Newbie - Exercise substitutions?
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Epiphany_Addict
Posts: 3 Member
Hi! I've just started doing 30DS and I thought it might be an idea if we made a list of exercises that you can do instead of the ones that Jillian tells you to, but which do a similar thing.
For example, I absolutely cannot do the reverse crunches in Level 1, where you raise your bum off the floor. I'm not really sure that my brain knows where my transverse abs are, to be honest. Similarly, I find wall push-ups too easy, but even with modified floor/raised push-ups all I can do is feebly wiggle my elbows and fall over. Is there anything that I can do during these sections that doesn't involve simply lying panting on the floor? There's got to be some way of building up from a really, really low baseline.
One trick I did come up with today was to use 5lb weights to start with and then to keep switching between those and 2lb weights when it felt like it was getting too much, or getting easy again. I actually managed to finish the whole half hour by doing this. My aim is to build up to using the 5lb weights throughout.
Does anyone else have any exercises where your body just says "You want me to do what?!"? What do you do instead?
For example, I absolutely cannot do the reverse crunches in Level 1, where you raise your bum off the floor. I'm not really sure that my brain knows where my transverse abs are, to be honest. Similarly, I find wall push-ups too easy, but even with modified floor/raised push-ups all I can do is feebly wiggle my elbows and fall over. Is there anything that I can do during these sections that doesn't involve simply lying panting on the floor? There's got to be some way of building up from a really, really low baseline.
One trick I did come up with today was to use 5lb weights to start with and then to keep switching between those and 2lb weights when it felt like it was getting too much, or getting easy again. I actually managed to finish the whole half hour by doing this. My aim is to build up to using the 5lb weights throughout.
Does anyone else have any exercises where your body just says "You want me to do what?!"? What do you do instead?
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Hi, I can't do reverse crunches in Level 1 either, but that is do to medical reasons. I do another exercise instead. I have some knee issues as well so Static Lunge With Bicep Curls is also a bit of a challenge - again I try to do another exercise instead.0
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Which exercises do you do instead? I just thought it might be useful to have a thread where people post the alternatives they actually use. :-)0
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For reverse crunches I put my hands kind of under my rear to help lift my tush off the ground a little. I can only do super tiny movements lifting my rear/legs up but I CAN feel it in my abs that way.
For the push ups, I had a trainer that said all I need to do is break my elbows and it is ok. (meaning just get low enough to bend them) You will still build up your strength. I was almost getting all the way down by week 6/7. (on my knees of course)
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I really struggle with the jump rope - it kills my calves! I just do the butt kicks instead to keep my heart rate up.
I struggle with push ups - even tiny ones. I may try wall push ups for a bit to build strength.
I couldn't do the reverse crunches to start with but I found that if I just tried to do a few rather than keep up with them, I was able to build it up over a few days.0 -
I have a shoulder injury and when I first started 30DS I had to start slowly and build up strength in it before I could push it more. I had trouble with push ups, even knee ones, since that put too much stress on my shoulder, so I did the push ups against the wall for the first while. That didn't aggravate my shoulder, but it still let me do a version of the move. Now, I can actually do the plank moves and push ups. You can also do the push ups against a counter. Stand a big step away from the counter, hands on the counter and do the push up that way. A little more challenging than a normal wall push up, but less challenging than floor push ups.0
