To not exercise

[Katywester]

I was reading another thread about a woman who didn't enjoy showering and the questions asking her 'don't you exercise' surprised me as if it was a given that everyone exercised!
Am I the minority mum of three full time work etc that just can't fit in exercise other than a quick dog walk every other day?

Walking is absolutely better than nothing though?!

Yes if you're walking fast enough to raise your heart rate. The treadmills at my gym are occupied by girls (by girls I mean young women) walking at less than 4km p/h with no incline for 30 minutes, it's utterly pointless.

Of course it is, but it's probably not cardio or strength work unless you are speed walking with a heavy bag.

The only reason I can fit in exercise now is because I am 50 & my youngest is 15 .pp , I only started when I was 44 ..
All my time went into work & the kids .
Its’s very busy when they’re little ..

Movement - expending low levels of energy

Exercise - pushing yourself past your baseline to improve health

Exercise and movement burn an incredibly low amount of energy in all honesty, I could spend an hour working out in various ways to only burn 200-300 calories. However during that 200 calorie exercise I am actually improving my strength, mobility and cardio health as I push beyond my baseline increasingly changing as I get fitter.

During a busy day of movement I might burn 200 all day, not in an hour (so it takes longer to burn it) but I will not see much benefit in muscle or cardiovascular health

If you are walking around even 20k steps and never get out of breath or increase your heart rate you will be burning some calories obviously, but your muscles and heart don’t benefit a whole lot because you will have reached a point of fitness where you then just maintain, as you never push past the baseline

It’s more time to efficient to burn those 200 calories in a single workout session rather than needing 10 hours in a day of light housework to burn the same amount

How do you know the best weights to use without paying gym fees? I’m 5ft 3, size 10 60kg with a peri belly. Love walking but feel I need to strengthen up by lifting weights but don’t have the money for gym at the moment. Any advice welcome!

@mostimportantaspect 200kcal in an hour is, to be honest, a very low rate of cardiovascular activity. That’s basically walking pace. Running or cycling at steady state you are going to be doing at least double that and potentially much more once you have gained good endurance and fitness. I can sit at 130W on the bike for hours and that translates to 450kcal per hour. Looking at the younger women in my club, they are hitting huge power numbers, burning 3000kcal on their long weekend ride and then racing during the week. Don’t write off cardio for its ability to burn calories.

Find a programme on YouTube that you like and follow their advice. Caroline Givern’s kettlebell workouts are great. If you don’t have any muscle or joint weakness then a 6kg kettlebell is a good starting point and you can add heavier ones as your strength increases. The basic ones from Decathlon are fine. You only need one to start with.

Honestly, just start, 10 mins here and there. I stopped for a year due to health issues and then surgery. Only picked it up again about 8 weeks ago and like you was dreading it. I honestly feel amazing already compared to when I wasn't exercising and it's surprising how quickly you get your fitness back.

Each to their own but I feel that those who don’t exercise (both some cardio and some resistance training) and putting their health at risk.

I’m not, sorry if lost in translation.

I have this morning done a mix of weight, Pilates and a run and my tracker is saying it’s 400 calories. And that’s very likely over estimated. Exercise does not burn as much as you expect it does unless like you say, you work very hard. So if I am having a less intense cardio work out incorporating other beneficial activities it could be way less cal expended than cycling for an hour. Personally I do not beast out on cardio in the gym as that’s not my goal (I’m more into resistance) but I am just using this as an example for people who say they do laundry or walk a dog and lug around bags. It does not burn what you expect it might.

It is worth pondering, if you don't think you exercise, if you might be doing more than you think, especially if you have small children.

I love the hotel maid study conducted by Ellen Langer and Alia Crum

https://www.lark.com/resources/how-changing-your-mindset-can-help-you-lose-more-weight

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17425538/

I did it! Doing a 20 min spin and I am dying

I started out with 3kg dumbbells and gradually progressed: 5, 8, 10, 12 kg.

Excellent Trainers on YouTube who you may want to look at include…

Growingannanas - HIIT workouts, with and without weights
Heather Robertson - Pilates based all-round training
Fitness Blender - no nonsense weight training and very good at demonstrating the various moves
Caroline Girvan - totally focused on weight training; challenging, but I found her life changing.

The thing with cardio is it burns calories while you're doing it and for a short time after. Weight training you burn for hours after you stop.

Cardio is addictive but it's not that great for burning a lot of calories unless you're doing it for hours

Exercise isn't just about using calories for many people. I don't need to lose any weight at all. I exercise because it stops me killing people I love it. Of course I know it's good for me and as I've got older I have mixed things up a bit and worked to find a strength class I enjoy (don't like the gym, but I love my outdoor circuit class at a time that works for me).

But you're assuming people do cardio just to burn calories.

Most people who do cardio do it because they enjoy it - it's nice being outdoors in the fresh air, it's time for yourself, it gives you a feeling of accomplishment, it's good for their mental health and heart health etc. - it's not to lose weight necessarily, or to burn off the big meal they had the night before - that's just a nice side effect if it happens.

I used to do hours of cardio after work and at the end of the week the magic number on the scale would still be be the exact same and it was really demorilising and it made me think, why bother? After months of disappointment I decided to get some advice from someone who probably knows a lot more than me and that really changed my approach to losing weight and cardio. Now I don't do half as much cardio but I can lose the pounds with a bit of determination

What is the magic formula? Asking for a friend 😉

LOL! What kind of person would I be to keep this to myself ... What I learnt is that you can't out train a bad diet. My nutritionist was absolutely wonderful and he analysed what I was eating and told me what to cut down in order to reach my magic number. He was brilliant because rather than tell me to cut certain things completely out, he helped me to learn that everything is fine in moderation. I can pass you his details if you want? He really is a great find

I don't exercise. I couldn't really justify the price of a gym membership when I wasn't working. Now I am working and could afford it but I don't want to spend my precious free time in a gym. I like an occasional walk but I prefer walking in nice scenery and I live in suburban London. The only exercise I really love is swimming and I find the getting ready and changed is a massive faff.

I couldn't agree more with all of the above ! I really enjoy my exercise though. I was absolutely amazed by what you can achieve by just being consistent with a custom home work out plan + responsible dieting. It has really changed my view on health and nutrition and not to mention how much better my mental health is nowadays too

Most people don’t do formal exercise (go to the gym, classes, running or weight lifting etc). So of course you are not in the minority. That’s not to say you don’t meet the ‘recommended amount of activity’. Walking qualifies if done at pace.
However you can fit in formal exercise if you want to. plenty of people have full time jobs and kids manage to. If you have a partner then go when they can mind the kids, or take the kids on a brisk walk with you, go to the gym on your lunch break, and so on.

@mostimportantaspect yes, most calorie estimates from trackers using heart rate are basically educated guesses at best. On bikes we have the benefit of power meters which measure power, work done, and therefore food calories expended to within 1 or 2%. Really useful for figuring out fuelling and ensuring you get enough calories in both during and after the ride. It’s surprising how much you have to eat to avoid a deficit!

Right, or it’s just an intrinsic part of their sport.