Can anyone tell me of some exercises that are gentle on the back other than walking? I want to work on my stomach, butt and hips without aggravating an old back injury.
PLEASE HELP!

Thanks~Kim

Have you heard of the Tony LIttle "Gazelle"? http://www.gazelle-products.com/ It's a home workout kinda like a treadmill but its very easy on your back and joints because there's no impact... just gliding. My mother in law told me about it and she's lost 60 pounds with bad knees & bad back.
I have one at home and they are great. You can normally find them in sport stores for about $100.00
Hope this helps!
Steph
hw 273
cw 242
gw 185

Thanks Athena, I will look into that!

Hi wildblue_yonder -
I have a herniated disk in my lower back and a little piece of a disk that is broken and resting on some nerves that go into my leg (lovely).
About 6 months ago I was allowed to work out again. My Dr and physical therapist approved me using a recumbant exercise bike and then after I worked up to it a little..the elliptical trainer. If you havent heard of it, its a low impact machine that burns a ton of calories. kind of like a stair master and a treadmill all in one.
Of course, Im not a doctor so I dont want to give you bad advice...but for me, these two machines have been very safe for me to use. And my back has been much better since I've been working out consistantly. In fact, it now tends to act up if I dont work out...I think it starts to get stiff.
Anyhow - just start slowly so you dont reinjure yourself. listen to your back.
I hope this was helpful.
good luck!

The eliptical is great for people with bad backs, no jarring motion (if its a good machine) which is great! I actually noticed that my back felt better after a couple weeks of using the elliptical It felt "lighter" if that makes sense, you know how you feel after you get a great massage...well thats how my back felt after using it almost like it was less tense.

I do however have a really hard time doing crunches/situps its too much strain on my back but then again it could also do with how much I weigh

Good luck!!
Michelle

Thanks Shasha and (((Michelle)))!

I hate to complain so I didn't go into detail with my post but I too have a herniated disk that has caused me great pain. I noticed that when I did dance exercises it would get worse. This sounds like just what I need. Thank you both for replying.


Start date 8/10
sw/230
cw/200 (Looking ahead to the 190's)
gw/130-140