Exercise at BMI 40

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  • Danny_Boy13
    Danny_Boy13 Posts: 2,094 Member
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    Just be a little careful if you squat - it can be rather tough on the knees.

    If done correctly squats help to build up knee strength. If done incorrectly then yes it can be detrimental.
  • sheermomentum
    sheermomentum Posts: 827 Member
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    I tried an exercise a few days ago, and I could hear my knees crunching. Oups.

    you could hear them crunching or you could feel pain...

    my partner is in excellent shape...like FANTASTIC shape and he can hear his knees popping all the time...he's had them checked, they are fine. He feels no pain they are just noisy.

    don't overthink this.

    if it hurts, stop...if it makes a noise...it's just a noise.

    The noise comes first, the pain starts later. My knees crunched for about 8 years before the pain started. I would go gently on them.

    Swimming and cycling are lower impact than walking, and both burn more calories per minute. Your BMI alone doesn't meant you CAN'T safely do other things, but if you have concerns, then why not start with those things and some strength training, and go from there :)
  • MadameLAL
    MadameLAL Posts: 108
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    Walking, biking, swimming. I especially like walking since it's easy, available and cheap--buy some walking shoes and just go.
  • flatlndr
    flatlndr Posts: 713 Member
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    Hi Mia,

    Adding to / agreeing with some of the other posters, here's my 2 cents ...

    I started off with a BMI of 40 as well. I also have a bad knee ... I had key hole surgery last year to fix a torn meniscus, and I have also developed osteoarthritis in that same knee. Since the beginning of the year, I have walked my way down to a BMI of 35.

    Like you, I'm now looking to add a bit of variety. I picked up a turbo trainer for my bicycle, so every other day, instead of one of my walks, I'm going to spin in my garage. I'll start off gently, work my way up slowly, and by the time the weather changes, I hope to be ready to for some extended road riding.

    I'm also looking into starting a gym membership, so that I can get access to an elliptical trainer, as well as start some upper body strengthening work.

    Finally, I have a wobble board at home, on which I do a few squats a day. No added weights, just my own body weight for now. The reason I use the wobble board is to make sure I am doing a balanced effort, so that I don't cheat and let the good knee do all the work.

    I hope this helps. Good luck!
  • lvbor
    lvbor Posts: 50 Member
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    I'm just below 45, down from 50. My favourite cardio exercise is jogging on a mini-trampoline. I do it at home, with the radio or tv on, so there's no barrier of getting to the gym or having good outside weather or being in the right frame of mind to be around other people. More importantly, it's fantastic for the joints, so I've been able to see a noticeable improvement in my cardiovascular fitness and leg muscle strength without any knee or ankle pain at all.

    I also do squats, knee push ups and planks. I've been doing them 3 times a week for about a month and have had a noticeable improvement in that time too, with no injury issues. Just last night, when I got to three sets of push ups for the first time, I was having a private chuckle--morbidly obese and doing push-ups, oh yeah! This exercise thing is fun when you get into it :)

    Best of luck to you!
  • DamianaKitten
    DamianaKitten Posts: 479 Member
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    I weigh 241 and have recently started exercising again. I stop when my joints start to hurt, usually my right knee goes first. So, if you're experiencing joint pain, stop. Take things slow, figure out where your comfort level is with whatever activities you are doing, and start there. I usually increase my level of activity once a week to give my joints time to adjust, except for my runs, and even then I stop running if my knees start to hurt. A bit of soreness, for me, is different, but find what works for you. Take it slow. :smile:
  • meganuhl1
    meganuhl1 Posts: 26 Member
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    I started with a BMI over 52 (at 29 yrs of age) I started with walking around 3mph on a treadmill and now I'm around a BMI of 31 and in week 7 of C25K with speed up to 7 mph. Once in a while I will toss in a workout dvd like butt bible or jillian micheals 30 day shred.
  • Dewymorning
    Dewymorning Posts: 762 Member
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    My BMI when I started 2yrs ago was 55%. Now I'm at 38%.

    BMI is an index, not a percentage.

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