Exercise

[BoomBoomBoom]

So i know theres a exercise and fitness section but I thought I'd put this in here because I have so much to lose.

I'm a big girl and I wouldn't fare out well at the gym at this point, although I would hope that would change in the future. So for now I'm doing minimum 30 minutes exercise a day.

I get a different bus to college, one that stops 10 minutes away from the college so I have a 10 minute walk to the college in the mornings. When I'm finished college I do that 10 minute walk back to the bus stop which is up a hill so I do sweat a lot with my heavy backpack.

Then I get off the bus 15 minutes away from my house so that totals 35 minutes. And I dont go to my boyfriends house everyday but when I do thats a 10 minute walk up a steep hill followed by a set of steep steps.

My question is, is it ok to have the 30 minutes broken up like this or should it be altogether? Seeing as I'm off college at weekends I did a 45 minute walk all in one yesterday instead of it being broken up.

Is one more beneficial than the other?

 

[Auburn]

Hiya

As far as I know, so long as it additional to what you would have normally done, then it is fine broken into chunks like that! They tell ya to increase your general activity, which you are definitely doing.

I don't know if it is more beneficial to break it up, or do it all in one chunk. I'd guess that its still 30 minutes walking if you do it in 3 blocks of 10 minutes, or one of 30, so in theory it'd be the same amount of energy burnt either way?

I need to get moving myself..!!

 

[CrazyBrit]

Honestly, the sooner you start at a gym the better (If joining a gym is your goal, that is). Gym exercise works your muscles quite differently from walking or jogging, so the sooner you can get your body to adjust, the better (I'm sure Justin can explain this far better than me).

If you're worried about being fat at the gym, don't be. Everyone has their reasons for going. My arse itself is larger than half the girls at my local gym, but I can assure you I'm not gonna let their slimness put me off. And not a single one of them stares at me as though I don't belong (although, frankly, going at 06:30 in the morning means most of them are too whacked-out to stare at anything LOL).

Anyone'll tell you that doing more exercise is always better than doing less or none. But don't delay. Join a gym. You'll find you're fitter than you give yourself credit for, and your fitness increases surprisingly rapidly once you start measuring it. You can time your walks and work on making them faster each time, and you can start getting off the bus a stop earlier (although in winter that becomes an unattractive prospect), but a gym will also have fitness instructors who can answer your questions, help you with training programmes, and give you the occasional assessment to see how you're doing. You don't have to splash out on a Personal Trainer.

And, sure, you'll go once or twice a week to begin with. You'll have to rest between gym sessions. But you'll work up to daily, and it'll just become part of your daily life

 

[Icklemissmosh]

i understand about not wanting to go to the gym,i don't want to exercise in front of other people,its expensive and time consuming and i get bored and clock watch.

I don't enjoy exercise for its own sake so i do wii fit with my boyfriend and make a game of it, and i walk more than i used to.

If you think the changes you are making are working for you then i think its fine, as long as it fits into your life, otherwise exercise can seem like a hassle and you wont stick at it.

 

[BoomBoomBoom]

I'm not even embarrased, its not that. Its just the thought of having to go to the gym puts me off, I know i'll get bored and stop, where as walking is something I HAVE to do when I get a different bus and stuff.

Of course thats only a starting point, i'll gradually increase when I get smaller, but at the moment even quick paced walking makes me pant and breathe heavy, so I dont want to over do it too quickly. 30-40 minutes a day for the first four weeks, then 50-70 minutes a day until eventually i'll be walking to and from college, it'll save me bus fares in the long run anyway

 

[CrazyBrit]

The gym's intensely boring, I won't pretend otherwise. Several factors can mitigate this:
- Vary your routine. Use different machines, do different exercises, break your session up.
- Endorphins. Exercise releases them. It can get pretty addictive
- Equipment. Modern gym equipment has built-in TV and radio, an iPod dock, and a variety of other things to keep your attention off how dull the exercise itself is. Ensure your gym is modern
- Inch-loss reward. If you start measuring your inches as well as just your weight you'll start feeling more motivated to go to the gym once the results become apparent.

Walking's also a high-impact exercise. It's rotten for the knees if you're overweight. With a gym you can do much lower-impact, safer exercise such as cross-training, cycling, or rowing. Less jostle on the joints.

 

[junoesque]

I'm not even embarrased, its not that. Its just the thought of having to go to the gym puts me off, I know i'll get bored and stop, where as walking is something I HAVE to do when I get a different bus and stuff.

Of course thats only a starting point, i'll gradually increase when I get smaller, but at the moment even quick paced walking makes me pant and breathe heavy, so I dont want to over do it too quickly. 30-40 minutes a day for the first four weeks, then 50-70 minutes a day until eventually i'll be walking to and from college, it'll save me bus fares in the long run anyway

I totally agree with Crazy Brit about low impact when you are heavier.. you could really do yourself some damage.
..and with winter coming rapidly on, I can imagine getting off the bus several stops early and walking the rest of the way through sleety rain may lose it's appeal.

How about a combination of swimming (no impact, and no sweating, but a really good workout of muscles that you wouldn't otherwise use), and wii fit?
One memorable day I spent 20 minutes trying to ski jump further than my husband did (only to find a neighbour child had been using his mii and had gone twice as far as he ever could normally.. but that's another story) and the next day I thought I was coming down with the flu because every joint ached!!
You don't get bored because there's all sorts of different activities which are disguised as games. You can do it without travel.. It's free after you get the initial kit (if you don't have one), you can pace it to your requirements and it really works.

My husband had a knee op 6 weeks before he was due to climb 3 mountains in 3 countries in 24 hours (called the 3 peaks challenge- you have to be crazy!). Because of the knee op he couldn't do any training with impact, and did the whole lot on the wii fit!

Anyway, in the end it's your choice, and lots of brownie points for getting out of your own way and getting on with getting thin!!

Do whatever works for you

Juno ..

 

[CrazyBrit]

The Wii Fit is fantastic! Especially the skiing

 

[BoomBoomBoom]

I totally agree with Crazy Brit about low impact when you are heavier.. you could really do yourself some damage.
..and with winter coming rapidly on, I can imagine getting off the bus several stops early and walking the rest of the way through sleety rain may lose it's appeal.

How about a combination of swimming (no impact, and no sweating, but a really good workout of muscles that you wouldn't otherwise use), and wii fit?
One memorable day I spent 20 minutes trying to ski jump further than my husband did (only to find a neighbour child had been using his mii and had gone twice as far as he ever could normally.. but that's another story) and the next day I thought I was coming down with the flu because every joint ached!!
You don't get bored because there's all sorts of different activities which are disguised as games. You can do it without travel.. It's free after you get the initial kit (if you don't have one), you can pace it to your requirements and it really works.

My husband had a knee op 6 weeks before he was due to climb 3 mountains in 3 countries in 24 hours (called the 3 peaks challenge- you have to be crazy!). Because of the knee op he couldn't do any training with impact, and did the whole lot on the wii fit!

Anyway, in the end it's your choice, and lots of brownie points for getting out of your own way and getting on with getting thin!!

Do whatever works for you

Juno ..

Sadly I dont own a wii the only time I get to use it is when I go to my boyfriends house and he doesn't have wii fit I don't think

And also...might sound shocking but at 19 years of age I can't swim My mam never learned and had a fear of the water which she has passed on to me

 

[junoesque]

Sadly I dont own a wii the only time I get to use it is when I go to my boyfriends house and he doesn't have wii fit I don't think

And also...might sound shocking but at 19 years of age I can't swim My mam never learned and had a fear of the water which she has passed on to me

Never mind that you can't swim.. what a great opportunity to learn!!
At most leisure centres that have a pool, they have a training pool which is the same depth the whole length (usually a bit over waist deep) so it isn't scary because you can stand up, and they all have lessons available (even for adults).


And as for the wii fit.. Christmas is coming! (it's loads less than a gym membership, too)

You'll do well with whatever you choose, because you sound really committed!

Juno ..

 

[CrazyBrit]

My mother is terrified of water and until her sixties could not swim. Eventually I managed to teach her in under a month.

 

[Icklemissmosh]

Modern gym equipment has built-in TV and radio, an iPod dock, and a variety of other things to keep your attention off how dull the exercise itself is. Ensure your gym is modern

Wow, I'll have to look into that one i had no idea some gyms had that kind of stuff, i would be much more inclined to use the equipment if i could have some entertainment at the same time, thanks CrazyBrit

 

[BoomBoomBoom]

No ipod docs in the college gym i'm afraid However I do have free membership, but my college has about a ratio of 80% men to 20% women as its a institute of technology and girls don't like doing technical things.

I don't mind working out in front of people, and I have no problem with them seeing what size I am, after all thats what the gym is there for. However all the guys at this gym are already buff, and they aren't too keen on it when girls go in there...

 

[Auburn]

I used to go to the gym at uni too, and I tell you one thing I noticed about the buff guys.... They were all too wrapped up in their own reflections to look around anyone else Same with the beach-bod-perfect pretty-girls that I was scared of embarassing myself being a fat wobbly mess on the treadmill in front of ... lol

I would say bollocks to them! Its your gym as much as it theirs!

[I've had an argumentative day today, can you tell??? haha]

 

[CrazyBrit]

Damn right. You have a right to use the gym. Sod the buff guys