I know I need to exercise, I just seem to lack the motivation. No one can give me that, I know, but I'm curious what exercise worked for you, especially those of you who started out near or above the 300lb mark. I live in a very rural area with narrow roads so I don't feel safe to go out walking. I'm thinking about getting a treadmill to start with; something used but in good shape, just to get me started. I've also considered an elliptical or exercise bike. Please share your favorite and/or most effective workouts. Thanks in advance!
I sometimes hop on an Elliptical machine at work. I can only do a few minutes and its a great work out especially compared to a treadmill. I prefer it to the treadmill. I found this info on a website for you:
Non-Impact Conditioning– The elliptical allows your body to emulate a running motion without causing the strenuous impact on your joints that occurs on a treadmill.
Cross-Training Ability– Most elliptical trainers are now equipped with moveable handles which allow you to exercise your upper body and lower body simultaneously.
Reverse Stride– Most elliptical allow you to stride in reverse which can activate different muscle groups and put more emphasis on your quads and offer an adjustable variety mid-workout.
Perceived Exertion Is Lower– Studies show that people are actually working harder than they actually perceive when operating an elliptical.
My typical exercise is water aerobics and walking in the mall.
I started at 260 and when I first started working out it was tough (especially on my knees). Ellipticals and stationary bikes are really good for just starting out. I started with a 30 day Ab and Squat challenge. I looked up squats that were kind to the knees and even though my sit ups weren't perfect, it was the effort that counted. This had me working out around 10 minutes a day. After that challenge was over I went on to a new 30 day challenge and slowly adding time with each month as I got stronger and the weight dropped. If you google 30 day challenged they have a lot to work from. But just 10 minutes on the elliptical or stationary bike to start with is great.
You know what I did to start? I did the Wii game - Walk it Out. As I got fitter, I started marching in place, then using a step. I even tried a mini trampoline. Once I got to a certain fitness level, then I joined the gym and started taking classes - first Zumba, then a BodyStep, then BodyPump. It was GREAT! And I always threw in walking my neighborhood too.
Now however, I am working full time. I simply DO NOT have the time to go to the gym - no way. I work 40 hours a week and commute 1.5 hours a day. AND i still do all the cooking and cleaning, etc. So, this time I'm going to workout at home.
My 10 year old (autistic) is addicted to Just Dance videos. I could do those - dancing off the pounds. I could do some step aerobics or other aerobics. I also have a TRX, so when I take off weight to a certain level, I'll do that too.
Just find a way to MOVE. I "personally" cannot stand machines. I HATE THEM. I need more interaction in my excerise, so even if it's people in a video, that is still good enough for me.
A lot of people like walking videos (Leslie Sanson?) has several. Just start slow and build up so that your bones and muscles can get stronger slowly without causing injury.
I started with leslie sansone videos. The first couple of weekend I could only do a half mile. once I got better I moved up to 1, 2 miles. I got bored, and tried different things.
I think if you aren't near a gym and don't want to walk outside youtube and at home DVDs are the way to go. I also rent videos from amazon. Its usualy 1.99 for a week. If your a prime member they have video included with your membership.
If you go the youtube route try fitness blenders.
Whatever you do start with short doable goals and stick to it.
I'm a Leslie Sansone fan too! I did those for the first few months (I mean, at first i could only do 5 minutes!) and then added in resistance bands.
I'm not a "gym" person, I just can't drive 3 miles to walk on a treadmill lol so I made house cleaning a SPORT! Raced up and down stairs - take laundry down a piece at a time if I had to. Cleaning, shifting heavy stuff to vacuum etc., gave me a work out AND a sparkling house at all times LOL I did a lot of outside clean up work, then expanded to some elderly neighbours to do it for them. Made me feel good to move my butt and help someone at the same time.
I still do it now, I'm hooked! But I also go crazy with a weighted HULA HOOP hee hee i don't know if it helps my core from LAUGHING for 20 mins tho
Thanks for all of the suggestions. I had forgotten about Leslie Sansone. I did that years ago when it first came out on VHS! I'll look into that before I spend the money on expensive machines.
If you would like to get started with walking, you could go somewhere other than near your house. I live out in the country, too, and our road is so busy with no sidewalks and not much of a shoulder on the road. It was too scary to keep walking there, so I drove to either a park, riverfront trail, or a high school track to walk/run. Yeah, you have to drive there, but it is safer!!
Slashnl, I've done that before myself; driving somewhere to walk. I know I won't make it a habit if I do that. Plus, with my schedule, I am looking for something I can do early morning or late evening because I work full-time so my days are occupied. When I was out of work for a few months I went to a local college and walked around a lake. I loved it but something like that won't work on a regular basis for me.
Leslie Sansone! <3 This is the video I use Leslie Sansone: Walk Away the Pounds Ultimate Collection http://www.amazon.com/Leslie-Sansone...leslie+sansone , the 1 mile walk & sometimes the 2 mile walk (I only do half of the 2 mile usually) but I think it has helped me so much! It is low impact (especially the one mile walk) but effective.
Another Leslie Sansone person here. If you go to Youtube there are several different Leslie videos to try. This kind of helped me find my favorite and then I bought the video...so I don't have to search for it every time. I also started out only doing about 5 minutes at a time, now I do about 30 minutes most days.
I am with everyone that the Leslie's DVDs are good to use. In the morning to help me with my joints I do yoga with my Peggy Cappy DVDs. I had a meniscus tear (torn cartilage) several years ago and found out I have arthritis in both my knees. In my left knee the cartilage is worn pretty thin. I can walk but am limited form using a treadmill, bicycle or anything form of exercise that can place excessive strain on my knee so i have t get creative.
I am beginning to use resistance bands for toning and strength training. There are many videos on you tube with tutorials.
Candidcamster, thanks for the link. I'm going to buy that collection and get started. My coworkers want us to participate in a 5K in November. I'm not sure how I feel about that, but hopefully I'll be able to walk it if I start using these workouts soon. Thanks again to everyone for the info.
Exercise Help! What worked for you?
