<edited on 18April to add that i have started working out and have just completed 40+ mins on the elliptical>

good morning,

i was wondering what exactly you all do/did for exercise when you were starting out.

i went to the gym today and was on the treadmill for 10:23 and literally could not do anymore - i had an intense pain in my side. :faint:i am trying to go to the gym at least 2 - 3 times a week and my personal goal is to increase my time on the treadmill each time i go, but 10 minutes?? it seems so small. i did 3 reps of 5 for my quads as well but it took me longer to drive to and from the gym than it did to work out.

oh - and i've gained 2 pounds since last Monday, so i need to start working out. i know pre-fill any loss is a bonus, but gaining???

any suggestions?

thanks much!

I was banded in July at 347. I lost 26 lbs pre surgery by doing Water aerobics and total liquid diet for 3 weeks. I am currently at 318. I do water aerobics twice a week and weight training three days a week. I do yoga every Saturday.

The only part I truly enjoy is the water aerobics and yoga. The water is perfect for exercize because it lubricates so there is no chaffing, it is cool, you don't realize you are sweating, and the resistance is very toning. Yoga kicks my but and I sweat more in a one hour session than I do on a treadmill. I HATE THE TREADMILL! :faint:

I joined 24 hour fitness (close to where I work)with some girlfriends from work and we encourage one another on those days someone (usually me) doesn't feel like workin out! I even splurged for a personal trainer~ She really has helped me stay ontrack.

I never thought that I would have

1. a personal trainer:rolleyes

2. two sets of work out clothes in a real gym bag:clap2:

3. more than one pair of tennis shoes:)

4. worked out this much in my entire life~!:biggrin1:

You can do it~ If my fat ass has an exercize plan, yours can too! ( no ofense )

I still am having trouble with exercise still. It is my arthritis. The pain is pretty bad and even walking is so difficult. I would love to find some exercise program that I could do without so much pain.

Cuddos i feel the same way. I was banded in March of 06. I never thought i would have a personal trainer or gym bag or eaven do a kick boxing class. I was the biggest slug. But do i feel so much better.

I love every minute (except the treadmill) i hate the it. But I am working on that everyday i want to hit with a bat. ( im sorry did i type that)hehe

In all honesty its great. I feel better that is what I am truly happy about.

I started wls at 350, but didn't start exercising til I got to about 310, I think. Even then all I could do was 10 difficult min. on treadmill. But I worked up to 35 minutes (1 mile!!!) in a couple of months. I couldn't believe it. I can't do much more than that now but it's because of gout, not stamina. I do floor exercises, stretching, etc. but haven't gone past that. It's the hardest part of this whole program.....hard for a little ole lady who's sat on her butt for 62 years and enjoyed every minute of it.

One foot in front of another gets you there eventually! We all start at different points of course, and for some of us its easier than for others but what others can or do do is irrelevant. If you do what YOU can do and you work as hard as YOU can work, you will get better and better.

Dont underestimate just how hard your body has to work with that extra weight either, you're doing it with at least another person on your back, and that's HARD. Just push a little more, inch by inch week after week and one day you could even be running easily.

Gayle, you have done very well! 95 lbs!

Losingjusme, did your Dr say it is ok to exercise so soon? I was told that I would have to wait at least a month for the hard stuff like your doing. just wondered. I am going to Curves and I go two times around for 30 min and the stretch for 10. I love it. Its not hard on any certain part. I have bad knees so I have to watch it, but have not have any trouble.

Diane

You can do it~ If my fat ass has an exercize plan, yours can too! ( no ofense )

Mariquita - no offense taken at all .. i appreciate the 'kick'. i, too, belong to 24 hour fitness. i think i am going to work w/ the personal trainer. but they are SOOO $$$$!

ladydi - my MD released me to everything but swimming (still have scabs). he said i may be a bit tender/sore but as long as i take it easy and no ab work for a couple more weeks. i tried curves awhile ago but didnt get what i needed.

Thank you all for your words of encouragement. sometimes you just need to hear it ... one step at a time ... yeah, that's it.

I worked out with a trainer 2-3 times a week for about 18 months before getting banded. I didn't lose a pound, but I did gain a lot in general conditioning. My trainer wasn't used to dealing with super-sized clients, but she quickly learned to adapt exercises that I couldn't do (laying flat on my back, for example). If your finances allow for a trainer, I'd definitely go for it. I really credit that as being a companion tool for my band in terms of my loss to date.

I remember the day, just barely 6 months ago, when I couldn't walk more than a few minutes at 2 miles per hour. Yesterday, in the middle of my 30 min walk, I ran for 10 minutes with no break at 5.5 miles per hour! Progress comes very quickly, even for the supersized, so hang in there.

In my early workouts, I did a lot of treadmill and a lot of strength training. Aqua aerobics is great too and is so easy on the body, yet is beneficial. In my "mid" stage, I did a lot on the elliptical machine. Boy that was hard at first. The first time, I could only do 2 minutes on level 1! Endurance builds quickly though, so hang in there and keep trying new machines and activities.

me and my sister we do step class at least 4 times a week at our local gym and we love it!!!

I"m in the same situation as Robin...my knees have major arthritis and it's all I can do to ge through the day...any more stress on them is out of the question.

I did Water aerobics for a couple of years and didn't hate it, w hich is more than I can say for any other form of exercise I've tried. I need to get back to it but my budget is SO tight right now that I don't feel I can spare the money for the class and the extra gas.,,hopefully that will change soon.

Any other suggestions for exercise that won't put stress on the knees? I just got a cortisone shot in one which has helped but I'm afraid to do anything to jeopardize it because it's so great to be almost pain free!

Emily

I know this is an old post but I thought I would chime in. I started exercising one year ago. When I first started going to the gym I could only do 10 minutes on the treadmill and 1 MINUTE on the elliptical. My blood pressure was about 150 over 100 and I got out of breath walking in from the parking lot.

Cut to one year later - I can complete an hour long spinning class, an hour on the elliptical and I never get out of breath anymore. Yesterday when I went for my first fill my blood pressure was 104/69.

Start slow and build up gradually - you will be amazed at what you can accomplish.

wow, this IS a very old post ..

i was only a couple of weeks post op here... i just had my 6 month bandiversary last week..

i am exercising. i work out 6-7 times a week for at least 35-40 mins a day. i have a personal trainer that i spend 90 mins a week with. she has really helped with the muscle toning.

i am down about 90 pounds and cant wait til get to 100.

good morning,

i was wondering what exactly you all do/did for exercise when you were starting out.

i went to the gym today and was on the treadmill for 10:23 and literally could not do anymore - i had an intense pain in my side. :faint:i am trying to go to the gym at least 2 - 3 times a week and my personal goal is to increase my time on the treadmill each time i go, but 10 minutes?? it seems so small. i did 3 reps of 5 for my quads as well but it took me longer to drive to and from the gym than it did to work out.

oh - and i've gained 2 pounds since last Monday, so i need to start working out. i know pre-fill any loss is a bonus, but gaining??? :mad:

any suggestions?

thanks much!

I was banded August 1st 2006. The same month I knew I had to start working out in order for my band to be successful. I decided I was gonna start running. Because I was so overweight, so unfit, and so out of practice, I thought 2 miles would be perfect for me (the beginner) and then I would work my way up. I do not know what on earth made me think I was going to be able to jog 2 miles. When I hit .8 of ONE mile. Didn't even get to one mile.....lol.......I seriously thought I was gonna have a heart attack. I was sweating from places I didn't even know existed anymore. I called my husband on the phone and made him stay on the phone with me until I caught my breath and in case I collapsed he could call 911 and send them to me. NO JOKE. That was what, 8-9 months ago????? Now I am jogging 5 miles (sometimes up to 5.4 miles) 21 days a month. I'm not saying it es easy. But I can do it in 45 minutes and I feel WONDERFUL afterwards. And trust me, I was not vigilant about sticking to the running especially the first two months. I never thought I would be going that far especially on a regular basis.

When I started out I was told not to excersise till I had lost a significant amount due to my bad back and knee. Now here I am a year later and almost no back pain ever and no knee pain either! I used to be able to walk maybe 5 minutes before the pain stopped me now I can go all day on my feet and not have to stop for anything except eventually being tired. We all start somewhere and if 10minutes is where you are starting then that's ok, when you get comfortable there add some time to that, eventually it will get easier and for many people it actually starts to get fun!

I agree Molly. Good job by the way.