Help! Free forms of very low impact exercise
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VeryHungryCatepillar45
Posts: 15 Member
Hello! I need some exercise advice. I used to be a long distance runner (many years ago). Due to some orthopedic issues, coupled with the upper end of middle age, I can no longer engage in any kind of high impact exercise. Everything I used to do for fitness is too much for my “well used and loved” body. I LOVED running and hiking! Most especially hiking!
I had a small hip fracture in 2019 right before Covid hit. It took me a year to recover from that only to rupture my Achilles tendon last year and need major surgery on my tendon, heel bone, and calf. And then 55 pounds piled on….
Doctors orders- no high impact anything from now on.
I find gym equipment super boring. Plus, I do not have the budget for fitness club memberships and personal trainers. Besides, I would rather be outside!
Right now, I am walking my dog in the morning and doing light “old lady” yoga. It took me a year to work up to walking a mile in the morning after my surgery. I was on crutches for months so I have lost ALL cardiovascular fitness and strength. So frustrating! I used to be super active every day.
Does anyone do anything low impact and FUN outside? I know myself. If it’s not fun I won’t stick with it. I like to try new things so I am open to any and all suggestions.
Thanks!
I had a small hip fracture in 2019 right before Covid hit. It took me a year to recover from that only to rupture my Achilles tendon last year and need major surgery on my tendon, heel bone, and calf. And then 55 pounds piled on….
Doctors orders- no high impact anything from now on.
I find gym equipment super boring. Plus, I do not have the budget for fitness club memberships and personal trainers. Besides, I would rather be outside!
Right now, I am walking my dog in the morning and doing light “old lady” yoga. It took me a year to work up to walking a mile in the morning after my surgery. I was on crutches for months so I have lost ALL cardiovascular fitness and strength. So frustrating! I used to be super active every day.
Does anyone do anything low impact and FUN outside? I know myself. If it’s not fun I won’t stick with it. I like to try new things so I am open to any and all suggestions.
Thanks!
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Replies
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My area has several outdoor "fitness park" set-ups with outdoor exercise machines or exercise stations that anyone can use for free. It's kind of like gym stuff, so maybe it wouldn't suit you, but it is outdoors. One here even had free classes twice a week over the summer.
I row and bike, neither of which is low impact, but it probably wouldn't work for you because you need a rowing club (club owns the boats) or a bike. If you can bike, sometimes there are affordable ways to get one, like police departments or universities selling abandoned/confiscated ones that have been repaired.
There are online videos for tai chi. They're not mostly very good Tai Chi (technically), but they are easy to do, gentle, and help with balance/leg strength. Many people do it outside. Some areas have free group Tai Chi, usually early morning in a park.0 -
VeryHungryCatepillar45 wrote: »Hello! I need some exercise advice. I used to be a long distance runner (many years ago). Due to some orthopedic issues, coupled with the upper end of middle age, I can no longer engage in any kind of high impact exercise. Everything I used to do for fitness is too much for my “well used and loved” body. I LOVED running and hiking! Most especially hiking!
I had a small hip fracture in 2019 right before Covid hit. It took me a year to recover from that only to rupture my Achilles tendon last year and need major surgery on my tendon, heel bone, and calf. And then 55 pounds piled on….
Doctors orders- no high impact anything from now on.
I find gym equipment super boring. Plus, I do not have the budget for fitness club memberships and personal trainers. Besides, I would rather be outside!
Right now, I am walking my dog in the morning and doing light “old lady” yoga. It took me a year to work up to walking a mile in the morning after my surgery. I was on crutches for months so I have lost ALL cardiovascular fitness and strength. So frustrating! I used to be super active every day.
Does anyone do anything low impact and FUN outside? I know myself. If it’s not fun I won’t stick with it. I like to try new things so I am open to any and all suggestions.
Thanks!
Do you live near water?- Swimming, Scuba, and Snorkeling--are all low impact but it will have impact on overall health. At the very least, it might be fun to do on vacation.
- Light kayaking --perhaps on a lake.
- Golfing--if you don't overdo it.
- Gardening--depending on what you do.
- Bicycling--certain types of cycling and types of bikes are low impact.
- Outdoor Tai Chi.
- Water Aerobics.
- Pilates/Yoga.
- Tubing
- Walking
Most water sports are low-impact. If you don't overdo it, you can do some biking (they have recumbent ones and three-wheel/adult trikes/electric assist bikes). If you like golfing, it can be low-impact. If you find it boring, maybe mini-golf?
You can even get a bike that lean backs and sits on the ground--low impact or get an electric assist bike which lowers the impact.
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Afterthought: One thing I did in the past was get training to be a volunteer docent/tour guide in a public garden. In some cases, we would set up a table, wander around greeting visitors and answering questions. Other times, there would be groups we'd lead around the gardens pointing out things of interest and answering questions. There was a children's garden and butterfly greenhouse, so sometimes it would be groups of schoolkids (with adults along to herd them a bit).
All the needed training was provided, and any activity involved was slow walking. It was unusual for a single tour to be longer than an hour. The "set up a table and wander" thing was usually longer than that, but one could sit down sometimes to take a break if necessary (folding chairs).
Some of my friends have done public garden volunteering where they would plant things or weed/groom plantings. I did one thing where we planted a demonstration veggie garden, and helped people at a community garden learn about how to garden.
Another thing some people do is volunteer to walk dogs from a local shelter, or take a shelter dog out with them for the day to do various things as an enrichment for the dogs.
There may be other outdoor volunteering opportunities, too: Some places have central clearinghouse for volunteer opportunities.3 -
Afterthought: One thing I did in the past was get training to be a volunteer docent/tour guide in a public garden. In some cases, we would set up a table, wander around greeting visitors and answering questions. Other times, there would be groups we'd lead around the gardens pointing out things of interest and answering questions. There was a children's garden and butterfly greenhouse, so sometimes it would be groups of schoolkids (with adults along to herd them a bit).
All the needed training was provided, and any activity involved was slow walking. It was unusual for a single tour to be longer than an hour. The "set up a table and wander" thing was usually longer than that, but one could sit down sometimes to take a break if necessary (folding chairs).
Some of my friends have done public garden volunteering where they would plant things or weed/groom plantings. I did one thing where we planted a demonstration veggie garden, and helped people at a community garden learn about how to garden.
Another thing some people do is volunteer to walk dogs from a local shelter, or take a shelter dog out with them for the day to do various things as an enrichment for the dogs.
There may be other outdoor volunteering opportunities, too: Some places have central clearinghouse for volunteer opportunities.
These are great ideas! I did not think about volunteering at an animal shelter to walk dogs. That sounds like fun. Thanks!
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My area has several outdoor "fitness park" set-ups with outdoor exercise machines or exercise stations that anyone can use for free. It's kind of like gym stuff, so maybe it wouldn't suit you, but it is outdoors. One here even had free classes twice a week over the summer.
I row and bike, neither of which is low impact, but it probably wouldn't work for you because you need a rowing club (club owns the boats) or a bike. If you can bike, sometimes there are affordable ways to get one, like police departments or universities selling abandoned/confiscated ones that have been repaired.
There are online videos for tai chi. They're not mostly very good Tai Chi (technically), but they are easy to do, gentle, and help with balance/leg strength. Many people do it outside. Some areas have free group Tai Chi, usually early morning in a park.
Tai Chi is something I have not tried. I will look for groups near me.
My job has a free weekly gentle yoga class I attend. I have to modify a lot of poses now but still enjoy the practice.
Thank for the suggestion.
Thanks 1 -
VeryHungryCatepillar45 wrote: »Hello! I need some exercise advice. I used to be a long distance runner (many years ago). Due to some orthopedic issues, coupled with the upper end of middle age, I can no longer engage in any kind of high impact exercise. Everything I used to do for fitness is too much for my “well used and loved” body. I LOVED running and hiking! Most especially hiking!
I had a small hip fracture in 2019 right before Covid hit. It took me a year to recover from that only to rupture my Achilles tendon last year and need major surgery on my tendon, heel bone, and calf. And then 55 pounds piled on….
Doctors orders- no high impact anything from now on.
I find gym equipment super boring. Plus, I do not have the budget for fitness club memberships and personal trainers. Besides, I would rather be outside!
Right now, I am walking my dog in the morning and doing light “old lady” yoga. It took me a year to work up to walking a mile in the morning after my surgery. I was on crutches for months so I have lost ALL cardiovascular fitness and strength. So frustrating! I used to be super active every day.
Does anyone do anything low impact and FUN outside? I know myself. If it’s not fun I won’t stick with it. I like to try new things so I am open to any and all suggestions.
Thanks!
Do you live near water?- Swimming, Scuba, and Snorkeling--are all low impact but it will have impact on overall health. At the very least, it might be fun to do on vacation.
- Light kayaking --perhaps on a lake.
- Golfing--if you don't overdo it.
- Gardening--depending on what you do.
- Bicycling--certain types of cycling and types of bikes are low impact.
- Outdoor Tai Chi.
- Water Aerobics.
- Pilates/Yoga.
- Tubing
- Walking
Most water sports are low-impact. If you don't overdo it, you can do some biking (they have recumbent ones and three-wheel/adult trikes/electric assist bikes). If you like golfing, it can be low-impact. If you find it boring, maybe mini-golf?
You can even get a bike that lean backs and sits on the ground--low impact or get an electric assist bike which lowers the impact.
[Hangs head in shame] I never learned how to swim. Sigh
I grew up in the middle of a city with no opportunity to learn.
I thought of learning to swim and looked for lessons near me. 99.9% of them are for children. The one or two places I found who were willing to teach adults cost $120 an hour. Ouch
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VeryHungryCatepillar45 wrote: »VeryHungryCatepillar45 wrote: »Hello! I need some exercise advice. I used to be a long distance runner (many years ago). Due to some orthopedic issues, coupled with the upper end of middle age, I can no longer engage in any kind of high impact exercise. Everything I used to do for fitness is too much for my “well used and loved” body. I LOVED running and hiking! Most especially hiking!
I had a small hip fracture in 2019 right before Covid hit. It took me a year to recover from that only to rupture my Achilles tendon last year and need major surgery on my tendon, heel bone, and calf. And then 55 pounds piled on….
Doctors orders- no high impact anything from now on.
I find gym equipment super boring. Plus, I do not have the budget for fitness club memberships and personal trainers. Besides, I would rather be outside!
Right now, I am walking my dog in the morning and doing light “old lady” yoga. It took me a year to work up to walking a mile in the morning after my surgery. I was on crutches for months so I have lost ALL cardiovascular fitness and strength. So frustrating! I used to be super active every day.
Does anyone do anything low impact and FUN outside? I know myself. If it’s not fun I won’t stick with it. I like to try new things so I am open to any and all suggestions.
Thanks!
Do you live near water?- Swimming, Scuba, and Snorkeling--are all low impact but it will have impact on overall health. At the very least, it might be fun to do on vacation.
- Light kayaking --perhaps on a lake.
- Golfing--if you don't overdo it.
- Gardening--depending on what you do.
- Bicycling--certain types of cycling and types of bikes are low impact.
- Outdoor Tai Chi.
- Water Aerobics.
- Pilates/Yoga.
- Tubing
- Walking
Most water sports are low-impact. If you don't overdo it, you can do some biking (they have recumbent ones and three-wheel/adult trikes/electric assist bikes). If you like golfing, it can be low-impact. If you find it boring, maybe mini-golf?
You can even get a bike that lean backs and sits on the ground--low impact or get an electric assist bike which lowers the impact.
[Hangs head in shame] I never learned how to swim. Sigh
I grew up in the middle of a city with no opportunity to learn.
I thought of learning to swim and looked for lessons near me. 99.9% of them are for children. The one or two places I found who were willing to teach adults cost $120 an hour. Ouch
Start with floating. It's easier. Once you master a basic float, you can do a very basic backstroke. It is much easier than other forms of swimming.
Video Floating
I am not the world's best swimmer, but I can float really well. It's a low-skill way to learn to do a basic float and back stroke.
Second float video
Go from float to basic back swim
Front Float to Gliding
Floating is a an easy way to get a basic safety swim.0 -
Even "water walking" in a pool is good exercise. When I went to the Y (for adult swim lessons in my 40s!) there would often be people doing water walking in the part of the pool that was not in lanes, but was set up for family & free play. Plenty of that area was no more than chest deep for most adults.2
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Even "water walking" in a pool is good exercise. When I went to the Y (for adult swim lessons in my 40s!) there would often be people doing water walking in the part of the pool that was not in lanes, but was set up for family & free play. Plenty of that area was no more than chest deep for most adults.
And water aerobics--doesn't require swimming.0 -
VeryHungryCatepillar45 wrote: »VeryHungryCatepillar45 wrote: »Hello! I need some exercise advice. I used to be a long distance runner (many years ago). Due to some orthopedic issues, coupled with the upper end of middle age, I can no longer engage in any kind of high impact exercise. Everything I used to do for fitness is too much for my “well used and loved” body. I LOVED running and hiking! Most especially hiking!
I had a small hip fracture in 2019 right before Covid hit. It took me a year to recover from that only to rupture my Achilles tendon last year and need major surgery on my tendon, heel bone, and calf. And then 55 pounds piled on….
Doctors orders- no high impact anything from now on.
I find gym equipment super boring. Plus, I do not have the budget for fitness club memberships and personal trainers. Besides, I would rather be outside!
Right now, I am walking my dog in the morning and doing light “old lady” yoga. It took me a year to work up to walking a mile in the morning after my surgery. I was on crutches for months so I have lost ALL cardiovascular fitness and strength. So frustrating! I used to be super active every day.
Does anyone do anything low impact and FUN outside? I know myself. If it’s not fun I won’t stick with it. I like to try new things so I am open to any and all suggestions.
Thanks!
Do you live near water?- Swimming, Scuba, and Snorkeling--are all low impact but it will have impact on overall health. At the very least, it might be fun to do on vacation.
- Light kayaking --perhaps on a lake.
- Golfing--if you don't overdo it.
- Gardening--depending on what you do.
- Bicycling--certain types of cycling and types of bikes are low impact.
- Outdoor Tai Chi.
- Water Aerobics.
- Pilates/Yoga.
- Tubing
- Walking
Most water sports are low-impact. If you don't overdo it, you can do some biking (they have recumbent ones and three-wheel/adult trikes/electric assist bikes). If you like golfing, it can be low-impact. If you find it boring, maybe mini-golf?
You can even get a bike that lean backs and sits on the ground--low impact or get an electric assist bike which lowers the impact.
[Hangs head in shame] I never learned how to swim. Sigh
I grew up in the middle of a city with no opportunity to learn.
I thought of learning to swim and looked for lessons near me. 99.9% of them are for children. The one or two places I found who were willing to teach adults cost $120 an hour. Ouch
I put some floating videos below. Easy swim starter.
But you may want to try to borrow a bike--different bikes have different impact...but if you stayed in the flat areas, you could do some light biking. Eventually--if money improves you might even look into an electric assist bike or one of the adult trikes/recumbent used --used you can sometimes find them cheaper.
But for now, you might just try borrowing a bike. It's okay if you don't ride, put on the tiny training wheels, they are small--no one will notice.
My inner ear/balance is messed up so bikes, swimming, skates are all difficult. So I float. I uses training wheels or an adult trike bike, and I gave up on skates.0 -
I can't do anything high-impact or high-intensity due to various medical things, so mostly I use my little no-frills stationary bike and do physiotherapy exercises. I've also been experimenting with videos from the YouTube channel SeniorShape with Lauren; she has a bunch that are for chair or floor that include light weightlifting, exercise balls, stuff like that. Her standing, walking, and dancing videos are sometimes too fast-paced for me, but I just slow down a bit. You might find some workouts you enjoy. If you're older and have access to a senior centre, you might find an outside walking group (if you like doing things in a group). Ditto the suggestions about aquatic fitness classes.1
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I primarily walk and ride my bikes. Cycling is a great low impact exercise that also gets your heart rate up to a more strenuous level than walking.0
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If you have access to a kayak it makes for a great low impact workout. I'm not the best swimmer so I wear a life jacket at all times. Smaller, calm bodies of water are great for learning.0
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