HELP - Having a really hard time with exercising (can't hold my own weight).
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Congratulations- you’ve started and that’s the hardest part!! The next hardest part is having patience with the process and not trying to rush things. It will come!!
I started from a very bad spot being 57 years old and over 300 lbs. I was pretty sedentary and had limited ranges of motion for almost everything. My wife and I used to joke that we were “working our way up to beginner level” (and my first weight goal was to be “overweight “) but there was a lot of truth in that too.
I was lucky to find a gym with coaches who taught me how to scale everything to suit my ability. But you can learn to scale almost everything on your own.
Google “progressions” or “easy ______modifications” for each exercise in the program. There is almost always an easier version.
Some examples already above with wall planks and push-ups etc. For squats- try squatting to a wooden or hard chair better than a soft one (actually easier to get up from a hard surface). Put books on it to make it higher if you need to. Don’t jump more than a couple of inches high until you are very comfortable with stepping up to something. Where the workout calls for jumping do stepping. Could be one or two stairs, a low wooden box, a milk crate etc.- remember to alternate feet.
Keep on doing it!! You will be amazed how fast things come. If you have any specific “scaling down” questions just ask- if I can’t help there are a lot of folks here who can.6 -
when i first started working out and losing weight. I was a bit over 300 pounds. 10 minutes was the MOST I could do on an elliptical. and that was HARD! Even a 20 minute walk left me winded.
It didn't take long to build up endurance.
Keep at it!8 -
HASFIT has workouts for seniors, people with mobility issues, and obese people. I do a chair workout almost every day. They’re on YouTube . I highly recommend that you try one. I started with a 20 minute one and have moved to a 30 minute routine.3
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I hate sounding like a broken record here on MFP- but consider getting a rebounder. Nothing is gentler on your joints and it is a real fat melter. Just because it's a mini-trampoline doesn't mean you have to jump on it. I have had double joint replacements and have never once jumped on mine.
Last time this year, my weight was at an all time high and I would become winded just climbing a single flight of stairs. In May 2020, I started watching my calories and dusted off my rebounder. At first, it was all I could do to keep up a low jog-in-place for 5 minutes a day. My legs tired quickly and my back ached after doing 5 minutes. But I kept at it every day and after a month was soon able to easily jog in place for 15 minutes. The aches and muscle fatigue completely faded after the first month.
70 lbs later, I rebound every day - still not jumping - but alternating a high jog-in-place with several more challenging moves. My thighs and saddlebags melted away. My balance improved. I now no longer have to rest for five minutes after taking a load of laundry upstairs! Best of all, my body never felt over-stressed. It's hard to believe that something that feels so darned effortless yields such HUGE results.
So I would recommend you get a rebounder sufficient for your current weight, put of some upbeat music and get some exercise that is actually fun!
I 2nd the rebounder. We got one 3 weeks ago. I forgot to mention it in my earlier post, but it's really worked its way into our regimen here. It's very easy, no stress on the joints, kinda fun, you can put it right in front of a TV and just bounce the night away, and you can make it whatever you want it to be, from a gentle barely-working out thing to a shirt drenched in sweat thing, and any level in between. There are tons of videos out there showing different moves and workouts, but even if you ignore all of them and just bounce around for 15 minutes, you're getting a workout.
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I would like to buy rebounder but not sure which I should get. Any opinions?0
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DancingMoosie wrote: »Maybe try something like this:
https://youtu.be/gIdAPUA3GY4
Ok, I tried this just now and it was nicely challenging. I did modify quite a bit - for the first exercise I think I was holding closer to 4 seconds than 10 seconds. For the last I just did the easy variation and stopped. I def did the plank lowering on my knees, and it was more like a belly flop than a controlled lower, lol.
I plan to do this regularly as it will be a nice indicator of progress.
@Rannoch3908 - I see in your other thread you are interested in DDP yoga and suggest you do this video regularly as it will help you with more advanced yoga moves.1 -
I have a heavy-duty solid steel frame spring rebounder with a 44"/112cm canvas. I also have a smaller standard one (36"/92cm canvas) that will disassemble and store flat. Both were thrift store finds. Naturally, I prefer the beefier one. I wouldn't buy one with a balance bar unless you have stability issues since it might negatively effect your body alignment and actually impede improving your balance.
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A rebounder sounds like a lot of fun but so far I haven't tried one as I'm afraid my downstairs neighbour would be able to hear me through the ceiling!1
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Redordeadhead wrote: »A rebounder sounds like a lot of fun but so far I haven't tried one as I'm afraid my downstairs neighbour would be able to hear me through the ceiling!
They are actually pretty quiet because the springs/bungees absorb all the energy.1 -
Rannoch3908 wrote: »So I walk or ride a stationary bike three times a week for 15 minutes.
The other three days a week I try to follow a 15-20 minute workout video on my phone.
But I am running into three issues.
-- There is a lot of getting up and down off the ground which is really hard for me.
-- There is a lot of jumping and squatting - my knees & feet can't handle it - end up with stress fractures afterwards.
-- There is a lot of stuff involving bodyweight - I can't hold myself up to even do knee pushups or planks.
It is discouraging - I am 300lbs which makes a lot of these hard - a 10 minute stretching routine got me winded and tired.
Not sure what to do. I want to get stronger so this isn't an issue one day.
Anyone else run into the same issue.
You didn't mention your height and age, I'm sorry to say but just try to weight loss some pounds for you to able to work those workouts you wanted. Have a kitchen discipline. good luck man!
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I felt exactly the same way as you OP. I'm 220lbs but my strength is low so all the exercise videos I was seeing were for people who could do pushups, situps etc.
I found this channel on Youtube. I don't think Holly is a professional PT, but she's plus size and started developing her own workouts for precisely the issue you've encountered.
I would recommend checking out some of them and seeing if they are doable for you. If nothing else, I found it quite refreshing to be watching workouts by someone who is plus size, both because it's quite motivational (if she can do it, so can I) and because actually seeing movements done by someone with a larger body helped me in understanding the right form with my shape body.3 -
I bought a mini trampoline, I should get it next Sunday. Boing10
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If weather is bad or you want to exercise indoors, try Leslie Sansone’s Walk Away the Pounds videos. Easy to modify also2
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L1zardQueen wrote: »I would like to buy rebounder but not sure which I should get. Any opinions?
This is the one I got. We're happy with it. What I didn't realize before purchasing is that you don't even need, or barely need, the two support poles with a handle bar across the top. Before purchasing it seemed like that would be a "must have" but in truth isn't much needed. Some of them come with just a vertical beam and a T at the top to grab onto, and I think that'd be sufficient and be more out of the way. But not a big deal either way. Great functionality for the price and definitely a fun way to burn some cals.
https://www.amazon.com/BCAN-Foldable-Trampoline-Rebounder-Adjustable/dp/B07SMGQ18F/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?dchild=1&keywords=rebounder&qid=1611006553&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUFGREpMMEVPSUs1UlMmZW5jcnlwdGVkSWQ9QTAxNzE3OTQzODJQUkIzTE9YQlBJJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTA4OTM4MTYxRzlQUDZVM01XTDhMJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==1 -
Theoldguy1 wrote: »Crawling is also an excellent full body low impact exercise that can be modified based on ability
https://www.health.com/fitness/crawling-core-exercise
op clearly stated he/she cant get up and down from the ground on the post1 -
peggy_polenta wrote: »Theoldguy1 wrote: »Crawling is also an excellent full body low impact exercise that can be modified based on ability
https://www.health.com/fitness/crawling-core-exercise
op clearly stated he/she cant get up and down from the ground on the post
It was just said that it was hard, not that it wasn’t doable.
And if you do one hard thing, forcing yourself to get up and down until it becomes easier is the one hard thing I would stick to and not modify. Being able to get up and down is a huge predictor of whether someone is going to die in the next five years. It’s a basic movement and necessary for safety. If you can’t do it you need to find a way to work on it until you can.3 -
As others have indicated, skip the video routine and just focus on walking in the beginning.
Gradually add things later after you are losing weight and shaping up.
Isometric exercises are a good option.0 -
peggy_polenta wrote: »Theoldguy1 wrote: »Crawling is also an excellent full body low impact exercise that can be modified based on ability
https://www.health.com/fitness/crawling-core-exercise
op clearly stated he/she cant get up and down from the ground on the post
If you read my post with the video I suggest leaning a chair, low table to help getting up if needed. Same situation for crawling, didn't think I needed to repeat the modification. As @rheddmobile says being able to get off the floor is a significant predictor of enough strength for a quality life and may very well save one's life in an emergency.
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Start with walking, and no bounce beginner aerobics to music, and yoga for stretching. For now, skip anything that gets you on hands and knees or stresses them too much. Get some weight off and build up endurance with walking. Then add in hills and stairs. Once you can navigate hills and stairs then you can think about the things that add stress to your knees. At 300 lb. you do not want to blow your knee out, it will make everything harder.4
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Signed up for DDP Yoga - low impact - tauted as "not your mamas yoga".
Three times a week for 30 minutes.
Then walking the other two days.
Weekends off right now unless we go out for a hike or walking the dogs or something.8
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