no one is too fat to exercise...

...providing they increase their activity levels gradually, says the link below.

(Coincidentally, this topic came up in one of my groups recently. I know when I started out last year at 198lbs, I felt really uncomfortable going to the university gym, which to my eyes seemed full of slim college students and also, most mortifyingly, my colleagues. I also immediately suffered knee pain when I took up beginner tennis lessons - very embarrassing since we hardly moved and none of the other (lean!) participants suffered similar pain. I kept thinking I should just wait and lose some weight before I try either of these things. As it turns out I'm glad I stuck with going to the gym then, even if it was only walking at 3mph on a treadmill while reading a thriller or watching a program. Even if a few people did stare. It made the weight come off much faster, it motivated me to persist with healthy eating, and it gradually made me feel fitter and more at home there. And resistance training (leg extensions) helped make my knees stronger so that the pain disappeared. In short I think it's helpful to channel some of our fat into developing a thick skin for ourselves when we're starting out! -powerfrau)

Link

Thu. Aug 17, 12:21pm

i must tell you, i felt the same way in public when i began this journey (this time around), and also stuck w/ it to better myself. it has been great! i almost always gain some sort of insight when i read what you post, powerfrau!

Thursday, August 17, 2006, 12:30 PM

I'm trying to read the article you linked, but first I gotta know... how much is a stone?

Thursday, August 17, 2006, 12:51 PM

stone=14 lbs

My mom is over 200 and she always complains of knee problems when I suggest we get some exercise. It's even hard getting her to go for a walk. She's talking about "maybe" going swimming 1 day a week. I'm seriously worried about her health. What other kinds of exercise might be appropriate?

Thursday, August 17, 2006, 1:29 PM

can I ask the OP's Height and weight?

I don't consider 198 anywhere near too fat to exercise. I took up running at 200lbs with no pain (5'6, 25 yo woman). My mother who is around 300 lbs (5'5 50 yo woman) swims when she can.

Some problems like knee problems may not be wieght related, but rather form or age related...

Thursday, August 17, 2006, 1:31 PM

i'm not the op, but i am 200 lbs and i feel too fat to exercise sometimes. (i'm 5'4''). but i stick with it, and my lab results are getting better and better. my weight is finally catching up!

Thursday, August 17, 2006, 1:36 PM

I have back problems I attribute to starting to babysit too young and picking up and carrying kids when I was barely bigger than them. I'm pretty sure that if I had started hardcore exercise when I was at my heaviest (252 when I started weighing), I would have hurt myself due to having a bad back, not knowing proper form and not wanting to draw attention to myself by asking for help, and the extra weight that was forbidding me from doing the proper exercises.

So I can only imagine where Power is coming from.

Thursday, August 17, 2006, 1:40 PM

start slow

This is how I started out (~220 lbs): an aerobics class that was full of elderly ladies, and then later walking around the track. Then I started running 1/2 the track every other time around. At the YMCA that I started at (very welcoming place!) there were even "step aerobics" classes for older people where the "step" was just an outline in tape on the floor!
In short, there is SOME kind of exercise that anyone can do to get started -- just watch how you feel (nausea = stop) and get over the little ego problem of feeling like the fattest one there -- once you have been there awhile, you will not be! And if you are nervous about something that might be a bit beyond you, just try it, and allow yourself to stop early if you have to, or do things in a modified way. Remember, even the buff people have off days -- if you start respecting your body, you'll be okay doing what it needs (even if you don't look as hardcore as you would like).
PS -- 70 lbs later, I am training for a half marathon. Starting slow works fine, just be patient!

Thursday, August 17, 2006, 2:51 PM

i can highly recommend taking exercise / dance/ yoga classes at a senior center! i am in my 30's, but the pace was great for me and i got a lot of positive feedback! very encouraging way to begin!

Thursday, August 17, 2006, 3:01 PM

how funny! what a great idea! I never would have thought of that, but that's really smart! And I bet the senior citizens love having some "young kid" around!

Thursday, August 17, 2006, 8:31 PM

so true!! and waht an added incentive to "keep up", as it goes! it really gave me the boost i needed, and i think i motivated others as well!

Thursday, August 17, 2006, 10:23 PM

Thank you for this. I keep coming up with excuses, my knees hurt after a few minutes. I got a cramp in my side. I've come up with everything in the book.

Thursday, August 17, 2006, 10:27 PM

yeah, let me tell you-exercisng with people who are sometimes three-times your own age really give you a kick in the pants!! and many colorful expressions as well!!

Thursday, August 17, 2006, 10:30 PM

For the 10:27pm poster, and others out there. I'm not belittling problems, by any means, but, I'm not overweight and I get cramps in my side too. That's normal. Also, I get sore knees after a very short time if I'm doing stairs or running (due to old cheerleading/gymnastics injuries), but the elliptical is fine, and so is the bike (no weight on your legs when you do it - the recumbant bike especially, the one with the "chair" instead of the seat).

Anyway, I'm not saying that it's not harder to exercise if you're overweight; I'm sure it is. And I"m not saying that I'm perfect and exercise through the discomfort. But, if it makes you feel any better, exercise is not so easy for the rest of us either. Some people are in great shape, and can exercise with ease, but they did not just go from one day sitting on their couch to the next day running for miles, even if they only weigh 100 lbs. We all have to work up to it!

And, if you're ever in an exercise class with me, I may look okay in my shorts and t-shirt or tank top, but I promise, I'm glancing at the clock every minute, just willing the time to go faster so the class will end, b/c I feel like I'm about to pass out too!!

Friday, August 18, 2006, 4:18 PM

I loved working out at the gym, made many new friends there, but also had some bad experiences..... Being the "fat" chick..... Here's a true story...
my husband is in the weight area and I was on the treadmill.... his buddy from work and him are pumping iron, his buddy says, "God that's a fat girl on the treadmill"...... and feeling sorry that he had the Fat Wife... he said, "yeah, that's my wife"...... He never told me the rest of the story, I didn't want to hear it..... After that day, I tried to make sure that I was in a class or not in the gym when that SOB came in..... that was 8 years ago, but still pisses me off.

Thursday, August 24, 2006, 1:44 AM

OMG, 1:44 poster!
I AM SO SORRY you had to go trough that!
I hope your hubby kicked his ASS- verbally b/c hes not kewl with being arrested ! hehe
I hope your hubby doesnt hang out with that guy anymore.

I also would be howing him up by working out EVERY time hes in the gym, too! LOL

Thursday, August 24, 2006, 9:42 PM

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