I've managed to lose 12.4 lbs in exactly 3 weeks...
BUT I haven't exercised more then once the entire time...
Exercise is so painful for me, I've got bad ankles (I've had surgery on them both) bad knees bad arms and asthma..so running or jumping or whatever is painful for me. I don't have access to a pool or I'd be swimming laps like all day. It's WAY too hot outside to go for a walk, and I can't go at night because I have to go to bed so early so that I can get up at 4:30am for work every day. I have a wii fit and EA active but the wii is downstairs in the room with the computer that my little sister is ALWAYS on, and I'm embarrassed to have anyone watch me work out because after like 2 minutes I'm panting and sweating and I look like an idiot.
I need to stop making excuses, I need to find a kind of exercise I can do without causing myself severe amounts of pain, and I need to find a way to actually motivate myself to do it.
I mean, I've lost 12 1/2 lbs in 3 weeks, if I'm doing that well why do i need exercise? That's what I keep thinking...and I know it's a terrible way to think about it...but I'm having trouble stopping myself =/
I actually finally just did the first day of the 30 day challenge on EA Active for the wii. 22 minutes and I already feel like I'm dying. Hopefully it will get easier as I go, and hopefully I can keep it up. That's always been the hardest part for me, keeping it up.
Just read my motto at the bottom of the page and think about it. Seriously. When there's a will there's a way...
IF you choose to become fit, that it. Lots of people lose weight without exercising. I think exercising is the KEY to maintaining, though, so you might also wanna think about that...
You need to exercise because after awhile, your body will get used to the restricted food, and you will stop losing. I lost my first 15 pounds through what I ate alone, but I did plateau, so I had to start working out. You would be amazed how good you will feel after you work out.
Diet is a big part of weight loss, you can get by (though maybe not as well?) without exercise. Though among other benefits, it can help increase your cardiovascular endurance -- especially with asthma! I have asthma myself and there is a huuuuge difference between now and before I started regular exercise (April) -- I get winded less easily, I can control my breathing better when I exercise, and catch my breath quicker after being winded.
It also helps to find something you enjoy, something that doesn't feel like a chore. Maybe a local park district has an interesting class for a decent price. (Community colleges can also be an excellent resource for this.) Maybe find something that a friend has always wanted to try too and brave it together.
If somewhere in the community offers them in the fall, water classes are very low impact and because you are submerged and there are no mirrors, hard for anyone to see what you're doing if you are feeling a wee bit self-conscious about people seeing you work out. And honestly, most people probably care more about their own workout, or will think what you are doing is pretty cool.
Try renting workout dvds if you have access to a tv and dvd player -- or even pop the dvd into your computer if that's more private! Sometimes if you dig around you can find decent indoor (ie air-conditioned) walking -- maybe a local school, mall, whatever.
But honestly if your heart isn't into committing to it, there are probably reasons to dodge around all the exercise in the world. Maybe even if you choose not to do it for now, you'll revisit the idea when you want to see more movement from the scale!
I think it is great you have been able to lose weight without exercising. I wish I could during winter. I worked for a holistic nurse, who by the way was also an RN that worked in New York during the '70s and '80s, and she didn't believe in any exercise besides maybe yoga. She thought exercise was too rough on bodies and that keeping the body healthy could be accomplished solely by diet and maybe walking or very light exercise. The older I get, the more I tend to agree with her. I have been playing softball for 20 years and am now paying for it in my right shoulder and neck. The pain has been unrelenting, constant.
I think that you are doing great, and you are off to a wonderful start. You will know when you need to step it up a notch. I walked my first 30 pounds off along with WW. The rest I really had to buckle down and start running and added a lot more games to my weeks. Good luck to you.
I agree with Somni on the asthma thing! I had it REALLY bad growing up and avoided exercise throughout childhood and my teens years because my DOCTORS told me to to avoid having an asthma attack.
And people wonder why I got fat.
Finally, when I started working out these past few years... I realized that the first few weeks were **** (I went through several start and stop phases until I've become regular this past year and a half) but after that it's like my lungs literally expanded! I have so few problems with my asthma now it's AMAZING.
People can lose weight and never exercise. If I were you, I'd look for something VERY gentle, stop beating yourself up mentally about it, and keep making excellent food choices.
I have asthma too and was also kept from taking P.E. and playing with the other kids when I was younger. I also have bad ankles (birth defect), bad knees and hips from being Fat, so I had to start off very slow and easy. I started doing the WATP (Walk Away The Pounds) Videos and DVD's with Leslie Sanson and I think that is a great and easy way for Beginner exercisers to ease into it all.
Good Luck and don't be hard on yourself girly! We all had to start somewhere and trust me when I say, when I leave the GYM, I am bright red in the face, huffing and a puffing, soaking wet with sweat, my hair is all over the place and it's not a pretty picture, but yanno what else? I feel GREAT when I'm done and I accomplished what I set out to do! You can do it too!
People can lose weight and never exercise. If I were you, I'd look for something VERY gentle, stop beating yourself up mentally about it, and keep making excellent food choices.
Yep, gotta agree with this. Someone mentioned yoga; I actually think that might be something that would agree with you! Some of the poses might be too difficult for your joints, but when I was doing yoga it was understood that a person should do what they could, and it was fine to not attempt to do all the poses.
Think about yoga. It really is pretty relaxing and fun. Biking, as someone else suggested, is also a really good low-impact exercise.
I am in great shape i weigh 130 NOW 1 have lost 45 lbs HUFF AND PUFF LIKE CRAZY AND AM SOOOO embarrasssedd I don't SWeat at all so i don't know if that is part of my problem But people MUCH MUCH heavier than me seem to be breathething much easier I do p90x and in Tony Hortons words do your BEST and FORGET the REST It WORKS!!!!
Time to be tough with yourself. Your whole first paragraph was one big excuse and you need to be kinder to yourself by saying what you CAN do rather than what you can't do. Everyone has limitations and not everyone can get fit the exact same way. You'll find that cutting calories will help you lose weight, but exercise will make you feel great.
Don't want to exercise? Fine... but be more active instead. Get a pedometer and count all your steps, even when walking around the house. I shoot for 10,000 steps per day, at least half of them being aerobic.
Gotta get to work early? Fine... but park your car as far away from the entrance as possible. Take the stairs. Find every excuse to get out of your chair during work.
Don't have time to go to the gym because you've got to get dinner on the table? Fine... walk to the supermarket and don't go aisle by aisle. Shop on aisle 1, then jump to aisle 8, then back to aisle 2, then back to aisle 9, and so on.
Can't do high impact exercises? Fine... sit in a straightback chair during commercials and do leg extensions to strengthen the muscles around your knees.
Losing weight and being fit is a simple formula. Eat less + move more. You don't have to be a gym buff, you don't have to run marathons. But you've got to find ways to MOVE your body in order to REMOVE the fat.
Biking, for me, gave me some knee problems from standing on the bike to go harder, and biking uphill often. So, don't bike too hard!
Swimming is very easy on joints and ankles, but it's surprisingly difficult to do laps for a long time! It really works the major muscles and actually gives me some aerobic workout too. I would just get too hot in the pool from working out, LOL. The water stopped being refreshing!
I have arthritis in one of my knees and a host of other difficulties just from being obese. Somedays I am pounding it out on the treadmill some days I'm not. On the non treadmill days when the knee is acting up I try to increase my level of activity as Wannabeskinny suggested. Yesterday my husband and I spent the entire afternoon walking around the Parade of Homes! There were alot of stairs in those big houses!
Another suggestion is to get some resistance bands. You don't even a need a dvd, they often come with a little pamphlet on how to use them. I really like using them. It's not aerobic so I'm not hugging and puffing. It's easy on the joints and I feel so loose and limber when I'm done. I try to do this 3x week in addition to cardio on the treadmill.
Don't beat yourself up. Commit to something, anything. Change it if it doesn't work for you and then find something else. This isn't about coming out of the gate with a perfect plan. Heck, if we could do that we probably wouldn't be having wt issues to begin with, KWIM?
You can work around your issues. You can do this! If I can, anyone can!
So I have a confession to make...
