Working Out in 3rd Floor Apartment

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LunaMischief
LunaMischief Posts: 166 Member
edited November 2014 in Fitness and Exercise
I live in an apartment on the 3rd floor. It's an older building, built around the early 70s.

I enjoy doing workout DVDs at home. I've dabbled with Beachbody and Jillian Michaels and the like. They're much cheaper and less embarrassing/annoying than going to a gym.

But the bad part about those DVDs is all the moving and jumping around required. For example, about a week ago I started doing the T25 program. Calls for aaaaaaaaaaall the jumping. I've already gotten a comment from my downstairs neighbor about all the noise I make, as it sounds like I'm going to come through his ceiling. Oops.

So then I've been focusing on only doing the "lower impact" parts of T25, which is less jumping. But instead of focusing on working out, I'm more worried about being quiet. And doing the lower intensity = less calorie burn, when I am able to push myself so much more.

So my question is: is there anyone out there with this same type of issue? What do you do/not do? Do I just go as hard as i can and just have my neighbor hate me? Any comments/feedback is appreciated. :)
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Replies

  • angelexperiment
    angelexperiment Posts: 1,917 Member
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    I dont know but what about a thick foam mat cushion the sound? Or you can watch your vids on you tube and take them to a park or other building? Also I think there are meetup fitness groups that do those vids as a group at a location I forget what its called but patt of beachbody. Or find out when they are not home and do it or if there is a roof or basement or even friends house to do it?
  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
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    Go to the gym.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
    edited November 2014
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    Step aerobics would be quieter, lower impact but still have the intensity. Put the step bench on an exercise mat to dull the noise further.

    Cathe has a whole series of low impact DVDs....and she's not easy by any stretch.

    http://www.collagevideo.com/search?q=cathe+low+impact
  • amcook4
    amcook4 Posts: 561 Member
    edited November 2014
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    Would yoga be something you could get into? Resistance bands and body weights? Otherwise go to the gym or get outside.

    I do have to say, it often seams like all my upstairs neighbor does is walk heavy, all day and all night. I realize living in an apartment neighbor noise is just part of life, so I don't complain about my neighbors. Now if they would start lifting weights and dropping them all of the time, or blaring loud music when I'm trying to sleep, yeah, that I'll complain about.
    So nice of you to be considerate, but as long as you aren't going too crazy, your neighbors have to understand they live in an apartment building, thus you will hear the neighbors.
  • _Waffle_
    _Waffle_ Posts: 13,049 Member
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    I'm lazy at home and I workout elsewhere.
  • glassyo
    glassyo Posts: 7,615 Member
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    Speaking as someone who lives on the bottom floor of an apartment building, try to schedule your exercise when you know they're not home, if at all possible. Or at least do it at a reasonable hour. I think there's an unwritten rule that people should be quiet after 10:00 pm. Or maybe it's a law depending on where you live.

    It's awesome that you care if you're bugging your downstairs neighbors.
  • Tuala42
    Tuala42 Posts: 274 Member
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    Fitnessblender.com has a "quiet" workout for an apartment that might help you. I haven't tried it since I have a house, but I love their other workouts.
  • TrailNurse
    TrailNurse Posts: 359 Member
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    I am in the exact same situation.....only I am on the 4th floor and my neighbor has not complained yet. I try to use the Beach Body jump mat. I am doing Combat, P90X3, which has some jumping in it and Body Beast. I looked at all of the P90X3 dvd's and made note of which ones have jumping and I am not doing them. Have you considered Combat? It's pretty low key and you get a good workout. If you think about Martial Arts, there is not a lot of jumping around and yet those who practice it are ripped.
  • TrailNurse
    TrailNurse Posts: 359 Member
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    DopeItUp wrote: »
    Go to the gym.

    Grow up!

  • LunaMischief
    LunaMischief Posts: 166 Member
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    Thanks everyone for the input! I especially like the idea of getting a mat of some sort, to lessen how hard I'm hitting the floor. I'll look into all these workout suggestions as well. It doesn't hurt to broaden what I can do at home! :D<3
  • AshAtHome
    AshAtHome Posts: 1
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    I'm in a very similar situation! I have fake hardwood floors (even noisier than real hardwood, I think!) and do T25, TurboFire, and various Jillian Michaels workouts--lots of jumping! I bought some of the thick black interlocking gym floormats from Amazon, the kind that come in squares that you fit together. Sometimes they are sold in automotive sections, I think, as garage mats. This muffles a lot of noise and vibration. I haven't had any complaints from the neighbors or my flatmate in the 18 months I've lived here. Even my thick yoga mat doesn't muffle as much sound as the gym mats do. They were a bit expensive but have held up really well and are a really nice surface to work out on, for me and my neighbors :)

    Good luck!
  • ChrisM8971
    ChrisM8971 Posts: 1,067 Member
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    I can't seem to get my head past "3rd floor apartment" Thats a lot of stairs you can walk up and down and would be great exercise.

    If that doesnt appeal then a rubberized gym mat is a great idea
  • alpine1994
    alpine1994 Posts: 1,915 Member
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    I've been in that situation and I'm not sure if this is going to work for you, but I got to know the neighbors below me and asked them if there was a time between 6-10pm during the week when they wouldn't mind me working out for 30-45 minutes. I also asked if there was a section of the apartment they didn't use much so I wouldn't disturb them (we have the same apartment layout). We worked it out and everyone was happy. Since people are already complaining maybe they're not going to be so nice about it but it's worth a shot. Sometimes I would see one of them and they would be like "quite a workout you had last night! whew!" haha :)
  • rrabe78
    rrabe78 Posts: 15 Member
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    A single kettlebell is not too expensive and you can get a pretty intense quiet workout with it.
  • LunaMischief
    LunaMischief Posts: 166 Member
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    I have a small, one bedroom apartment, and the only place I really have enough space is in the living room. And my neighbor below me is an older gentleman, so I'd assumed he was retired - I could be wrong! He was nice enough about it though, it could be worth a shot to try and come to a compromise. I've also been shopping around for a decent mat to workout on, to try and absorb some my jumping.
  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
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    ChrisM8971 wrote: »
    I can't seem to get my head past "3rd floor apartment" That's a lot of stairs you can walk up and down and would be great exercise.

    Hmmm. Yeah. You might be surprised. I've been living in a 3rd-storey walkup for most of my adult life. Well, two different 3rd-storey walkups actually -- they're quite popular here in Montreal, and I prefer the top floor 'cause I hate the sound of people walking over my head.

    Anyhoo, your body quickly becomes used to going up and down the stairs as part of your daily activity level, and it doesn't do much to burn calories since it only takes a minute or so. Sometimes it's a pain when I have to carry heavy things in and out of my apartment -- that's when I get a real workout! -- but other than that, it sadly does very little for activity level or weight loss.

  • Maquillage_
    Maquillage_ Posts: 194 Member
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    You could try talking to your neighbor and agree on a time frame where she won't mind the noise. You pay rent and shouldn't not be able to exercise because of your neighbor, but you do have to respect her not wanting to hear you jumping while she's having her dinner! So the best thing to do would be to agree on a time when she won't mind the noise. Maybe there is a time of the day where she goes for a walk and isn't in her apartment.

    Another thing would be to buy a couple of exercise mats, put them on top of eachother and jump on them. It would still be noisy but it shouldn't sound like you're going to come through the ceiling!

    Until something is sorted out, you could look for "quiet workout videos" on youtube. Fitnessblender.com have some cardio videos that require no jumping at all so they shouldn't be a problem. Or you could focus on your strength training primarily in your apartment and then do your cardio outdoors in the form of jogging or walking.
  • Edie30
    Edie30 Posts: 216
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    Gahhh I don't know the answer to this. I used to live in an apartment and I couldn't even walk across the floor without the neighbor complaining!!! Maybe find out when they are going out to work or something and do it in that time!!!! :-s
  • Monisfit4life
    Monisfit4life Posts: 228 Member
    edited November 2014
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    You could try Piyo its low impact but it is still a workout that yields results. I am doing it now and I love it. It's a combination of pilates and yoga. It is also a beachbody workout.
  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
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    This reminds me of that time I took an Irish dance class. I was practicing steps with a friend of mine in the middle of the day. Later that evening, she got a knock on her door from her downstairs neighbour, who she assumed would've been out and about. Turns out she was a nurse who worked the night shift, and all our jumping around prevented her from sleeping.

    ...Oops. :blush:

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