i know there may be tons of posts on this subject here but i'm on stone-age internet (dial-up) and this site is slow enough for me as is...

a bit about me - i was banded in july 2009, had some too-tight issues and had an unfill a couple weeks back. my starting weight was in the 300's (i'm 5'8) and being active just...hurt. my short term goal has been to lose some weight to where it doesn't hurt so much to exercise.

now with the unfill, i've gained about 5 lbs and i don't want to go over 300 EVER again so i know i need to do more than just control my calories - but i have no idea where to start! i grew up with really bad asthma so as a kid/teen, exercise=not being able to breathe/scared i could die, so i still have a big mental hurdle to overcome there and well, aside from walking around with friends occasionally, my exercise has been...nada.

so how do get yourself to go from...nothing to getting active??? i know i SHOULD but i don't know HOW and i certainly don't know where to start!

money is a factor for me - recently unemployed, can't afford a gym membership or trainer, can't even afford decent shoes to walk in or a swim suit (if i could even swim/exercise in the apartment pool with all the crazy children that fill it every day...).

ack! :smile2:

what have you guys done? looking to hear especially from the bigger folks or those with weight related pain, like in knees and the back...

I haven't been banded as of yet but I have been active at the gym for over the last year. It has been a ... learning experience for me. Like you I am larger and I have asthma. After hip injuries and back injuries from working out at the gym, I learned that just suttle activity is the important part. Cycling, slow walking, even palaties or yoga. Muscles burn more cal. so maybe just building some muscle mass will help with burning more cal. It shouldn't be that expensive. I had a friend that even took gallon milk jugs and filled with water for weights. She worked her arms and did squats using the couch and the jugs. Hope this helps.

Walking is the place I like to start- walking every day, each day just a little faster and a little longer. Then I add my elliptical, and then when I have some strength, the gym. I think it's important to begin, and then build, slowly but surely. As others have pointed out on this site, walking helps when I get cravings- getting active distracts me.

That said, I'm an exercise hater, I've never hit the endorphin stage, and I do it because I have to and I promised my mentor I would. I pray it gets easier to get myself out there!

I'd recommend walking. You don't need great shoes to start if you don't have them. You're not going to be going out for two hours at a time. Start with 5 minutes 5 days per week. Add 5 minutes next week. Add 5 the next. Now you're up to 15 minutes , 5 days per week. Keep adding like that until you're up to 30 minutes. If that's too fast, add only 2 minutes at a time. Just start at whatever level you are at, and add on as you get more comfortable. You don't need to go fast- just go.

Some might say walking isn't great if you have knee issues-- but the fact is, you have to walk to survive (unless you're wheelchair bound of course-- I take it you aren't.) The walking will strengthen the muscles that support your knee joint, and the weight coming off will help your back.

You also might look and see if you can find any Leslie Sansone dvds at the library- she has a "walking" series of videos you can do right in your living room. They range in length.

You can do it!