Above 230 pounds..needs help finding an exercise routine!?

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katelife
katelife Posts: 7
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi everyone,
My relative is 234 pound and his goal is to loose 100 pounds.which workout program do you recommend for him keeping in mind knees safety as he is obese and I am scared he will injury his knees..do you recommend turbofire, P90x , zumba, turbojam or other exercise routine??

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  • blueboxgeek
    blueboxgeek Posts: 574 Member
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    Does he get any exercise? If he really doesn't then I personally would start with light cardio and some kind of resistance training (maybe body weight workouts). Going from nothing to P90X is pretty extreme and he may find it too tough and just give up.

    I'd start with some walking, which can progress to jog / walk mixed up. Or swimming.

    Definitely start some weights or other strength training now to try and help preserve muscle mass. I know a lot of people wait until they have lost a bit but it really is worth starting straight away.
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,950 Member
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    Hi everyone,
    My relative is 234 pound and his goal is to loose 100 pounds.which workout program do you recommend for him keeping in mind knees safety as he is obese and I am scared he will injury his knees..do you recommend turbofire, P90x , zumba, turbojam or other exercise routine??

    I recommend eating less to lose weight, working out alone won't do it.
  • katelife
    katelife Posts: 7
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    Well , he walks for an hour (3.7 miles or 6km) every other day. As for weights and stremgth training , he is scared to hurt his back with it!
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
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    I recommend he save his money and not patronize Beachbody and do whatever HE likes and will stick with. There is no structured workout program needed for weight loss. It's the diet. Exercise is more for fitness.

    If he's afraid of injury maybe he should stick to walking for now, or consider adding some swimming or biking. Kettlebells are fun and good for strength training, too. livefitrevolution.org has free beginner programs and buying advice.
  • fitmodel2014
    fitmodel2014 Posts: 3 Member
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    Start with a 5 minute yoga routine (to warm up muscles) in the morning and light cardio (10 minutes) increase sessions as your body begins to adjust to the workouts. Power Walking is a good start (15 minutes and gradually increase). Do not skip breakfast(make sure you get your three meals). Drink lots of water. I also squeeze another 10 minute workout before bed. Eat clean. Try having a green or other smoothie at least once a day. I have eliminated rice, sodas, and pastas from my diet (personal choice). However, you can have brown rice and whole grain pastas. I'm not a Nutritionist but this regimen is helping me. Overall, the key is watching portion size and committing to exercise at least three times a week. Take advantage of this site and pre-plan meals. Good luck. :happy:
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,950 Member
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    Well , he walks for an hour (3.7 miles or 6km) every other day. As for weights and stremgth training , he is scared to hurt his back with it!

    You might want to explain to him that resistance training strengthens thing, doesn't hurt them. Doing it right, will also teach him proper form to avoid hurting himself in his day to day life.

    Advise him that being controlled by fear is not something he needs to allow in his life.
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,950 Member
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    Do not skip breakfast(make sure you get your three meals).
    Smoothies are nice dessert treats. However, why specifically must anyone get three meals? What peer reviewed research shows this need?
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,741 Member
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    Hi everyone,
    My relative is 234 pound and his goal is to loose 100 pounds.which workout program do you recommend for him keeping in mind knees safety as he is obese and I am scared he will injury his knees..do you recommend turbofire, P90x , zumba, turbojam or other exercise routine??

    I recommend eating less to lose weight, working out alone won't do it.

    I totally agree. Exercise is just part of it...eating less will yield faster more noticeable results. AND make exercising easier.

    Of course exercise is important. I like the advice above about simply walking, then jogging...swimming...bicycling if that's possible. Light cardio to begin, but not one of the super aggressive "programs" just yet. Not because he's "too obese" (I know men AND women well over 200 lb who do very hard workouts) but because if I understood your post correctly, it doesn't sound like he's very active at all right now. Better to start slow and work up to something more, than burn out quickly on a workout that's way beyond his fitness level.

    However...how tall is he? 134 lb is a VERY low weight for most men (even if he is a teen). Maybe a smaller more attainable goal could be set, and then readjust as he goes down? Just an idea.
  • nikkylyn
    nikkylyn Posts: 325 Member
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    Walking is great exercise. Maybe try to bump it up to once a day join him on his walk :)

    Is he opposed to joining a gym? Maybe try the weighted machines first. Until he feels more comfortable with weights. Then move on to free weights. That is what I did. He will probably need someone to show him proper form if he has never lifted before. As long as he doesnt do too heavy weights too soon he shouldnt worry about hurting himself. I have seen people over 300lbs at my gym lifting weights both in shape and out of shape just fine. Also what about swimming laps that is pretty easy on the knees or the recumbent bike.
  • MegE_N
    MegE_N Posts: 245 Member
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    I was at 250 at my highest, down about 20lbs in three months just from walking and a little bit of swimming. I try to walk at least 3 miles a day and around 8 a few times a week, when the weather permits.
  • addiepray80
    addiepray80 Posts: 46 Member
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    I started at about 230 and lost 100 lbs at my lowest weight. This was over a two year period. I recommend patience and small lifestyle changes.

    I started walking about 20 minutes a day, 4 days a week on my lunch break. It worked well for me. I gradually increased my speed and lenght of my walk; then started adding evening walks. I also curbed my bad eating habits but pretty much getting rid of fast food, replacing 90% of my beverage choices with water, and only eating treats if it was "worth the calories." By the second year (and down about 50 pounds) I started adding simple body weight circuit workouts and using MFP. Tracking my food (and exercise) made a HUGE difference. Though I was already eating healthier, it helped stop me from making poor choices. It gave me motivation to find the foods that worked to fill me up and truly be "worth the calories."

    Good luck to you and your relative. It's a hard journey, but learning how to treat your body with respect is so worth it for a happy and healtheir life!
  • segovm
    segovm Posts: 512 Member
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    Most things are going to be pretty hard on the knees if you don't work into them slowly. My vote it to get a bicycle and ride it around. A lot of big folks like to sit on the nice comfy recumbent bikes at the gym but from personal experience that's a pretty big waste of time. I could barely stand an hour on a gym bike but pedal around town for a few hours a day getting much more exercise and enjoying myself in the process.

    In the end, whatever the person will enjoy doing often will be the best for them. I don't see the wisdom of trying to jump into a workout DVD right away when the first three seconds of those will leave many people just feeling hopeless, fat and doomed to never be able to change. Get a little healthy first.
  • katelife
    katelife Posts: 7
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    Thanks a lot for all of your suggestions.. I will pass it to him..very helpful..

    Seltzermint he is 5.8 feet
  • tashatashae
    tashatashae Posts: 311 Member
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    Treadmill hurt my knees but elliptical does not and I weigh more than 230.
  • dewsmom78
    dewsmom78 Posts: 498 Member
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    Ellipticals are easy on the joints. I would invest in one of those.
  • tcamp02
    tcamp02 Posts: 61 Member
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    I've had luck with people starting with T25 who have never done exercise before and also have a lot of weight to lose. What I tell everybody is to start out following the modifier and even then they may not be able to do everything at first but stick with it for the full 25 minutes even if they are just marching in place. Stick with the schedule and everytime you do the program, you can try to do a little bit more and after a while you may be able to move from following the modifier to following Shaun T. The program is a ten week program that can be repeated -- the first 5 weeks are the Alpha phase and the second 5 weeks are Beta and start incorporating some weights (or bands can be used). There is a third phase, Gamma, that can be purchased separately that is a step up from Beta so you can continue to progress by increasing weight, intensity or moving to another phase. If you would like more information, I would love to chat with you more. I agree that P90x and TurboFire would be too much for a beginner (even though a lot of beginners have started there).
  • RekindledRose
    RekindledRose Posts: 523 Member
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    I recommend encouraging your relative to join MFP and to read-read-read to learn what has worked for others who started at his size.

    BUT don't start off with one of those high-impact programs. That's a recipe for disaster. How about cycling and body weight exercises like those in "You are Your Own Gym"?
  • loriebahde
    loriebahde Posts: 30 Member
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    i have two people in my life that have been over 230 and started losing with just walking. the one lady has lost 85 pounds with drinking her water, watching calorie intake, and hitting 10,000 steps a day. she uses fitbit. the other was 260 and began walking a month and a half ago. drinking water, watching calories, and walking more and more. both women are doing good. the biggest thing to remember is to do what you are comfortable with. push until you can not anymore and then do it again the next day and the next day.

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