At it again

janw333 wrote: »

Im a mom, wife, grandma and know I can tone up and loose weight. Just that Im a lot older now and its really hard to get the exercise. I have a pool and an awesome rowing machine. I have stretches and exercises to do for all my bad back etc. I THINK about doing all this stuff every am. But then get working on stuff and don't excercise. Have 2 dogs that need it too really bad, but that's a different story as to why we don't go for walks. I eat right, cook alll my own fresh foods. I try to watch portions. But I started at 180 a year ago and got down to 172 and could never drop below that except for once I actually got down to 170! But has stopped. Now its gone back up to 177...ugh. And when I do exercise, bad back etc make everything hurt more so that makes me stop. I know its got to hurt before it gets better. I just don't get myself into a routine to do the proper exercise.

There may be discomfort associated with new exercise, but there ideally shouldn't be pain. Actual pain suggests one is attempting too much, too soon, rather than managing a gradual increase in challenge (via the mix of exercise frequency, duration, intensity, and type(s)).

Complicating that, two things:
1. Even discomfort is unpleasant.
2. When we're relatively new to exercise (or resuming after a long time) it can be difficult to impossible to distinguish discomfort from pain.

Of course pre-existing physical issues - especially strictly irreversible ones - complicate this. Some back problems are of that nature, while other back problems are more about loss of muscle support in key areas, or imbalances in muscle groups, or sub-ideal movement patterns that have become habit.

Have you ever had physical therapy for your back? If not, can you get a referral from your doctor to do that? I've found good physical therapist to be remarkably helpful in assessing movement patterns and body characteristics, then creating remedial exercise routines that will truly improve the condition, with time and patience.

I do empathize with what you're saying. You don't mention specifically how old you are, or how tall, but I started in on weight loss when I was already plenty old enough to be a grandmother (I was 59), and started at around your current starting weight (I weighed 183, at 5'5"). I'd become active a few years earlier, after the full 9 yards of cancer treatment and a previously very sedentary lifestyle, so starting from a very physically depleted state, and with some pre-existing issues (osteoarthritis, torn meniscus, . . . .).

Any kind of moving more is helpful. It doesn't have to be some gym-y miserable thing at high intensity, in order to have benefits. What sounds achievable? What sounds fun? Are there some things that might feel good to you right away, that involve movement (maybe a nice, manageable morning stretch session, even standing stretches if you don't like to get down on the floor)?

When it comes to the actual decision to do it, not just think about it . . . you know that has to come from you.

When I'm not feeling high enthusiasm for my exercise (as is true for some of my Winter activities), I can sometimes convince myself that it's something I just schedule into my day, then do . . . not something I have a decision about. Most of us don't celebrate the delightfulness of brushing our teeth, or taking the car in for an oil change, but we do it because it's simply a thing that needs to be done. A convenient amount of increased activity - maybe the exercises for your back? - can be approached in the same way, perhaps.

The rewards can be huge, in my experience, from both exercise and weight loss. Now 66, I feel better (and perform better physically) than I did in my 40s. I was talking to a friend this morning about my weight loss (now 6+ years ago) - in effect, I used to carry the equivalent of a couple of 25-pound bags of kitty litter with me everywhere I went, every day. That hurts, and is exhausting. I just didn't realize how extreme it had been, until I stopped doing it.

You can do this, if you commit to it. Find a course that prioritizes practicality/easiness, rather than fast action. Find small ways to remodel your routine eating and movement habits gradually in a positive direction, things you can keep doing long term. Misery is optional, and can be counterproductive.

I'll be cheering you on from the sidelines!