HELLLLP MEEEEE!!!! (General exercise questions)

Lynae76
Lynae76 Posts: 10
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi everyone!

I'm new to the whole weight loss journey. I've lost 6 lbs and have 58 to go to get to my goal weight of 115 lbs. I've always been tiny, but have gained a bunch of weight over the last 2 years thanks to some meds I was on for a while. The entire process of counting calories, getting enough protein, and getting used to an exercise routine is very daunting to me, but I'm sick of seeing 2 chins and gigantic ta ta's in my pictures, so I'M READY! :laugh: When I was fit, I was a gym addict. I loved the eliptical & weight machines. But back then, it was stress relief & it was fun. Somewhere along the way I fell off the wagon & now going to the gym and seeing all the skinny people there makes me self conscious.

So I bought myself The Biggest Loser for Kinect for Christmas. I figured that would solve the issue of my fear of exercising in public.

I did my fit test and my first workout yesterday. Overall, I think I'm going to like it, but I have a few issues. First of all, I have a bad knee. I've had 2 surgeries for torn ACL, LCL, & medial meniscus (cartilage). My range of motion never got above 85% but I was still able to work out & hike. Now my knee is in horrible condition. I need a knee replacement, but really don't want to go through surgery right now. I also just plain don't have time with work & kids. Anyways, doing the workout, I realized I can't do the lunges or squats, or pretty much anything that requires my knee to bend much. I really want to stick with it, but I don't see a way to change the exercises in the settings. I used to do P90X, again when I was fit, more for fun than anything. That's something I can't physically do now either. I'd love to do the Insanity workout too, but another one of those "not an option" things. They're just too intense for my broken body.

Anyone ever try The Biggest Loser game? Any suggestions on what else I should do initially for weight loss and to get my body back into the swing of things? I feel like since I used to work out it shouldn't be so hard to start again, but after gaining weight, it's not fun anymore. Now it's just plain HARD! My apartment complex does have a small workout room I can use at any time. I'm thinking of jumping on the elliptical. I just don't know how often I should do it and for how long. Is there a specific way I should do it to get the optimum results? How many days a week, how long, what should I get my HR up to for the best results, etc? Once I get some of this weight off, maintaining and building muscle should be easy enough because I've done it before. I just don't know how to get over this initial hump.

Somebody help me!! haha I'll take any advice... :happy:

Replies

  • cpusmc
    cpusmc Posts: 122
    Congrats on losing 6lbs.

    You could do P90 or Insanity or any of the home workouts and skip the leg portions, I think if I remember correctly legs has its own dvid on P90. Then you could use elliptical for the lower body work. Swimming or biking for low impact on knees if available as well. If you stick hard to your calorie goal every day/week, the weight will come off, it will take just as much time as it did to put on. Sorry, no easy way.

    I might try the upper body workouts at your own pace on any of the 3 items you suggested and then either when done or at another session hit the elliptical for 30 minutes at a speed thats comfortable and then increase difficulty as your strength and endurance return. Shoot for 5 days/week, maybe 3 upper body session and 5 elliptical sessions. Monitor your progress for a month, make sure you are not missing on diet or your workout and then adjust both from there. If 5 is too much, adjust and work up to 5. You say you were a gym addict before, its like riding a bike, your body and mind know the feeling and you will get it back, especially as you continue to see results.

    Good luck...
  • Lynae76
    Lynae76 Posts: 10
    You're right. It's been so long since I did P90 that I forgot there is a separate legs dvd. I'd love to swim...unfortunately I'm petrified of the water and don't know how. Learning to swim is on my bucket list. Don't laugh... :wink:

    Thanks for the tips. Any suggestions on how to try & schedule it into a busy day with work, 3 kids, and everything that goes along with that and stick with it? I'm the first to admit, I have all the motivation in the world, but my follow through isn't always the best.
  • p4ulmiller
    p4ulmiller Posts: 588 Member
    Thanks for the tips. Any suggestions on how to try & schedule it into a busy day with work, 3 kids, and everything that goes along with that and stick with it? I'm the first to admit, I have all the motivation in the world, but my follow through isn't always the best.

    Yeah, don't make excuses. It's easy to use family and kids as an excuse not to work out.

    If you find time in the day at the moment to sit and watch TV at any point, then you have time to work out. Get up an hour early perhaps?

    You don't need to go to any special effort, particularly if you are doing something at home like P90X.
  • conniehh
    conniehh Posts: 1
    i also have knee problems and on days when my knee is bad i do chair exercises designed for seniors who have trouble standing or are in wheelchairs- they really work out your upper body and get your heart rate up- they are available on youtube or just search google- hope this helps
  • laurenmelissaj
    laurenmelissaj Posts: 6
    You can work out your maximum heart rate by doing 220-your age. Between 60 and 80% of your max heart rate is where you should aiming.
    I've also had problems with my knees, but that was from running. My doctor advised me to try swimming (maybe not for you!), the elliptical, exercise bikes and weight training.
    If your knee is fine with walking/hiking, walking uphill will be a great way for you to work out. It's low impact so it should help your joints, but going against gravity makes you work much much harder.
    As far as making time for it is concerned, maybe start small and commit to half hour chunks. This is usually pretty easy to squeeze in during the day. Once that becomes the norm you can start increasing it. Find exercises that you enjoy doing, or at least remember the satisfaction of knowing you've exercised! If you have a busy lifestyle, taking time out to exercise will probably make you more focused for the rest of the day. I find that it helps me concentrate, gives me more energy and is a good way of clearing my head!

    Hope this helps :)
  • Bubba_Furley
    Bubba_Furley Posts: 31 Member
    I also have a horrible right knee from ACL repair and now arthritis and no cartilage. I get 6 knee injections a year. They are made from chicken combs and help so much. You should look into it. Also start taking Glucosamine with MSM.

    I would start exercise with low impact. Things like biking, swimming, elliptical, rowing.... You can do strength training using the yoga ball and weights. I just saw that you aren't a swimmer. But you can put that float belt on and do water jogging.

    As far as scheduling, join the ymca and bring your kids along. They can play basketball, swim, play games, rock climb, or other activity depending on your ymca. Otherwise workout first thing in the morning before anyone is up or right after work before you get home. Do long workouts on the weekends....
  • SelkathNuggets
    SelkathNuggets Posts: 37 Member
    Try www.bodbot.com, it's basically a free personal trainer. I've been using it 3 weeks and love it. It's extremely customizable, and one of the preferences is to work around weak knees too. Shoot me a PM if you're interested, I'd like to get a referral if possible :)
  • mfkphelan
    mfkphelan Posts: 1
    Hi, Lynae76. Whatever you do, try to make it manageable so you can sustain it for the long term. The worst thing you can do is jump into a new program with both feet, and then burn out after a month. That's why most diets and most exercise programs fail: people don't stick with them. The basic rule of thumb for you: more movement, fewer calories. That doesn't mean NO calories -- it just means reducing them A LITTLE. Try to cut back on carbs; it's worked for me. Try walking more with your kids -- you won't burn a ton of calories, but walking is better than sitting, you can do it anywhere, and it's fairly easy on the knees. Bottom line is: make small changes that will stick, rather than big changes that won't stick!
  • cheripugh1
    cheripugh1 Posts: 357 Member
    You don't have to swim to use the pool, the shallow end is great for work outs when you have bad legs/knees, you can do motions you cannot do on land. Many area pools have exercise classes even.

    As for time, all of us are short on extra time, but if you want this you will fit it in... I actually know my Walk Away DVD's so well that I do it while watching TV, if you have a stationary bike or treadmill or whatever machine you can do while watching TV also..

    If you feel to out of shape to use the public gym then start out using the one where you live until you feel ready to go to a bigger gym and take some classes or just work out.

    Good Luck you can do this!
  • stellcorb
    stellcorb Posts: 294 Member
    I can definately sympathize with the broken part. I had a hip arthroscopy almost a year ago to anchor the cartilidge back onto the bone... 4 anchors later as well as 6 weeks on crutches ( which was awesome with a 3 year old and 9 month old!)... the doctor says to me... 'think of your hip as a patched tire... you don't want to put too many miles on it'... oh, and I'm all of 34. It's not a knee issue, but I have some of the same restrictions... no lunges or deep squats without pain.
    I've been plugging it out at the gym on the elliptical for almost 3 years now (since the injurty that killed my hip) and am starting to sneak running in on the treadmill here and there... I can't swim either and I hate cycling... my favorite elliptical though is the Cybex... I get a better burn for the time. Also, my gym recently got something called Jacob's Ladder... it's like a ladder treadmill... great burn and good full body, low impact workout.
    I squeeze in my 30 minutes in the morning before work... don't have to be in until 9, so it's nice and hubby takes the kids to daycare. If I'm doing strength... I have some light weights at home and do these before the kids are up... I don't like lifting at the gym because I have no idea what I'm doing;)
    Good luck on your journey... it's hard, but possible!
  • dlionsmane
    dlionsmane Posts: 674 Member
    So, I just want to throw in here that you don't NEED to exercise to lose weight. Weight loss is all about calories. Exercise in any form is for fitness. Please don't think that you cannot lose weight if you do not exercise. Two separate issues.
    Congrats on the 6 lbs lost so far and look forward to seeing you in the success stories one day! :flowerforyou:
  • ecottencat
    ecottencat Posts: 46 Member
    Instead of swimming how about just walking back and forth in the pool. Would help strengthen the muscles in your legs and around the knee and won't cause any more pain in the knee. In my non medical opinion that would be the best for awhile. Otherwise there are many exercises that you can do that don't require much on the knees. Maybe try kettlebell swings. Since its all in the hips you won't be bending your knees all that much. You can do HITT with kettlebells. Great workout and good burn!
  • redredfox
    redredfox Posts: 76 Member
    If you have knee issues, do NOT try Insanity. I did Insanity and it would literally be pointless to think that you could skip over the portions that put stress on your knees... most of Insanity is jumping around and doing intense plyometrics. Do the eliptical in conjunction with a few days of lifting weights. Cardio burns a lot of calories during your workout and lifting weights promotes burning calories even after you are done with your workout. Besides, lifting weights will help you tone up... and who doesn't want that? It sounds like you were a gym regular before you gained your current weight, so start there. Nobody is looking at you.. they are all concerned with how they look =) Good luck! You can accomplish whatever you put your mind to!
  • Lynae76
    Lynae76 Posts: 10
    Wow...thanks for all the replies everyone! I just got home from work to sit down for my 15 minutes before the kids start walking in the door and didn't expect all these answers!

    I wish I could exercise before work, but that's not realistic. I start working at 6am, so I'm up WAY too early to even think about getting up any earlier than I already do. I'm thinking my best time to squeeze it in is going to be after work before I start the dinner/homework/taxi/mommy thing. I get home around 3:30 and the kids get home about 15 minutes later, but I have an hour or so I could kill after that. If I don't do it before then, I know I won't do it because once dinner is done, the kitchen is clean, and the kids are settled, I'm beat. My motivation leaves my body faster and faster as the evening drags on.

    I think all the support on this site will help tremendously though. It's nice to be able to talk to people at all stages of this journey and know that some are going through it right along with me, while others have awesome success stories to share. I can't wait to be one of them. I will PROUDLY post my before & after photos when there is a noticeable difference.

    Thank you all for the tips, advice, encouragement, & support!!!!

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