Dreaded Exercise

One thing that I think may put people off is that everything you read suggests that weight loss is impossible if you don't jog or go to a gym and it is going to be either time consuming or costly or both. It's a self defeating assumption that you can't lose weight without a gym, a bike or exercise machine. Suppose it rains and thunders every afternoon for a week like it does here in South Florida. Or there is snow up to your fenders. It is too hot or too cold. What about people who sit in wheelchairs all day? Almost everyone slows down with age and infirmity. Dragging around extra weight as we get older will only make any physical disability worse. Ah my aching back! my sore feet! my hips, my knees! my indigestion! I'm out of breath!!


Actually, when I started to lose weight my lower legs and feet would swell and cramp up from the excess baggage I was dragging around - though I thought it was something wrong with my blood vessels. Someone even commented that my legs look sun burned when they weren't. One day my legs cramped up so much I could barely finish my walk to get home. In those last couple years I could no longer take my daily walks that I had been doing since 1984. Fatties (in retrospect I can make fun of myself!) must powder their inner thighs to keep them from chaffing and their shorts from riding up. They waddle. You look like the wrath of god in jogging shorts. You suffer twice as much from the heat and sweat miserably. It's embarrassing to jiggle everywhere. ( Just so you know I understand what goes on mentally so you know I've been there! Does anybody out there just not care if it all hangs out?)

The feeling of being too fat to get out and walk was one of the "light bulb" moments where I realized that I HAD to start losing weight. My body was screaming at me that I was tired and miserable. Even if my appearance was not incentive enough to muster my will power, I knew I had to be doing damage to my body too. There were other people who were counting on me and I was having enough problems taking care of myself. But how adept we are mentally at pushing realism to the back of our minds when faced with hunger or a table full of food - or just a bag of chips.


For the first 20-25 pounds I could not and DID NOT do any appreciable exercise. As the weight went down, my legs felt a lot better, my swollen calves lost several inches, and I was able to get back to my walks. And it felt so good!

The point is that you CAN start with the diet alone. The more you move the more you can eat. And conversely you have to eat less if you exercise less. Not rocket science as they say.

Our bodies NEED exercise or the muscles atrophy. You know how fast it can happen if you just are laid up for a few days. Fell on a knee once and the doc had me exercising in bed or in a chair.

Any activity, of course, is better than none. You know - taking a flight of stairs instead of the elevator, parking the car on the far side of the parking lot. Get out of the chair at every ad. I am just trying to emphasize that you can lose weight in spite of a lack of an exercise program.


At the other extreme there are people who exercise TOO much. Check out the physical therapy department at the local hospital. You will see so many sports injuries. There are injuries that happen suddenly and ones that come from years of wear and tear. Unfortunately we glorify excess exercise as "extreme sport". Athletes often suffer early and long for the damage they did when they were younger. Perhaps their hearts are healthy and they may live longer but one does not have to go to such extremes for those benefits. Add self- inflicted injury to years of repetitive work is what makes our backs and knees give out years later.


No doubt we should get as much exercise as we can safely, but in forms that do not cause wear and tear on the joints. It pays to take care of our bodies. Lugging around excess pounds adds to any force to the feet, hips and knees. So let's not add excessive and the wrong type of exercise to already stressed joints.


Swimming is the ideal and least stressful exercise for fat people because it takes the weight off our joints. Unfortunately it is not readily available to many if not most people.


Walking is far easier on the joints than running. I walk about 40 minutes at a good clip Most days and am not averse to stopping along the way for a quick chat (having some fun is good for you too!) or walk along with someone walking their dog. I do it late in the day or early to avoid overexposure to the sun and heat since I live in south Florida. We have a nice bike path on the main streets but I prefer to get off onto the side streets away from the noise and fumes of traffic. Sometimes I take a little music along which helps pass the time and puts a little boogie in my step. I use open earphones so I can hear the cars coming up behind me. I try to do it every day except when it is raining. For me a treadmill is BORING. I hate counting time or steps, looking at a wall or the TV.

If you do not like it you won't DO it so you must find something that appeals to you. It does NOT matter what you do as long as you move. You do not have to work up a big sweat. You should feel good when you finish, not exhausted or sore. HAVE FUN!

What to do when you can't go outside? Well, depends on you. I am all for something that does not cost a red cent. You can shut yourself in your room and put on the headphones and dance with your eyes closed. If you have a willing partner, dance together (fast or slow) You can stick an exercise disk in the player. You can jump rope - real or imagined - in the basement. You can climb up and down a flight of stairs 10 times (work up to it). Do jumping jacks, push ups, sit ups.

Whatever. Don't overdo. Time is more important than effort here.

At work do the stairs, walk the halls, stand instead of sitting when you can. Use your lunch break to do some exercise. Take advantage of anything you job offers in the way of fitness.

Please add your own suggestions.

I also have to add that exercise alone did not keep me from gaining weight though it may have helped keep from gaining at least part of the time.

The impetus for my starting to walk regularly came after a family trip to Tetons National Park., Yellowstone and Glacier Park in Montana. It was a glorious trip with snow in June and the geisers steaming. The Tetons were glorious but the altitude even at the Teton lodge where we stayed left me breathless after even a short hike.

I decided I would try to increase my tolerance of altitude by walking the next year before our second trip to the Rockies. I must admit that I had to push myself for the first few weeks. I had some shin splints that did not help but these went away - especially with the help of good running shoes. After that I hated to miss walking. There was some sort of lift mentally after the walks and I began to look forward to the walks. It was fun getting to know the neighbors, watching the progress of construction. Made some new and fast friends - we began to dog sit for each other. As the year went by it was fun to see what was happening, who was having a BD party, the arrival of winter birds and everyone outside watching the flight of the swallow tailed kite - perhaps the most magnificent fliers aloft.

I found some side streets that made a loop (so as not to breathe fumes of traffic on the main streets) and began by walking it once. Gradually I worked in a few extra loops and walking with long strides and head up, I increased my speed gradually. Improvement came naturally, nothing extraordinary.

The next year's trip to the Rockies proved a resounding success for improving my high altitude capacity and we also enjoyed hiking in the mountains during the next years. I was by no means lean and mean but my weight was reasonably under control and I had lots of energy and could enjoy the West and the mountain air..

It was not until an encounter with a dog scared me that I stopped walking regularly. That coincides with the next stage of gradual weight gain. [Note: it is important to have a safe neighborhood to walk and for the kids. Take a cell phone with you and report dogs running loose if it is a problem. Or else go home and file a report with the cops before something happens. Should be done immediately.].

Now I have returned to walking about 5 days a week. It helps to maintain my weight and energy.

Over the years I had foot pain and evening numbness that interfered with my walking. I saw a podiatrist and a neurologist over the years. Finally a change to Dr. Scholl's drugstore silicon insoles and thin, non-binding socks (be sure they don't shrink up in the drier!), the foot problems disappeared! I have a high instep, so it is very important to have well-fitted and well padded shoes and not to lace them up too tight.