ThumperWabbt Member

Hiya...I'm Thumper, kathompson on reddit, and a Magenta Manatee. F, 53, 5'8", SW 240, CW 212, 1stGW 180, GW 150. I'm just tired of being fat. I've had a decade of medical issues that I finally have a grip on, and there are so many things I want to do...since dying is not one of them, for me this is the year of taking care…

Swimming, rule-free racquetball, and walking. The swimming is my favorite.

Unless you specifically have the waterproofed Flex, don't swim with it. I have one, and wear it on my ankle to count kicks (you can also wear it on your ankle while biking; doesn't get every movement but enough) but I learned the hard way with a non-waterproofed Fitbit that even in a baggy, it can die.

I like Under Armour's compression gear...they have slim selection for bigger women, but I just buy men's instead. The tops are longer in men's anyway and feel better to me. They also seem to breathe well and are pretty good at wicking away moisture.

I think as long as you get everything you ate logged in a 24 hour period, it's fine. The Spouse Thingy works nights, and his dinner is everyone else's breakfast...he just logs whatever he had before he goes to bed as breakfast, lunch is my dinner, and he has his dinner at work.

I'm a member of In Shape gym...it's huge. Lots of classes, tons on cardio equipment, ditto on the resistance equipment and there's a separate room for free weights. There's even a circuit, racquetball courts, and a pool. I used to belong to Anytime Fitness, but you you could pick that place up and drop it into the In Shape…

Cotton socks are a walker's/runner's enemy. You definitely want wicking socks, and might find double-layer socks to work especially well. I battled blisters last year while training for a 60 mile walk...I bought some Wrightsocks double layer socks and they work remarkable well for me. Other walkers I know are in love with…

I've always wet HR straps before leaving the house...you're going to start sweating under it and the moisture will be there when you need it later...

8.5 mile walk...which apparently brings out the Ugly in me, as 2 people asked if I was all right and did I need help? LOL Red faced and sweaty...was perfectly fine but I must not have looked it...

About an hour for me...otherwise it's like the food rips right through me, and that could be unpleasant for not only me but everyone around me... ;)

I don't run, but I do *a lot* of walking, and when the knee is really bothering me I use anti-inflammatory medications and stick to a tight schedule with them for a few days. Alternating ice and heat helps, too, but the biggest thing for me is shoes. If my knee is suddenly acting up after a long time, it's generally time…

Anti-inflammatory meds (Ibruprofen or Naprosyn) and alternating ice and heat can be your friend... but it also depends on where in the knee the pain is. Is it specific to the right side, left side, under the front side of the knee cap? Is is a generalized ache? There are so many things that can go wrong with the knee, from…

If it's an ammonia (but non-urine) type odor, it's likely because you're carb depleting while working out. I smell ammonia frequently (not not "down there"...I just smell it and no one else can smell it on me; I've asked) after a lengthy or hard workout. If it's something else, it could simply be you sweat a lot and it…

Brooks Glycerin, but picked up some Brooks Adrenaline today...I only walk in them, though...

I have a Proform 10.0Z treadmill that's proven to be a really good buy. The deck is long enough for my stride and it's well cushioned for shock absorption. The model numbers change from year to year so it might be called something else now, but most of the Proform treadmills (except for the entry level cheap ones) are…

I think "amazing" is an understatement ;)

Probably a knock-off of the gazelle. Those things are fun for about 10 minutes... but for $15, it's worth giving it a try. If you hate it, you can always re-donate it. But you might love it.

I swim for about an hour at a time, 3-4 days a week. But I am very slow...probably too slow. I use a swimmer's snorkel (looks a little different than the average snorkle) so that I can keep my face down the whole time and swim without gasping for air, which was key for me in being able to do an hour at a time. If you get…

I have a BodyMedia...to add to what everyone else has said, you don't *have* to wear it on your upper left arm. It works on either arm; I've worn it on my right, and I mostly wear it on my left forearm. It's accurate for just about everything except sleep when worn on my forearm. Worn there, when I'm just sitting it thinks…

I used to belong to Anytime...it ran about $75/month for both the Spouse Thingy and I (you do catch a little bit of a price break for a couples membership), and we could use any Anytime Fitness in the country. I don't know about additional family members or their minimum age, but that might be on their website. It was an…

I did the San Francisco 3 Day last year, and this year I'm doing SF again and adding Atlanta to the mix. I'll have about 6 weeks to recover from SF...hopefully I won't croak partway through Atlanta ;) The fund raising is probably the toughest part this year...I'm doing a raffle of sorts, hoping that the chance at a Kindle,…

Everyone sweats at the gym... but try bending over to re-tie your shoelaces in the midst of about 40 other people on the treadmills and ellipticals and being surprised by a vicious, trumpeting fart... You can't NOT laugh when that happens. Was still embarrassing, though :D

You need to find something you enjoy doing, and/or something that means something to you. I train for the Susan G. Komen Walk for the Cure--we'll walk 60 miles in 3 days. There's no way to do it without training, so that gets my asterisk up and moving. I did it once last year, am doing it twice this year...which means…

I trained in TKD for a couple of years a couple of decades ago (and now I feel old...) Loved it. I started it seriously overweight and got seriously in shape...I wish I hadn't had to give it up. I miss the forms (kata, poomse, hyung...depends on what style you're in...) the most. I'd give it a try again if there was…

I know it doesn't feel like you're working as hard, but walking in water gives you (I read a long time ago, so I might not be exactly right) 22 times the resistance as walking on ground. So burning a few extra calories seems right. And it's more fun, too :)

Mucho thanks, everyone...to Amazon I shall surf ;) I can live with standing up once in a while to see what my heart rate is. I just don't think I'm getting it up there high enough while swimming and I can't find my own pulse to check it. So either the swimming is killing me, or I'm an anatomical fail... If I get that…

Pretty much the same, though I have heard BB has better customer service. I think they're even manufactured by the same company... I have a Body Media and really like it, but don't waste money on the bluetooth version. I've had it since January and have only gotten it to synch using bluetooth 3 times. It's a known issue,…

I often walk 5 in the morning and hit the gym to swim for an hour in the afternoon. Only side effect is being very, very hungry all day...

I have a pair and find them quite comfortable around the house, but I haven't been able to wear them around outside. They take some getting used to and you have to break yourself in for them, wearing them in short chunks of time initially, and I just haven't been able to do that. Just from how comfy they are when I'm…

I have the BodyMedia Fit and like it well enough. It doesn't seem to track my steps on a treadmill very well (I have a tendency to hold onto the sides), but for everything else it's been awesome. Don't waste money on the bluetooth version, though. It never synchs...in 7 months and thousands of tries I've gotten it two…