Bariatric Buddy
How to start
I am here for your support. I did a little reasearch on the web and found a site. Information looks good. I like the part about journaling exercise. Over time you will be able to see the improvements. The point is to start something, anything and over time your strength and endurance will improve. I am not sure is there is a place for water exercise in the town where you live. That would take the pressure off sore knees and hips. If I come up with any more ideas, I will send them your way. Keep me up to date on how this is working. Even use the exercise thread here on the buddy site for journalling the activity if you wish, then more of us can support your success. I will walk with you from here in MN. Hugs, Kathy
WINWeight-control Information Network
at AAccttiivvee Any Size! U.S. Department of Health and Human ServicesNational Institutes of Health for very large people who W Active SizeActive at Any Size 2 Why should I be active? Being physically active can be a lot of fun! 3 R How do I get started? Barrier: 4 Barrier: Barrier: Barrier: Solution: Barrier: Solution: 5 ◆ Start slowly. Your body needs time to get used to your new activity. ◆ ◆ Appreciate yourself! If you cannot do an activity, do not be hard on yourself. Feel good about what you Pat yourself on the back for How do I continue to be active? ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ 6 ◆ Build up to it. ◆ S DateActivityTotal TimeGoalHow I Felt Monday,March 1 WalkingGardening 5 minutes20 minutes 5 minutes20 minutes Difficult, but feltgood to finish Tuesday,March 2 WalkingStretching 5 minutes15 minutes 5 minutes10 minutes Felt great to stretch! Wednesday,March 3 5 minutes,2x each 5 minutes Went with Anne at work—fun! Thursday,March 4 Easier today than yesterday WalkingYoga Video 8 minutes15 minutes 8 minutes15 minutes WalkingStretching 8 minutes15 minutes 8 minutes15 minutes A little difficult to increase... Friday,March 5 Saturday,March 6 WalkingStretching 8 minutes10 minutes Good way to start the weekend 8 minutes10 minutes Pumped up the music & got moving! Sunday,March 7 Chair DancingMarching in Place 15 minutes8 minutes Have fun!8 minutes 7 8 What physical activities can a very large person do? 9 Do I need to see my health care provider before I start being physically active? Chances are your health care provider will be pleased with your decision to start an activity program. It is unlikely that you will need a complete medical exam before you go out for a short walk ● ● ● ● ● If you are not active now, start slowly. Try to walk 5 minutes a day for the first week. Walk 8 minutes the next week. Stay at 8-minute walks until you feel comfortable. Then increase your walks to 11 minutes. Slowly lengthen each walk by 3 minutes—or walk faster. 1010 Tips for Walking To learn more, read the brochure ◆ ◆ ◆ Dancing Dancing may help: ◆ ◆ ◆ Make your You can dance in a health club, in a nightclub, or at home. To dance at home, just move your body to some lively music! Dancing on your feet is a weight-bearing activity. Dancing while seated lets you move your arms and legs to music while taking the weight off your feet. This may be a good choice if you cannot stand on your feet for a long time. See the list of additional resources at the end of this booklet for seated workout videos. Water Workouts Exercising in water: ◆ ◆ ◆ You do not need to know how to swim to work out in water—you can do shallow-water or deep-water exercises without swimming. For For Many swim centers offer classes in water workouts. Check with the pools in your area to find the bes****er workout for you. See the list of additional resources at the end of this booklet to learn more abou****er exercises. 12 Where to Work Out You can do many activities in your home. But there are other fun places to be active, including health clubs, recreation centers, or outdoors. It may be hard to be physically active around other people. Keep in mind that you have just as much right to be healthy and active as anyone else. Weight Training Weight training builds strong muscles and bones. Getting stronger may also help prepare you for other kinds of physical activity. You can weight train at home or at a fitness center. You do not need benches or bars to begin weight training at home. You can use a pair of hand weights or even two soup cans. Make sure you know the correct posture and that your movements are slow and controlled. If you decide to buy a home gym, check its weight rating (the number of pounds it can support) to make sure it is safe for your size. If you want to join a fitness center where you can use weights, shop around for one where you feel at ease. To learn more about weight training, see the list of additional resources at the end of this booklet. Bicycling Photograph courtesy of Bicycles by Haluzak, Santa Rosa, California For biking outdoors, you may want to try a mountain bike. These bikes have wider tires and are heavy. 13 Weight Training Rule of Thumb If you cannot lift a weight six times in a row, the weight you are lifting is too heavy. If you can easily lift a weight 15 times in a row, your weight is too light. 14 Stretching Stretching may help you: ◆ Be more You do not have to set aside a special time or place to stretch. At home or at work, stand up, push your arms toward the ceiling, and stretch. Stretch slowly and only enough to feel tightness—not until you feel pain. Hold the stretch, without bouncing, for about 30 seconds. Do not stretch cold muscles. Yoga and tai chi are two types of stretching. They help you breathe deeply, relax, and get rid of stress. Your local fitness center may offer yoga, tai chi, or other stretching classes. You may want to start with "gentle" classes, like those aimed at seniors. 15 Questions to Ask When Choosing a Fitness Center See the list of additional resources at the end of this booklet to learn more about these physical activities for large people. ● ● ● ● ● Lifestyle Activities Lifestyle physical activities do not have to be planned. You can make small changes to make your day more physically active and improve your health. For example: ◆ Take 2- to 3-minute walking breaks at work a few times a day. ◆ Put away the TV remote control—get up to change the channel. ◆ March in place during TV commercials. ◆ Take the stairs instead of the elevator. ◆ Stand or walk, rather than sit, while talking on the phone. 16 Even a shopping trip can be exercise: it is a chance to walk and carry your bags. In addition, doing chores like lawn mowing, leaf raking, gardening, and housework can count as activity. ◆ Play with your family—kids, grandchildren, nieces and nephews, etc. ◆ Walk to your coworker’s office rather than use the phone oremail. Applaud yourself! If you can do only a few or none of these activities, it is OK. 17 Safety Tips Tips for Safe Physical Activity Slow down if you feel out of breath. Drink water Wear Suitable Clothes 18 Stop your activity right away if you: ◆ Have pain, tightness, or pressure in your chest or neck, shoulder, or arm. ◆ Feel dizzy or sick. ◆ Break out in a cold sweat. ◆ Have muscle cramps. ◆ Are extremely short of breath. ◆ Feel pain in your joints, feet, ankles, or legs. You could hurt yourself if you ignore the pain. Ask your health care provider what to do if you have any of these symptoms. Drink water when you are thirsty. Water helps every cell and organ in your body work. It cushions your joints, helps keep you regular, keeps your body cool, and prevents dehydration when you are sweating. Healthy, fit bodies come in all sizes. 19 Additional Resources Inclusion of resources is for information only and does not imply endorsement by the Government. Fitness-related Publications Active Living Every Day: 20 Weeks to Lifelong Vitality Steven N. Blair, Andrea L. Dunn, Bess H. Marcus, Ruth Ann Carpenter, and Peter Jaret. Human Kinetics, 2001. This book offers a step-by-step plan for getting and staying active. The information, suggested activities, and self-help tools in each chapter were successfully tested with people who followed the plan and learned to make activity a part of their daily lives. The 20 chapters correspond to the 20 weeks of the program, but readers are encouraged to go at their own pace. Available from Don’t Weight: Eat Healthy and Get Moving NOW! Kelly Bliss. Infinity Publishing, 2002. This book provides motivation and information for healthy eating and plus-size fitness. It also teaches problem-solving techniques. It offers information that can help the large person plan and achieve a fitness program that can be sustained for a lifetime. Available from KellyBliss.com, P.O. Box 572, Lansdowne, PA 19050; 1–877–KellyBliss; Easy Does It Yoga Alice Christensen, American Yoga Association. Fireside, 1999. This book presents a program of exercises, breathing, meditation, philosophy, and nutrition for older adults and those with physical limitations. Simple chair exercises and more challenging standing and floor exercises are described. Available from the American Yoga Association, P.O. Box 19986, Sarasota, FL 34276; (941) 927–4977; Great Shape: The First Fitness Guide for Large Women Pat Lyons and Debby Burgard. iUniverse, 2000. This book urges women to be physically active for fun, fitness, and positive body 20 image instead of for weight loss. The authors describe a healthy lifestyle program including walking, swimming, dancing, martial arts, bicycling, and more. Available from http://www.iuniverse.com or your local or online bookstore. Just the Weigh You Are: How to Be Fit and Healthy Whatever Your Size Steven Jonas and Linda Konner. Houghton Mifflin Co., Ltd., 1998. This book presents a plan for total fitness and healthy living no matter what your size. Chapters focus on accepting oneself, improving nutrition without dieting, managing stress, and doing moderate physical activity. Available from your local or online bookstore. Real Fitness for Real Women: A Unique Workout Program for the Plus-Size Woman Rochelle Rice. Warner Books, 2001. This book describes a 6-week introductory fitness program that includes warm-ups, aerobics, strength training and stretching techniques, and meditation. Photos of plus-size women demonstrate the exercises. The book also addresses getting motivated, creating support, evaluating current abilities, and increasing self-acceptance. Available from Tips to Help You Get Active Weight-control Information Network (WIN). National Institutes of Health (NIH) Publication No. 06–5578. 2006. This booklet provides ideas and tips for becoming physically active. It focuses on overcoming common barriers and setting goals. Available from WIN, Walking . . . A Step in the Right Direction WIN. NIH Publication No. 03–4155. 2001. This pamphlet explains how to start a walking program, presents a sample program, and shows stretches for warming up and cooling down. Available in English and Spanish from WIN, Water Exercise Martha D. White. Human Kinetics, 1995. This book presents water exercises for fitness and muscle tone as well as exercises for injuries, postsurgical rehabilitation, and other special needs. Available from Human Kinetics, P.O. Box 5076, Champaign, IL 61825; 1–800–747–4457; 21 Other Publications Plus Size Yellow Pages Over 3,000 online resources for fitness clothes up to 6X, casual wear up to 10X, bikes, bike seats, kayaks, sports bras, supportive tights/leggings, supportive fitness shoes, and much more. Size Wise: A Catalog of More Than 1,000 Resources for Living With Confidence and Comfort at Any Size Judy Sullivan. Avon, 1997. This book describes resources that offer products or services for large people. It discusses where consumers can buy items like swimsuits, bicycle seats, and walking shoes. It also has information on exercise classes and sports instruction for large people throughout the United States, Britain, and Canada. Available from BIG MOVES: Yoga for Chair and Bed Mara Nesbitt. This video is designed for people who have difficulty getting down to or up from the floor. Led by a plus-size instructor, it includes stretches done standing, sitting, and lying on a bed, plus a guided meditation. Available from Mirage Video Productions, P.O. Box 19141, Portland, OR 97280; or Chair Dancing Jodi Stolove. This no-impact video series is designed to improve muscle tone, flexibility, and cardiovascular endurance without putting stress on your knees, back, hips, or feet. Available from Chair Dancing International, Inc., 2658 Del Mar Heights Road, Del Mar, CA 92014; 1–800–551–4386; or Tai Chi Chuan Dawn Fleetwood. This 50-minute instructional video features slow, gentle movements and breathing exercises that involve all of the muscles and organs in the body. Available from Orchid Leaf Productions, P.O. Box 72, Flint, MI 48501; (810) 235–9864. Yoga for Round Bodies, Volumes 1 and 2 Linda DeMarco and Genia Pauli Haddon. These videos offer a fitness system based on Kripalu yoga to promote strength, flexibility, stress relief, and cardiovascular health. Round-bodied instructors tailor classic yoga postures to large people at both beginner and intermediate levels in each video. Available from Plus Publications, P.O. Box 265–W, Scotland, CT 06264; 1–800–436–9642; or Organizations and Programs YMCA and YWCA The YMCA and YWCA offer physical fitness and health awareness programs in many locations throughout the United States. Contact YMCA of the U.S.A., 101 North Wacker Drive, Chicago, IL 60606; (312) 977–0031; or Council on Size and Weight Discrimination, Inc. The Council on Size and Weight Discrimination, Inc. (CSWD) is a nonprofit organization that seeks to improve health care and access to services for large people through educational programs, media monitoring, and medical conference attendance. Contact CSWD at P.O. Box 305, Mount Marion, NY 12456; (845) 679–1209; http:// National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance The National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance (NAAFA) is a nonprofit organization that seeks to end discrimination based on body size and to improve the quality of life for large people. It offers a variety of publications and videos on size acceptance, self-esteem, and health and fitness. Contact NAAFA at: P.O. Box 188620, Sacramento, CA 95818; (916) 558–6880; or 23 Websites Body Positive This site addresses issues ranging from self-esteem to fitness to find Healthy Living with Bliss This site includes information on walking, swimming, aerobics, stretching, and other fitness activities for large and very large people. A resource section includes fitness wear, books, exercise equipment, classes, and information on where to buy fitness videos for large people. There is an online workbook, e-newsletter, and a chat with plus-size personal fitness trainer Kelly Bliss. Just Move Just Move is a personalized, Internet-based fitness program of the American Heart Association. It features an online activity diary for monitoring your progress, frequently asked questions, health information, and many fitness links and resources. Mayo Clinic Fitness Center This website contains many different articles about fitness. It offers a set of articles that are all about walking for fitness and includes a shoe-buying guide and a pedometer guide. It also contains slide shows for strength training and stretching exercises. http:// 24 Activity Journal J Date Activity Total Time Goal How I Felt Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday You can photocopy this journal page to keep track of your efforts and improvements.Short-term goal(s): Long-term goal(s): Reward(s): 25 Weight-control Information Network NIH Publication No. 04–4352 May 2004 Revised October 2006
◆
◆ Wear clothes made of fabrics that absorb sweat and remove it from your skin.
◆ Never wear rubber or plastic suits. Plastic suits could hold the sweat on your skin and make your body overheat.
◆ Women should wear a good support bra.
◆ Wear supportive athletic shoes for weight-bearing activities.
◆ Wear a knit hat to keep you warm when you are physically active outdoors in cold weather. Wear a tightly woven, wide-brimmed hat in hot weather to help keep you cool and protect you from the sun.
◆ Wear sunscreen when you are physically active outdoors.
◆ Wear garments that prevent inner-thigh chafing, such as tights or spandex shorts.
◆ Keep your muscles from getting tight
◆
◆
◆
Come visit us at the bariatric buddy group http://www.obesityhelp.com/group/bariatricbuddy/welcome
Come visit us at the bariatric buddy group http://www.obesityhelp.com/group/bariatricbuddy/welcome
Patrece
JUST DO THE NEXT RIGHT THING!
Obesity Help Support Group Leader & Coach
http://www.obesityhelp.com/group/bariatricbuddy
Lost 114 lbs. working on getting rid of a recent 10 lb regain...and WILL succeed!
EXPERIENCE WITHOUT REFLECTION IS HOLLOW
Hang in there!!! Let us know how you're doing!
HUGE HUGS,
I posted the same thing on the main board and even though I specifically asked not to say "just do it", of course someone who had 100 lbs to go to goal... wrote back exactly that. Sometimes I hate that ppl don't understand there is a big difference between lightweights and needing to lose 300+ pounds to get to goal.
I notice that I feel so much better when I get in at least a 30 minute session of exercise a day. Good endorphins. Helps to keep the depression in check too. Don't give up Lori. We are here for support and guidance. Hugs,Kathy
Come visit us at the bariatric buddy group http://www.obesityhelp.com/group/bariatricbuddy/welcome
advertisement
Patrece S.
Group Leader
Kathy B.
Co- Leader