I hate my elliptical and other sad tales

CrisEBTrue

I bought my elliptical trainer a couple of years ago. I had been laid off of my job, where there was a free gym. And after about a year of feeling sorry for myself and eating too many brownies, I decided to just buy my own machine.

Actually, I had been looking for a stair stepper; at one point in my up and down exercise path (no pun intended) I had actually gotten addicted to the stair stepper at the gym. I liked being able to adjust the amount of resistance, etc.
Of course, stair steppers are now passe and I couldn't find one, so I bought the elliptical.

Let's just say I haven't used it much, although my intentions were good (aren't they always).

It just seemed so difficult..the foot pads seem far apart and my feet were always in the wrong place... it just felt awkward.
And of course it's B O R I N G. I can't read while I'm on the thing. I play games on my phone or another device when
I'm on my stationary bike, but I can't do that on the elliptical.

Today, however, I had a breakthrough.

It's the shoes.
YES.

I was wearing regular athletic shoes when I was using the elliptical. I hate athletic shoes anyway.
Even the Skechers DeLites are clonky and heavy and did I meantion I'm a klutz anyway? I can't wear athletic shoes
for very long because my feet start getting claustrophobia. (If you're feet don't panic in tightly enclosed spaces, be thanksful)

But today I was wearing some Crocs flats. I like them because I can feel the floor.

Guess what. It was a LOT easier in these softer, flat shoes.
So that's what I'll be wearing on the elliptical (and the bike too, for that matter) from now on.

Now. I'm thinking about getting a tv down in the basement so I will at least have some kind of lame entertainment to stare at while I chug away on the machine.

:laugh:

(I managed to stick it out for five *5* minutes today. I'm going to work on increasing my time by a minute or so every couple of days)

What's YOUR exercise-equipment-tale-of woe?? DO tell!

ker95texas

First... WAY TO GO on your breakthrough!!!:glasses:

Five? Eight? Ten? years ago happened to be in Sears and they were having a sale on treadmills. Walking is about the only exercise I've ever been able to stick with (but had long become unstuck after moving to Texas from Wisconsin where the temperatures/humidity make it hard to breathe even first thing in the morning AND moving into the country away from my subdivision streets). Wonderful husband said.. but will you use it? I say... I think so. Maybe not right now, but eventually. I hope. Get the 1000 pound (exag) thing home, set up and admire it. Admire it when it's in the bedroom. Admire it when it got moved to the living room (actually thought if it was in front of the tv AND in my face I might use it. not All it did was trip me and look ugly). Ignore it when it gets moved to the spare bedroom, set up to look out the windows. In the multitude of years we've had the thing it may have been used 2 hours total.

The only thing I can say for myself is I never used it as a storage space or coat hanger.

Fast forward to present time, when I am so tired of being so fat. Did 8 minutes at 2mph. thought I'd die. Worked up to 15 minutes at a time... 45 minutes to recover, repeat for 3 times a day. Have to watch the incline for the sake of my knees. After 3 weeks, I'm be up to a 30 minutes single walk at 3 mph @ 2.5% incline, and plan on increasing speed and/or duration.

Dug out the manual TODAY and discovered I can change the hardness of the walking surface and there's a FAN on there :laugh:

I have a nice view out the window to look at and have a playlist set up for the 'beats per minute' I walk (if I didn't have music to keep my rhythm i'd probably fall on my face <klutzy>).

When we bought the thing I didn't realize how much into the future i was investing in!

side note: I have a foot/ankle problem that the podiatrist admits I have, but can't diagnose after every test possible. I got tired of keeping off & raising it (for a year) and just started walking. BUT.. he did advise me to ditch my Rebocks/Nikes & get the highest style # of ASICS shoes i could afford. I love them - mesh tops and LOTS of toe space. No foot claustrophobia anymore But give me my Croc flats when i'm just bebopping around the house!

CrisEBTrue

YAY YOU and the Treadmill!!! I love it!!!

Thanks for the tip about the ASICS shoes. I'll put them on my list.

We moved from CA to NC a little over a year ago. From the city to the country.
In the city there were miles and miles of sidewalks. At one point I was walking 45 minutes to an hour a day.

Now... we're out in the county and there are NO sidewalks here. The main road is narrow and you're not going to catch
me out there. I have walked up to the road and then across into another neighborhood.. but. Weather here is REAL weather, not that wimpy CA stuff. So I'm stuck inside..

But. At least I'm getting back on the elliptical.

Thanks again for sharing your encouraging experience!

jeanmrob

You both write so well ....you have made me smile....... I don't have a similar inspiring tale to tell....... I have had a couple of stationary bikes in the past but never could get on with them........ I have a hula hoop which I am a whizz at but rarely use....and I have a skipping rope which I realised was just too hard....I may revisit that slowly now that I have a good support bra! :bigsmile:

What I have taken to is running........ i always walked and took up running last September and even though I don't intend to run a Marathon I am really enjoying slowly plodding along for a few miles........ the feeling I get is great - a real sense of achievement and I was thrilled the other day when my son's 26 year old girlfriend told me she has taken up running so she can "do a Jean" .. .... we "oldies" can still inspire the kids! :laugh:

Jean

sousiechef

Still hate my elliptical ( would much rather walk outdoors) but sometimes just
have to suck it up. I find mindless TV does help when working out on
the elliptical.

californiagirl1950

You all are amazing and I loved reading your stories!

I got an elliptical about 3 years ago. Mine has a seat also, so it doubles as a stationary bike. When I first used it, OMG I could do maybe 3 minutes then had to sit down! I got my old record player out (yes, I said record) grabbed my albums and put on some great music from my era. I started out with 5 minutes of elliptical, then would sit and do 5 minutes of biking. To start I did maybe 10 minutes total, but, I increased each week 5 more minutes and before long was doing 40, mostly standing up! I have not been able to use it for that past 5 weeks due to my leg pain and just had the hip replaced 2 weeks ago. I am so looking forward to when the doc says ok, you can get back on it. Sounds crazy to me when I get so excited over exercising, but when you make it a habit, you do miss it.

bedwellchris

Such fun stories! I have never bought any of the big equipment; we usually go to a gym. But I have my share of mats, balls, 8 lb. weights, a roller, jump rope, bands, and Wii with dance revolutions, yoga, and physical games (bowling, golfing, tennis, etc.) My husband got rid of my step when I wasn't using it and threatens to get rid of some of the other. About 40 years ago, I bought one of those things that hook to a door knob-don't remember what happened to it! :mad:

CrisEBTrue

We moved here a little over a year ago, and I didn't realize how much the non-California-style weather was going to affect my
determination to WALK.

WAAH. :sad:

I briefly considered joining a gym-type place 2 miles away at a local shopping center. But I read a lot of negative things about
their business practices and decided that I didn't want to risk that kind of money when I could just as well sweat in the privacy of my own home.

And I'll admit I did NOT exercise at all today. I went out early for a mammogram and after I got home I just wasn't feeling great.
I don't know why, just... blah, so I gave myself a day off.

:happy:

DreamOn145

I have worked in a home health agency for most of my working career and even though I am a nurse, I have had the advantage of being able to talk to the physical therapists and oocupational therapists about exercise equipment. In 2008 I was going to buy a treadmill and one of the PTs advised me against it. She said that since I had arthritis in my right knee, I would be better off with an elliptical because they are much kinder to joints, particularly knees and hips. So, I bought the elliptical and used it for several years. Then I started having problems with my shoulder (secondary to 25 years of carrying a home health nursing bag on it I assume) and in October of 2013 had a major shoulder reconstruction. Well during that period I happened to be talking to one of the therapists about the fact that I wondered how long it would be until I could use the elliptical again and she said, well really I am surprised that you like it. She said they are not really very ergonomically correct for short people!! (sigh). So as a reward to myself for surviving that surgery I bought a really nice (and I looked and looked and would only buy a nice sturdy comfortable one) recumbant bike that its in the livingroom angled towards my TV. I love that thing!!! Once I had built up a little endurance I found that I could sit on it and watch TV and almost forget I was exercising. I have to continually push myself to new levels to remind myself!! I do, however, feel that there is nothing quite as good for balance as walking. So, right now I try to walk in the morning and do the elliptical in the afternoon. I also have some exercise videos that I rotate that include yoga for stretching and dance just for fun. Oh and I have also been hooked on Asics for many years. They seem to just be the best for me!!!

CrisEBTrue

When I use the elliptical, I don't always use the moving handles, I usually just hold the stationary handles.
Mine monitors my heart rate as well, so that's some motivation to keep going and keep my heart rate up.

That's interesting about the elliptical not being good for short people. I'm just 5'4", so that would explain the
awkwardness I experience with the foot pads. :noway:

I was looking at perhaps putting a tv downstairs.. but.. my husband is a computer genius, and he just installed a
TiVO app on my ipad. It will permit me to watch anything that our TiVO system has recorded. I'd watched tv shows
on my ipad before, but the app I used isn't compatible with our cable company.

My exercise bike is a recumbent style too. I can read when I'm on it, so that makes the time go fairly fast.
I have the thighs of an Olympic Speed Skater, and none of the muscle. :sad:

I shall persevere. Some days are better than others.

ker95texas

<sigh> The Klutz gene took over for a few minutes today & i ended up taking a hard fall in a parking lot as I was greeting the folks I was having lunch with. Quite a graceful entrance <NOT!>

My knees are scratched up and not happy, but at least i didn't break my glasses! Gotta look at the bright side, right?

... off to take some ibuprofen LOL

phylsyl

I have an exercise machine in every upstairs room! Late husband got these crazy ideas that he "needed" them, then used them obsessively for a while and then left them alone! The only one I use is the stationary bike. Have a Stairmaster from back in the day, if you want to trade it for the elliptical! I tried it a while ago and it was hell on my knees and hips! Lasted about three minutes! I also have a Nautilus torso machine, which I like but rarely use. MFP doesn't allot calories for strength training, which is where the abdomen/torso machine is listed, and without owning an HRM, I have no idea how many calories I burn, so I do what gives me more bang for the exertion! I need to get back on the thing, so I can strengthen my core! And, yes, I do use the Stairmaster to hang clothes on!!

ker95texas

<waving hi again to my companions on this journey..>

For some reason (temporary insanity) I decided to order an exercise/yoga mat last week. Tile floors just don't cut it for this creaky body! I'm quite proud of myself that it only lived in its delivery box in the garage from Friday until this morning

So i tried Jane Fonda's Yoga for Beginners this morning. I can't put any weight on my bruised shin yet, so only made it through about half of her first routine (It's a free video for Amazon Prime members), and have some observations to share:

1. Lovely Jane says 'Watch how your muscles contract. Can't you just FEEL this in your abs?' Dear Jane: I don't think i have any ab muscles. I could kinda see my belly flab move a little - does that count?
2. I'm out of shape.
3. I'm REALLY out of shape!
4. I will say that even the little bit I did helped with 'warming up' before my treadmill walk. I'm woefully horrible about doing any warm ups, but today was able to walk a bit longer with less strain.
5. Cats are NOT HELPFUL when attempting yoga, especially if one of them is a hyperactive half siamese,

Wonderful (skinny) hubby tells me he's going to develop a 'redneck yoga routine'. May have to try to get him to do his 'load and aim', 'does a bear... in the woods squat', 'riding a horse', 'riding a bull', and' landing a big one' exercises again to get them on video, yup. Including his cowboy hat of course :laugh:

CrisEBTrue

Ha!!! I love your hubby's redneck yoga routine.. that's hilarious.

I have to say; if you actually ordered your yoga mat, got it out, put it on the floor, did some exercises on it, AND...
managed to GET UP OFF THE FLOOR AGAIN, then as far as I'm concerned you deserve a medal!!

I was looking at some exercise classes offered locally through the rec departments in some of the senior centers.
They do have a yoga class that is done sitting or standing by a chair.

Some of their classes look good. The only problem is; although there are several locations offering these classes, they are all at least 20-25 minutes from me. I know.. I'm retired, so that shouldn't be a problem, but ....I know myself.
And if the place is more than 10 minutes away... I will not go.