What exercises for people over 200?

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  • swat1948
    swat1948 Posts: 302 Member
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    I am slightly over 200 and I ride a stationary bike and I give it hell. Also I have had both knees replaced and in my opinion there is no better exercise for people with joint problems.
  • BobbieJoDever
    BobbieJoDever Posts: 17
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    I would recommend walking to get started. My weight is at 229 right now and there are some exercises that are hard like jumping jacks, push ups, and mountain climbers. I do at home workouts. I sometimes use Jillian Micheal's dvd's but most of the time I use EA Sports for the PS3. In my opinion it is a lot less expensive than a gym membership overtime. After I get down to 200 I'm going to reward myself with Jillian Micheal's Body Revolution! For the majority of exercises though anyone can do them you just have to put forth your best effort and eat healthy and you will be on your way to success.
  • obeserat
    obeserat Posts: 218 Member
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    I started cycling the 10 miles to work when I weighed over 300lb
    I cycle every day. I'm about 280lb+ now
  • Lynxie83
    Lynxie83 Posts: 246
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    As others have said, don't limit yourself, you should be able to do everything! I have been seeing fantastic results from 2 30min cardio sessions (boxing) and three weight/strength sessions a week (not always super heavy lifting, but a good solid hour session). I have recently coupled this 5 days a week schedule with Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shredvideo on Mon, Wed, Fri nights.

    I am currently hovering around the 105kg mark (so over 220 pounds) and have been steadily losing 1kg a week for the last 7 weeks. Just listen to your body, don't push through actual pain, but push your limits.

    If you can afford to go to a gym or see a personal trainer I highly recommend it! They offer all the knowledge, encouragement and support you will benefit from to start your journey on the right path :)

    Happy exercising!
  • casi_ann
    casi_ann Posts: 423 Member
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    When I started this new way of life I was 241 pounds. My mother-in-law who is 70 was literally walking circles around me when we went on vacation. When I would say i have to sit down and rest she started walking around me in circles, doing jumping jacks, etc...(hurt my feeling but showed me the truth) I became short of breath, chest discomfort, sweating walking probably less than one tenth of a mile at that time, and that was at a very slow pace. I'm 52 years old. Anyway, I had to lose about 20 pounds before I could really get started. I have a heart murmur so I can't just go out there and do what ever I want and a lot of people have cardiac conditions that they don't even know about so please be careful especially if you are over 200 pounds. Listen to your body. If you get short of breath or have chest pain easily don't push yourself outside of a slow pace. This is what i did and am doing to get myself more physically fit again. First of all I lost 20 pounds by eating healthy, I walked short distances at a slow pace gradually picking up speed and distance until I got to a 20 pound loss, After I lost 20 pounds I noticed I no longer get short of breath or have chest pain when I'm walking, even if i'm walking at a fast pace, I can now walk one mile in 20 minutes. I do this 2 x day. My goal is to walk 2 miles in 30 minutes by the end of fall. I'm thinking about adding yoga to my exercise schedule for flexibility and strength training for muscle tone. I am starting to actually like exercise and being active. Two months ago I would have never guessed that I would ever say that. Good luck and don't give up.
  • sarah2954
    sarah2954 Posts: 291 Member
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    My fiance started cycling when he was in the 280s
  • ockara
    ockara Posts: 33 Member
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    I have to agree with the others, don't limit yourself.

    I walk,jog,swim, strength train and clean houses 50 hours a week.

    Everyone is different but start with what you can do and push yourself a little more each time. :)
  • jerbear1962
    jerbear1962 Posts: 1,157 Member
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    I started at almost 400 and did anything that I could do without hurting myself. I knew at that time getting down on the floor for push ups and situps were a complete no no so I walked, I would lean against a wall and do push outs. I danced, I walked my dog, help cleaning around the house, yard work( we actually had flowers this year), washing the cars anything to burn calories. I would have swam all summer but I didn't have the extra money to go to pool. Good luck on whatever you do to get going.
  • sharoncasey60
    sharoncasey60 Posts: 60 Member
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    I star ted @ 200 and kept up with the same exercises I like, depending on the weather. I have had 3 surgeries in the last 2 years, but I am doing biking for 20 - 45 - 60 minutes a day(if I can). Mix it up with yoga, not much, because I have to do physical therapy for shoulder and knee (for post surgery). When I wasn't worried about new injuries (shoulder and knee) I was doing water aerobics for 3 hours a week and I LOVED IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'd say whatever you LIKE and can do. I'm also an outdoor addict and can't stay inside in the summer. I count, l hour of gardening....(I garden on a hill) and it comes up to quite a few calories. JUST KEEP ACTIVE and make it part of your day.
  • ahlani
    ahlani Posts: 25 Member
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    I don't like to go to gyms, I am uncomfortable in those settings and it was inconvenient to go. So many years ago I bought a very nice elliptical for my home after I tested out every unit on the market.

    It was relatively expensive, but I got a good deal on a gently used unit. It was the best investment I ever made, it didn't hurt and has low joint impact that was especially helpful when I was a heavier size 18.

    It eventually just became great fun to use in maintaining the weight loss, so I bought a newer more advanced, flexible unit that adjusts in incline earlier this year. I love that thing, every other personal material item I own does not even come close to the value that machine holds for me.
  • Starfish_418
    Starfish_418 Posts: 6
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    I am 245 lbs. and I just started to run a few weeks ago. Am I great at it? No. Am I getting better? YUP. I think that regardless of your weight you can do any exercise. Just listen to your body., When you need to rest, rest.
  • lsjd2000
    lsjd2000 Posts: 287 Member
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    When I First started I was prob around 230-240 no clue since we didnt have a scale - we started by walking almost everyday - then joined the Y and started using the eliptical and walking out side when the weather was nice - then added in weight training Course then I started working full time and totally didnt exercise much for a year (why I havent lost much in the last year or so :grumble: my own fault) SO at 220 starting again (bought a scale so I would know) I use a treadmil at home that we bought eachother for christmas and teo bo videos (actually i use many vidoes as I get bored very easily) and do what I can sometimes there are things I can do fully somtimes I have to modify it a bit but each time it gets better. You can do pretty much any exercise you want - a friend at work thats over 200 is doing insanity she said she has to modify alot and cant do the jumps but in the end its all about getting up and moving.
  • drgndancer
    drgndancer Posts: 426 Member
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    Unless you're pretty short, 200 pounds isn't overweight enough to warrant a "special" exercise plan. You should be able to do just about anything. Hell I'm over 200 pounds and I'm training for a half marathon. Granted I'm a 6 ft tall guy and 200 isn't terribly far off of a healthy weight for me. Still even at 5'4", 200 pounds isn't *that* heavy. You should be able to do most anything.
  • dlwyatt82
    dlwyatt82 Posts: 1,077 Member
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    I weigh over 300 pounds (just under 200 of that is lean mass, according to my body fat estimates). I've been doing barbell lifting in the gym for about 4 months, plus some light cardio (elliptical mostly), and I've just started getting back into karate classes again as well.

    These workouts seriously kicked my *kitten* at first (after the first karate class, I was limping around for 4 days due to incredibly tight, sore calves), but your body WILL adapt to them. There may be some point where you have to take your weight into consideration when planning exercise, but I doubt you're there at 200. Just pick something you like, go for it, and don't get discouraged when it hurts like hell at first.
  • DavPul
    DavPul Posts: 61,406 Member
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    All of the exercises.

    Also, in future please give more info. 200 pounds at 5 foot tall is totally different from being 6 foot. Age matters too.
  • emtb319
    emtb319 Posts: 87
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    I'm just below 300 and I have a recumbent exercise bike that I use for cardio. I love it!! I also participate with the daily mini goals here. Once you start doing it, it gets easier and easier. Just last week, I could barely do 5 minutes on the bike, stopping once or twice and sweating my rear off and huffing and puffing. This week, I feel like I could bike forever. I can go 15+ minutes at a time. The best thing to do is start. At first, it will take a lot of effort for what seems like a little work, but after a short while it will get easier and easier.
  • Irish_eyes75
    Irish_eyes75 Posts: 475
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    At 244 I thought all i could handle was walking - somehow I was damned to the treadmill for a while.
    I joined a women only gym and the owner "forced" me to take a spin class. I say force jokingly, she scolded me for thinking I was too big to handle it and I was so fearful of being the fat girl who had to leave in the middle of class. Well, i took the class and even though I didn't do all the fancy stuff everyone else was doing, I did the entire class and I felt unbelievable after. Don't get me wrong, I was dead and couldn't walk for days but I was empowered!! The next week I added a cardio kickboxing class and that was amazing too. I never stepped foot on the treadmill after those classes.
    You can do anything. Really!
  • porffor
    porffor Posts: 1,212 Member
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    I was 227 when I started moving my butt.. and chose the C25k with a 5k race for life charity run as my goal. I ran it but slowly.. there is a term penguin runner.. that is still me and will be for life I've learnt.
    Also.. I had a life long dream of learning to ride a horse - so I picked up the phone and was amazed I COULD ride a horse even at my weight.. it was just very tall! lol So I started riding lessons.

    8 years down the line I've maintained 40 ish lbs of loss (I have dipped 9lb lower than my current weight briefly). And had a baby - that saw me increase my weight. BUT.. I now own a 14 hand (not so tall as to let me afford to become heavier again) large pony and ride and work out..

    So whatever you do - make sure it's something you ENJOY! Don't slog the calories off doing something you hate..life is too short!

    Marital arts is great for low impact too.. I loved Karate before I fell pregnant. :)

    If you have any doubts on injuries etc get advice from a medically trained person.. or fitness instructor etc.
  • Southernsass6885
    Southernsass6885 Posts: 100 Member
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    A few years ago, I started at 256. I couldn't do an elliptical more than 8 minutes, I went to the gym and hated all the skinny *itches, and going upstairs exhausted me. So, I took baby steps. I'd park the car father from the store, so I'd walk further. I'd walk on a treadmill at my normal pace, but added a bit of an incline. And all these little steps put together, I was later able to be on the elliptical machine for an hour, I went to bootcamp classes, and I'm about to start training to do a marathon with my brother next year.

    So, not telling you what to do, but just start small, hon. Things take time. And with a little patience, we'll all be able to look at those skinny/healthy *itches and realize that we're one of them.
  • lostwisdom
    lostwisdom Posts: 73 Member
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    I'm in my 200s and do walking, badminton, my fitness coach on the wii, and soon swimming as well. Don't let it hold you back!

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