Good ways to get in my workout?

baileybiddles

Hi everyone,

This afternoon I did day 1 of Couch to 5k only to come home with a knee swollen to the size of a baseball. Not sure what happened, but I made sure to warm up for at least 5 minutes before starting my intervals and that was a miserable failure.

I get the idea that running isn't necessarily going to be my thing. I have been big into yoga for some months now, and while it burns over 200 calories per hour, I am only able to get to class three times per week.

What should I do to fill the gaps? I am finding that the traditional go to the gym thing isn't working out well for me. Would it be pertinent to simply walk on the days I am not at yoga, like a good power walk? It is getting nicer and it will be easier to get outside. I just need some tips on what others do to get in their exercise other than going to the gym. Even any good at home workout solutions, like DVD's, would be good.

DavPul

There are hundreds of ways to work out. On my non gym days I have a ton of different activities to choose from. I choose the ones that I enjoy. Figure out what you would like to do and do it.

baileybiddles

There are hundreds of ways to work out. On my non gym days I have a ton of different activities to choose from. I choose the ones that I enjoy. Figure out what you would like to do and do it.

Thank you for the advice. I guess I am just having a hard time figuring out what I'd like to do. I love being in a pool, but I actually can't SWIM, I just goof around. I guess even that's good exercise come summer. Other than that, I am lost.

Capt_Apollo

do you have a bike? when i was just getting started, i loved cycling (still do). i felt that i could go much faster, and i could go much much farther then i could running, it was great cardiovascular exercise, and very easy on the knees. and if you have a nice scenery to look at, even better.

baileybiddles

do you have a bike? when i was just getting started, i loved cycling (still do). i felt that i could go much faster, and i could go much much farther then i could running, it was great cardiovascular exercise, and very easy on the knees. and if you have a nice scenery to look at, even better.

That's actually an awesome idea. I do have a bike, but it's not overly comfortable for me to ride on; perhaps I will invest in a good bike and try doing that. I personally live in a crummy city, but I am not far from a beautiful farm with walking trails that I could easily take a bike to. Thanks for the advice.

sdover1109

There are websites that offer yoga videos online for free. All you have to do is google it and do a little digging. I am a stay at home mother of two little girls and this is what I do. It helps since I don't go to the gym.

DavPul

Biking is a great, low impact idea. So is walking.

You can go into the cardio database here on MFP and click the dropdown menu and see hundreds of exercise choices

Capt_Apollo

do you have a bike? when i was just getting started, i loved cycling (still do). i felt that i could go much faster, and i could go much much farther then i could running, it was great cardiovascular exercise, and very easy on the knees. and if you have a nice scenery to look at, even better.

That's actually an awesome idea. I do have a bike, but it's not overly comfortable for me to ride on; perhaps I will invest in a good bike and try doing that. I personally live in a crummy city, but I am not far from a beautiful farm with walking trails that I could easily take a bike to. Thanks for the advice.

a bike seat takes some getting used to. go to you local bike shop and make friends. get a good seat (not seat cover) and get the bike sized up for you. you'd be surprised how raising or lowering the seat can make the ride more comfortable.

padded bike shorts are great too. i know i know, i originally thought "i'm not fit enough to wear bike shorts." but then i realized they were very comfortable, helped protect the boys, and in the beginning when i was a little self concious, i wore gym shorts over them (they do make bike shorts that look like regular shorts).

and it's good to make friends with th LBS people. they love helping fellow cyclists.

baileybiddles

do you have a bike? when i was just getting started, i loved cycling (still do). i felt that i could go much faster, and i could go much much farther then i could running, it was great cardiovascular exercise, and very easy on the knees. and if you have a nice scenery to look at, even better.

That's actually an awesome idea. I do have a bike, but it's not overly comfortable for me to ride on; perhaps I will invest in a good bike and try doing that. I personally live in a crummy city, but I am not far from a beautiful farm with walking trails that I could easily take a bike to. Thanks for the advice.

a bike seat takes some getting used to. go to you local bike shop and make friends. get a good seat (not seat cover) and get the bike sized up for you. you'd be surprised how raising or lowering the seat can make the ride more comfortable.

padded bike shorts are great too. i know i know, i originally thought "i'm not fit enough to wear bike shorts." but then i realized they were very comfortable, helped protect the boys, and in the beginning when i was a little self concious, i wore gym shorts over them (they do make bike shorts that look like regular shorts).

and it's good to make friends with th LBS people. they love helping fellow cyclists.

Well, I don't have to worry about protecting any boys, but everything else sounds awesome.

kaseymei

I recently started the Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred. It's a quick workout and I found the video free on youtube. Just turn it on do the video when you have 25 minutes of spare time. You will feel the burn!

Dogwalkingirl

You said you love to be in the water..what about aquafit? You don't have to be able to swim and do laps..they have deep water and shallow water classes. I love to be in the water too and enjoy laps but also like aquafit classes and it is low impact so would be good on your joints.

I am also doing Insanity DVD's right now and love them but...im not gonna lie that are hard!! However you go at your own pace and do what you can and you will see improvement quickly. I could barely do 4 push ups two weeks ago and yesterday I did 5 sets of 8!!

Capt_Apollo

do you have a bike? when i was just getting started, i loved cycling (still do). i felt that i could go much faster, and i could go much much farther then i could running, it was great cardiovascular exercise, and very easy on the knees. and if you have a nice scenery to look at, even better.

That's actually an awesome idea. I do have a bike, but it's not overly comfortable for me to ride on; perhaps I will invest in a good bike and try doing that. I personally live in a crummy city, but I am not far from a beautiful farm with walking trails that I could easily take a bike to. Thanks for the advice.

a bike seat takes some getting used to. go to you local bike shop and make friends. get a good seat (not seat cover) and get the bike sized up for you. you'd be surprised how raising or lowering the seat can make the ride more comfortable.

padded bike shorts are great too. i know i know, i originally thought "i'm not fit enough to wear bike shorts." but then i realized they were very comfortable, helped protect the boys, and in the beginning when i was a little self concious, i wore gym shorts over them (they do make bike shorts that look like regular shorts).

and it's good to make friends with th LBS people. they love helping fellow cyclists.

Well, I don't have to worry about protecting any boys, but everything else sounds awesome.

according to my cousin, she says that protecting the lady bits is important too.

sweetums2

It will be one week this friday since I started here but I have been stuggling for a long time. I am arthrtic so even walking can be a challenge. I work out in my garden at my own pace. I lift bags of soil and mulch and do a lot of raking and digging in the yard. It seems to be working for me so far. I need to take brakes here and there but I push on and get in a good sweat. If you can go swimming somewhere that would be easy on your knees. Like you said walking is great! Infact my doctor told me that walking was the only thing he approves of for me. I just get bored too easy. I need a friend to walk with since I like to talk and walk at the same time. I wish you a lot of luck with this please just do not give up on yourself. You will find what works for you. Oh, by the way some places offer chair arobics that are easy on your knees too!

baileybiddles

Thanks everyone, I definitely needed some ideas!

FireTigerSoul

I highly recommend the10-Minute Solution DVD series. You can find them on Amazon.com. They have workouts in a lot of different areas (pilates, yoga, dance, bootcamp, etc.). The best part is that they all break a 50 minute workout video into five, 10-minute workouts. You can choose to do just one 10 minute workout, or you can add more to do, say, a 30 minute workout. You can also mix and match the workouts.

I've been using the Pilates Perfect Body and I love it. If I don't have enough time for a full workout, I can just do one or two workouts on the video, and I feel like I've at least done something for the day.