I have a herniated disc in my lower back and walking helps it a lot more than sitting or lying down, I can tell you that. Plus the look of muscles in your legs sure looks a **** of a lot better than just flab!
I also loathe exercise. Dread it beforehand, hate every second of it during and am thankful to be finished. I hate every kind of exercise I've ever tried (running, elliptical, stairs, bikes, classes, hikes, whatever).
I know people keep saying it but I secretly find it hard to believe that anyone can LIKE exercise, blech.
I am sure at some point I will enjoy it, i just hate the utter pain I am feeling when I am done. I have arthritis in one knee and it is very very painful. Also my back KILLS me.
Do any of you deal with or dealt with back pain from your weight and does that ever get better?
My friend has arthritis all over. She found that losing weight has taken some of the burden off her joints to help with pain. She also found that she had to start exercising very slowly. First she started with 10 minutes on the elliptical machine while watching her tv shows. She slowly built up time on there. Then she added in weights to get her muscles stronger. Finally when she could do an hour of the elliptical (and it took her a year to work up to that) she added in biking on flat surfaces and then eventually hills. Now, she hikes as well.
The main things she did was:
1. low impact exercises to reduce inflammation and pain.
2. start very slow and build slowly.
3. She included her dog and friends to keep her company while walking.
I have back and neck issues. I went to physical therapy for it. I used to get back and head aches when I exercised. I learned to slowly build intensity because I was overusing certain muscles at high intensities to compensate for weaker muscles. (bad posture and lifting wrong) I also learned which muscles were weak and learned exercises to strengthen them so that they could pull their own weight, so to speak. It took a year, but I'm off muscle relaxers and haven't been put out of commission for two or three days at a time due to headaches.
My physical therapist was super fit. But you know, she never goes to the gym or runs just to run. She likes sports so she plays on two soccer teams and flag football and soft ball. I know that sounds like a lot of team sports but the take home message from that is that you don't have to be a "gym rat" you can just do things that you enjoy, like shopping or adult sports leagues, or play tennis with a spouse/kids/cousin/friend. Or workout while watching tv (I go to the gym and watch the view while I'm on the exercise bike or elliptical).
I don't love exercise for it's own sake, but I find ways to tolerate it, like biking with kids/hubby or watching tv at the gym. And I like the results of the exercise.
I used to loathe exercise. Swore, in fact, that there was only one good reason to get all hot and sweaty and breathless and it was most emphatically NOT an exercise regimen.
Now, well...I'll never love exercise itself. Lifting weights and cycling on my hamster wheel are dull unless I prop open a book or watch some TV while I'm doing it. Walking is a little better just because the "great outdoors" of my suburban neighborhood provides interest.
But it doesn't really matter if I like it or hate it or just find it tolerable. I love what it's doing for me way more than I dislike the exercise itself. When I started a month or so ago, I couldn't handle more than five minutes on the cycle; now I do half an hour. I didn't walk half a mile without huffing and puffing; now two miles is no problem (my two miles are easier, though, because New Orleans is very flat). It's embarrassing to admit this, but pots and pans were too heavy for me to lift with ease when they were full; now they're no problem, so I get burned or sloshed with hot water less. I like feeling stronger and more capable. I like not having to rest from housework or running errands. I like seeing a muscle peeking out here and there from beneath my thick layer of upholstery.
Your venting about exercise is totally understandable. Pretty sure a lot of us share those feelings. But maybe there are ways for you to make it a little more tolerable?
Three miles on those winding, hilly roads of yours would flatten me! It's admirable that you want to start with three-mile walks, but yikes, those roads look like knee-killers. Maybe stepping it back a little and getting the rest of your daily exercise in some other form (lifting, cycling) would be a little easier on your body.
Last edited by Nola Celeste; 11-29-2010 at 04:34 PM.
Have you tried something low impact instead? A lot of people suggest swimming.
Although I'm not a fan of jogging, I found that I absolutely loved cycling over the summer. I can barely run 2.5 miles, but stick me on a bike and after 11 miles I still want more!
I love to walk and hike and bike and swim and kayak and do yoga. But almost every single time I'm doing one of those things I'm thinking "is this over? can I be done now?" But afterward, I feel awesome (even when my body hurts) and when I log in my work, I feel great. And when I think about all the people who physically can't do what i do and would give anything to be out there walking in the freezing cold or bending or pedaling, I remember how lucky I am.
I do not love exercise. In fact, when I start it I always hate it and want to quit. I find that if I stick with it, then it gets to a point where I don't exactly enjoy but feel a sense of accomplishment in completing it.
I tried walking (on a treadmill) and find that my back start hurting.
I think it is important to find something that may work better. For example, I find that the recumbent bike is much more congenial for my back. And I can read a book while I do it or watch TV (I do it at the Y).
I have been working on strengthening my back also. I finally decided to work with a trainer for 30 minutes a week and get a lot out of those sessions and they really are faster moving with a lot of variety (I do weight training with the trainer not cardio stuff). So, if the budget allows it, working with a trainer once or twice a week can be a great help.
Walking is very scenic here as well but I too find myself AS SOON AS I WALK out the stinkin door hurting and wondering if it's OVER YET!!! I have arthritis in my knee bad as well and it hurts so bad tonight I have a liperderm patch on it.
WHEW you guys are indeed inspirational though....THANK YOU
Maybe you should try walking below the canal, where it's flatter.
Sorry, couldn't resist. Don't see many ppl who are also from DE!
Anyway, I don't love actually exercising, but I love how it makes me feel. I think the advice to start slower is sound. Work up to the 3 miles, that will probably be easier on your joints.
Bacos are you really that close to me? I grew up in Cecil County I know the bay quite well and i am familiar with the levies Maybe we can walk sometime. Do you walk there?
Bacos are you really that close to me? I grew up in Cecil County I know the bay quite well and i am familiar with the levies Maybe we can walk sometime. Do you walk there?
I'm in Middletown. So far I've been walking on the treadmill, but I'd totally be up for walking with a buddy sometime!
Walking is very scenic here as well but I too find myself AS SOON AS I WALK out the stinkin door hurting and wondering if it's OVER YET!!! I have arthritis in my knee bad as well and it hurts so bad tonight I have a liperderm patch on it.
WHEW you guys are indeed inspirational though....THANK YOU
They all sure are - especially JoJoJo2here!! 84 and still working out and flexible, you are the queen!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by JoJoJo2
I hate exercise too, but I do it because I know it helps keep me somewhat flexible in my senior years.
readytobeme, I'm so sorry that you are in physical pain doing the walking :hugs: I sure hope it gets better, less painful. Because what you are doing is great!
I don't look forward to exercising, I look forward to when it's done but I do it anyway, have been for 8 years; and will try to keep doing it as long as JoJoJo!
and hey posting about this has maybe gotten you a walking buddy! Kewl
Last edited by VermontMom; 12-01-2010 at 02:47 PM.
readytobeme, I'm so sorry. I definitely agree that exercise sucks. LOL....For me, it MUST MUST MUST MUST MUST be fun or yes, it's boring, feels like work and I don't wanna do it. You need to find an exercise that is FUN for YOU. For me? The most fun workout program I own is Hip Hop Abs. It's so fun that even when I'm tired and need to stop, I don't want to or if I do need a break when it gets tough, I'm able to jump back into it again instead of giving up .
Do you like to dance? If so, start there. Turn on your favorite song and dance to it until it's over. You'll definitely get that heart rate up. Do it for a week. Next week? Dance to two songs. LOL. It sounds silly but every little bit helps, right? Want proof? I lost ten pounds last month and I do only 12 minutes of a 26 minute Hip Hop Abs workout (the rest of it the workout I'm too lazy to do is on the floor...leg lifts, etc....ugh, hate that stuff. LOL). Anyway, so, as you can see...you don't even have to work out for very long...as long as you DO IT....that's all that matters. I bought the "Walk At Home" dvd at Wal-Mart last month and it's definitely something I think is fun too because it's easy. You're marching in place in front of the TV. The one I got has five miles on it and you can decide how many miles you'd like to do each day. One mile is 12 minutes so it's no wonder why I can do only 12 minutes of my Hip Hop Abs program and lose weight
Whatever you do, just make sure it's very easy so that you won't give up. Give yourself 12 minutes to workout and for those 12 minutes you give it your ALL and you can't go wrong. Eventually, you'll be able to add more time.
Okay, I'll stop before I write a novel but you get the idea. LOL.
Just to add there was an article in an aussie paper about two months ago that linked your love or hatred of exercise to genetics! So dont feel bad at all, I too hate exercise, I also hate housework and grocery shopping and paying bills, but I have to do it and so I do. I dont see myself ever liking exercise, but maybe theres hope. I used to dance all night at clubs when I was 18 and loved it! So maybe theres something a little more grown up for me waiting to be embraced. Good on you for doing it though! It takes more heart to do something you hate and not giving up then it does to do something you love Thumbs up to you!
Bacos 
