Limping, obese, middle aged woman in chronic pain seeks...

[Gingernaut]

Weight loss, strength training and stamina building

How do I do this?

I have a very sedentary job, a binge eating habit, a gimped left knee with atrophied muscles, chronic and multiple issues with feet and ankles, causing a 'walking on sharp stones' sensation when I walk, I can't drive, work a rotating shift pattern and I am 14 stones

I'm bigger than I have ever been, in a shit job and thoroughly depressed with myself, my life choices and life in general

Does anyone have any suggestions, for someone who has to manage stairs one step at a time

Don't say swimming, as there isn't a pool within walking distance that's open when I'm awake

I know you said don’t say swimming but it’s very suitable for your predicament Swimming aerobics/resistance training 60 minute sessions 3-4 times a week

the water makes it easy on your joints but you still get all the benefits of the exercises
but mostly you need to address the binge eating because that is the root of your issue, buy low calorie snacks so you eat those instead of junk food

Swimming. Start with just walking in the water. I did that when I had PGP whilst pregnant with DD2. No impact on your legs.

Your diet does sound poor. I found I munched on a lot of easy carbs when tired. You need to stop buying them and have quick/ healthy food in the house. I’d strongly suggest a nap when you come home. Feet up on the sofa. I use a heated foot warmer and eye mask. Just snooze for ten minutes it’s surprisingly energising.

Protien in air fryer for ten minutes, bagged salad , I buy Aldi antipasti in jars artichoke hearts and roasted peppers etc. No added sugar muesli and full fat yoghurt when you really can not be arsed to cook.

Ive lost a decent amount of weight since stopping eating a massive bag of crisps with a token punnet of fruit when I get home from work. Bringing my bmi down from obese to overweight make a huge difference to my joints/ feet and my plantar fasciitis resolved itself.

Sounds like the sort of area that always has at least one PureGym or other absolute basic, low cost, open extended hours (or 24/7) place.

This means resistance machines, all of which are great for not putting unnecessary load on your feet or knees. And rowing. Rowing is fantastic for strength, stamina, cardio and some flexibility - as well as being able to zone out for ten minutes with earphones and a podcast, audio book or music.

Other than that, orthotics sound like they are an absolute necessity right now. Even ones from Amazon will help your feet, ankles, knees and hips/lower back. Sort out the biomechanics, start strengthening the weaknesses in your legs and girdle muscles and you will feel a difference in a very short time.

With your working hours, and need for public transport would you be able to get a personal trainer or Pilates teacher to come to you once a week for a 1:1 session. It won't be cheap, but it'll be perfectly tailored to you.

I know how you feel. I am very similar.
I am 57, over 15 st but I am fairly fit as been doing weight classes 3 x week walking, yoga bursts etc. I do feel good about myself, so try not to beat yourself up. I am now working on my weightloss.

Weightloss will help but to do that I think you need to feel better about yourself.
You are getting in 20k steps a day that is great!

Feel good about yourself - do something for you, get some nice body lotion, get your nails done. DO SOMETHING FOR YOU! Ehat ever you like PROJECT GINGERNAUT!

Maybe when walking do a couple of things, stride out so you are stretching your legs, back instead of crunching. Do short burst where you walk a bit faster to get your heart rate up.

You need to stretch out. I really like 10/15 stretch yoga by Bird on YouTube.
I have done this every day this week combined with Glucosamine & Chondroitin supplements, I have no achey back.

Yoga by Bird

Glucosamine & Chondroitin supplements
Glucosamine and Chondroitin High Strength Complex with MSM, Vitamin C, Ginger, Rosehip & Turmeric - 120 Premium Capsules Joint Care Supplements Made in The UK by Incite Nutrition : Amazon.co.uk: Health & Personal Care

Take this to work with you and stretch your feet out during the day
ProStretch Footy Textured Spiky Massage Ball for Targeted Foot Pain Relief, Plantar Fasciitis, and Deep Tissue Therapy for Muscle Soreness : Amazon.co.uk: Health & Personal Care

If you want to go a step further, then I have done Couch to Fitness a 9 week fitness program, which is tough what you progress through out the weeks.
Couch to Fitness | Couch to Fitness

Food is the big thing for me, I love food and my portion size is too large. I am trying to do shakes for breakfast and lunch (helps as you don't think about food) then an evening meal with fruit for snacks through out the day.

Best of luck x

Thanks for all your suggestions Mumsnet Collective

Some stuff to ponder here.

Weight first, clearly.

Agree!

Google "Bluetits Chill Swimmers" - see if there a "flock" near you. Very chilled out, non competitive people of all shakes and sizes.

The walking on stones sounds like plantar fasciitis, try Fitflops shoes or trainers they help alter your posture helped me. Try to see if you can get in to hydrotherapy to strengthen your knee. I have had massive weight gain due to steroids had a fractured pelvis due to osteoporosis. Might be worth seeing GP for full health check. I felt ILL but just put down to menopause for years or just getting older, turns out I had multiple autoimmune conditions & kidney disease. Be proactive ask for help.

Overeaters Anon or Slimming World or WW for the binge eating?
I think you need a real life support network for the binge-eating, is what I'm saying.

I don't believe in magic food that would cause someone to never binge eat again.. Ok ok, only eating magic food worked for someone, but the odds that magic food would easily stop OP's binge habit: low. Maybe OP could try the magic food for 2 weeks & then report back if she has easily stopped all binging.

I want to harp on about swimming because it is easy on joints, you're on your feet a lot you don't want more strain on those joints. I sense that your aversion to swimming isn't just "it's not local". I suspect you're afraid of being visibly, publicly, very overweight in a cozzie. And/or slow. But mostly being visible and afraid others will judge your not-perfect body.

Have you verified your tracker so that you know 100 steps recorded on there means a 100 real steps you took? 20k steps/day is a helluva lot with a sedentary job, very impressive.

Obviously different things work for different people but I had tried all of those and none of them helped my binge eating. And I know all about healthy food choices etc.

The only thing that's worked for me (so far) is the very low carb diet I linked to above. It also cuts out all ultra processes foods. I think the reason is that my blood sugar level is constant so I'm not craving carbs all the time.

Maybe OP could try the magic food for 2 weeks & then report back if she has easily stopped all binging.

What's Village Gym like?

Council pools and gyms have late opening times, restricted public access and limited classes

Local Village Gym seems expensive but has swimming pool, Pilates, yoga and Tai Chi

Magic Food diet sounds as bonkers as my shift pattern

@Gingernaut - my goals were slightly different and as I said up-thred I started off with walking. I did join the gym about 6 months in, when I felt I needed a bit more. The key to success is little and often with small goals and noticeable achievements!

I also think dieting is difficult if you are not in the right mindset to keep up any changes indefinitely.

Again, everyone is different, but I found for myself that increasing my water intake made me somehow less hungry.

I also never focused on weight loss, but on overall fitness. So there was no pressure.

I often have a smoothie made from fresh / frozen fruits & vegetables, oats and full fat yoghurt before exercising. (So all the bad stuff mentioned. However I never add sweeteners like honey, tinned fruits or ready made smoothie mix.)
Afterwards a glass of cold/ hot water with 1/2 lemon juice & sometimes slice of ginger.
That worked fine for me.

I would concentrate on one thing - sugar, in fact all carbs. So impressive to walk that far in pain. I really think it will help.

@Gingernaut I was going to say the ‘walking on stones’ sensation sounds very much like Morton’s Neuroma, which I see you then go on to mention. Have you been to your GP about this? They should refer you to a specialist for necessary ultrasounds / treatments (steroid injections or surgery). Which can be very effective and possibly then make exercise less painful.

I was as tough as they come ( ectopic pregnancy, three blood transfusions, out and the next day at a country show all day) but menopause has floored me.
Maybe HRT?
Definitely stop crap carbs. Have the tasty stuff on veg rather than pasta or bread.
Maybe do facials and Botox? Makes you look brilliant with zero effort.

I've had injections for plantar fasciitis (😵‍💫) and Morton's neuromas in the past and although effective, they have diminishing returns

With no fat pads (the 'balls' of the feet), the tissue damage caused by the injections can add to the pain

I am due a review by my GP and will ask for a referral for new orthotics, but then the issue becomes how to do I fit my feet and a massive, moulded insole into a shoe?

I can't walk barefoot at all

Cosyfeet and some other specialist shoe manufacturers are the only place I can get anything that fits - they're ugly, they're expensive, often cheaply made and really aren't suitable as gym shoes

OP just wanted to say please don't be put off by the 'muscle Mary' type gyms, I can guarantee everyone there is far too focused on what they are doing to be concerned with anyone else.

I train at a powerlifting/ strongman gym and am a competitive strongwoman (I suppose I do grunt and groan sometimes too, not on purpose though 😣) and although I totally understand my gym would be an intimidating place to walk into, everyone actually gets a super warm welcome and zero judgement whatsoever.

Strength training, with proper heavy weights, has SO many health benefits, including increase in bone density and reduction in chronic pain.

Maybe take a friend with you and ask for a tour of one of the local gyms to get a better feel for the place?

T'ai Chi
Very gentle, great for stamina & balance & co-ordination.

For your walking on stones symptoms - try this stretch: lie on your back, as flat as you can, with your arms out to the sides. Lift a knee and then drop the knee to your opposite side, so if you're lifting your right knee drop it down to your left side, so you're twisting your spine, with shoulders still on the flat. You can use your hand to help bring the knee down. You should feel a stretch in your buttock, same side as the lifted knee. Hold for up to 30 sec. Repeat on other side.

I get the same symptom and this really does help.

I also have chronic foot problems (have yours been diagnosed btw and if so what? Because I have really struggled to see anyone remotely helpful).

I swim. I tape up my feet and wear a latex sock to keep tape in place and avoid kicking off the wall. I do front crawl so that I don't have to use my legs or feet.

I also do upper body weights and abs in the gym. I find it quite boring but stick a podcast on and think it's something at least.

No one realised I was born with deformed metatarsals until a couple of years ago after an x-ray - from just looking at them, my feet looked perfectly normal

To compensate for the deformity no one knew about, I developed a penguin style of walking, with my feet rolling over the inside of my big toes, as they couldn't bend the way they should - the outer part of my heels hits the ground and my big toes bear the brunt of the metatarsal 'hinge' that gets my foot off the ground again

I have such wide feet, that I would buy size 5 shoes (I'm actually a 4 and a 3.5) and the constant shuffling back and forth inside the shoes caused callosities which have deformed my little toes

I now have fixed and flexible hammer and mallet toes, atypical bunions (all my toes are now bowing outwards like turtle flippers instead of the big toe crossing over or under the second toe), the original deformity, Morton's neuromas, plantar fasciitis, unstable ankle joints and either fat pad agenesis or fat pad atrophy - there is no fat in the balls of my feet at all.

My waddling gait means I don't walk well on ice, which is how I injured my knee - I've bust the lower ligaments holding my kneecap in place - the cruciate ligaments are fine, but my knee cap is about three quarters of an inch above where it's supposed to be and is offering no protection to the joint now - I have to be careful about future knocks or falls.

The operations required to fix the bones are rarely done and would be monumentally painful, but I'm in so much pain at the moment that amputating my toes is starting to sound tempting.

The orthotics are to treat the plantar fasciitis and also prevent the big toes from moving without cushioned support.

You could try a rowing machine... I have joint and feet issues too and am also heavier than you, and I love mine

I'm in agreement with others who say a low carb diet is the way to go.

Reduce the quantity of processed white flour you eat, so go for wholemeal or wholegrain brown bread with seeds and stuff in it.

One extra spoonful of veg and one less of potato, rice or pasta.

Don't put sugar in hot drinks and switch to skimmed or semi-skimmed milk.

If you feel the unbearable urge for a snack, drink a small glass of water and tell yourself you'll wait a few minutes before eating anything.

When you're shopping, buy food that's easy to prepare and is better for you. Remember it's all the P's. Perfect Planning Prevents Piss-Poor Performance.