.