Overcoming exercise obstacles

maiomaio71

I have arthritis in my knee and other issues which mean I can't swim so I was pretty limited to walking for any cardio exercise. It took me a long time to get to a place where I was ready to walk in public, and when I did I had a couple of issues I needed to solve. The worst was the "chub rub"...under breasts and thigh rub. An mfp search recommended "body glide" which is marketed here as skin glide. Honestly, best product ever! I went from being in pain and having to wait a few days between walks to being able to walk every day with no rubbing.
I also started my route which had a hill, and when I got to the hill, I turned round and went home. Now, (6 weeks later) I can go up the hill, not once but three times. It doesn't take long to get a little bit fitter.
I'm loving getting out there now. From dreading walking, I now look forward to it. My knee pain is less and I'm walking further and faster.
I found a good yoga YouTube series called curvesome yoga which is yoga for big people. I've made some good progress there, although still have a long way to go before I can do some of the poses.
This time last year if you'd told me I would be walking 5-6km a day and doing 30 mins of curvy yoga I would have laughed. Looking forward to what the next year brings. I'm hoping to learn to play golf.

timmonstammy97

Thank you for sharing this. You found ways to overcome your exercise roadblocks and look at the progress you've made. It's awesome and inspiring! Also, thanks for mentioning the curvesome yoga on YouTube. I've tried yoga a few times before and was disappointed that I could not achieve the poses because of my tummy and breasts. I can't wait to try this series!

jjlewey

Thanks for the yoga tip, and good job on the improvement.

eastjc

Even though you can't swim, getting in the pool and doing lunges builds strength which might help with your knee too. You'll pe pretty supprised, it's hard after your first lap or two the first time or 3 you do it!

maiomaio71

Getting into a pool is somewhere on my agenda...but I have a way to go before I'm comfortable doing that in public!

conniewilkins56

I have a mental block when it comes to exercise...I promised myself I would start exercising when I had lost 50 lbs...I have finally hit that 50 and so far I have done minimal exercise...I pick up stuff around the house, light cleaning, take the dog out,food prep etc but I just can’t make myself actually exercise...I really do not know where to begin...I can’t walk long distances or get up and down on my replaced knees...yes, I can swim and have access to a free pool and gym....my mind wants to do it but my body doesn’t co operate...i have this obstacle whenever I lose weight....help!

ConfidentRaven

conniewilkins56 wrote: »

I have a mental block when it comes to exercise...I promised myself I would start exercising when I had lost 50 lbs...I have finally hit that 50 and so far I have done minimal exercise...I pick up stuff around the house, light cleaning, take the dog out,food prep etc but I just can’t make myself actually exercise...I really do not know where to begin...I can’t walk long distances or get up and down on my replaced knees...yes, I can swim and have access to a free pool and gym....my mind wants to do it but my body doesn’t co operate...i have this obstacle whenever I lose weight....help!

Connie, that was me. I was going to start exercising, tomorrow. I was that way until my scale stalled and I finally decided that if it wasn't going to move, then I would. My biggest tip is to walk even one more step tomorrow than you did today and so on. Next, try to find an activity that you enjoy or at least tolerate. Start with a few minutes of that activity and slowly add in more time.

Keep in mind that anything you do is activity. When you're first starting out you don't have to be balls to wall, all or nothing, lift 350lbs now bro, you just have to do a little more each day. Last, and the biggest tip of all, do not compare your progress or activity level to anyone else. That's the easiest way to lose any motivation. Focus on what more you did today over yesterday, last week, last month.

Finally, keep in mind that exercise is not a must for weight loss. It aids in overall health, but it's not a must for weight loss. Hang in there and know that you can do this.

maiomaio71

Have you tried chair yoga? And increasing your NEAT rather than structured exercise? Just parking away from the entrance to the supermarket and walking up and down every single aisle adds a good 1000 steps to my daily total.

conniewilkins56

I love the chair yoga and I am trying to move more....baby steps!....I will get there eventually!

Thanks everyone!

maiomaio71

Another thing I've been doing, if your coordination is good, is hitting a tennis ball against a wall. I'm just doing it for a challenge...we have to try to get 300 hits in a row in a target at school. You don't have to move too much if you time it well but you can actually get a sweat up!

conniewilkins56

I dont think tennis is in my near future!...I am going to start on the bike at the gym and get in the pool...I like the chair yoga,dancing and light hand weights...thanks!

FitByFifty1970

I have extremely limited mobility in my legs; is chair yoga an option? (trying to not get excited)

kosseychick

@FitByFifty1970 alot of the chair yoga poses are from a seated position or the chair is used to modify a yoga pose so you dont have to be on the floor. If you Google it, you will see some examples online.😊

ConfidentRaven

Chair yoga does sound intesting and I think I'll try it this weekend. Thanks for the idea!

maiomaio71

I did the tennis as a challenge and surprised myself with how much I enjoyed it and how hard it was, as well as how much I sweated doing it. Plus I didn't hurt my knees. And you can do it solo. But I get that it's not for every one! The chair yoga is great for bad knees. When mine are agony I resort to it and actually I find it really enjoyable.
I can't get down on the floor when my knees are bad so I do press ups against the wall. Resistance bands are also really useful.

maiomaio71

I've joined the gym and I've used the endless pool three times over the last week. So excited to see the progress already. I book it for an hour and do a range of things...freestyle, backstroke, aquajogging. I started last week and managed 5 minutes of freestyle at a time before I had to switch to backstroke for a rest. Today I managed a few sets of 12 minutes which I thought was a significant improvement. This time last year I wouldn't have dreamed of swimming or going to the gym. I don't even think I'd started my daily walks yet. Hopefully the novelty doesn't wear off!

maureenkhilde

I have been doing Chair Yoga for about weeks and I really like it. I started with about 4 basic moves, and have added another 4.

Something else I have tried, but admit not doing regularly but want to do more often. Is basically you lay on the floor on a comfortable mat or blanket, but then have some more cushioning. A pillow works for this part put under hips and butt. And you try to get close to the wall, and extend your legs up the wall. Kind of like being at a 90 degree angle. I admit I am no where near 90 degrees yet. I do with clean socks on. You can walk your feet up wall, push off from wall, work on doing hip exercises. The idea is over time to work up to 15 to 20 minutes. It is said to help tight hip flexor muscles, help loosen up ham strings. I use to stretch feet, and ankles. Looks easy, I have found it is not.

I also have an indoor recumbent bike, that I use several times per week. I enjoy listening to music or podcasts while I do this, kind of my time.