Gym Bunny...or Not

My husband and I both exercise. He goes to the gym, I make the bed, vacuum the house, mow the lawn, weed, dig, clean baths, decorate, you get the general idea. You don't have to go to a gym to exercise, you can do useful and rewarding things too. It doesn't have to be the machines. Also, it's you diet that makes the really big difference. If you aren't already familiar with Aseem Malhotra, (ant-sugar campaigning cardiologist) do look him up, but one of his sayings is, "you can't out run a bad diet".
Sally

I have ME. I do not exercise. I use diet, and diet alone to control my type 2. I have been able to be pill free by reducing my carbs and watching my intake like a hawk. Exercise may or may not be of benefit in other ways, for other people, but its diet all the way for controlling my diabetes.

Well done @rosco 2

I joined a gym once, it didn't last long, but when I joined someone working there told me that her mother had been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, and that she made her go to the gym every day, and do lots of running and walking on the machines, for months, and she was eventually cured. I don't know how true this was, but it seemed a little bit close to cruelty to me, but as long as you do it of your own free well, that's fine.

The best exercise to ... lose weight, reduce BG, improve bone density, etc ... is exercise that you enjoy.

If you do not enjoy the treadmill and rowing machine at the gym, it is mostly likely that you will stop going (unless you are even more stubborn that I am which is saying something).
My recommendation is to try every type of exercise you can think of (including vacuuming and gardening, like @sally and james ) until you find something you enjoy. It may be dancing, cycling, walking, walking and chatting with your mates, swimming, walking around the shops, rowing on the river, rumba, yoga, ...

Try them all and have some fun!

rosco 2 said:

Thank you for the replies. I am on very low carb diet, self imposed. The diet to control my bg, the exercise to help me lose weight. I am one of those females who loathes housework. I can tolerate dust, maybe not to Quentin Crisp levels but I cope as do visiting friends...onward and upward!

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Haha! Yes. Quentin Crisp’s views on dust accumulation were most impressive!

I have never been inside a gym in my life and even if I was able bodied I would not choose to do so. Behind sun bathing I find regimented excercise the most boring. Given a choice, though, I would dearly love to do my own composting but it is my son who now takes care of the compost bins. I garden after my own fashion weather and pain permitting. And yet I have improved all of my markers.

@rosco 2 . Exercise has to be enjoyable or at least rewarding.
Rowing machines are probably the most feared and despised of all gym machines. Full credit for using one first up, but definitely not a machine for a new gym goer.
A YouTube search for .....Glucosezone......will offer up some exercise regimes specifically designed for diabetics of all types and levels of fitness. All the regimes are non gym based. Maybe worth a browse.

Alison54321 said:

Well done @rosco 2

I joined a gym once, it didn't last long, but when I joined someone working there told me that her mother had been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, and that she made her go to the gym every day, and do lots of running and walking on the machines, for months, and she was eventually cured. I don't know how true this was, but it seemed a little bit close to cruelty to me, but as long as you do it of your own free well, that's fine.

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I think if I was forced by my offspring to do endless largely pointless exercise which I did not enjoy I too would claim I was cured just to get them off my back.

The amount of calories you burn per mile is equal to double your weight in pounds divided by 3.5. For example, if you weigh 175 pounds, you burn 2 x 175 = 350 / 3.5 = 100 calories per mile. Since there are 3500 calories in 1 lb. of body fat, a 175-pound person needs to walk 35 miles.

JohnEGreen said:

I think if I was forced by my offspring to do endless largely pointless exercise which I did not enjoy I too would claim I was cured just to get them off my back.

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I hadn't thought of that. Maybe she started living a secret life.

rosco 2 said:

Thank you for the replies. I am on very low carb diet, self imposed. The diet to control my bg, the exercise to help me lose weight. I am one of those females who loathes housework. I can tolerate dust, maybe not to Quentin Crisp levels but I cope as do visiting friends...onward and upward!

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Hello rosco, good to know you. I am definitely another Quentin Crisp, but sadly without his wit and talent. Dust and worse however I can both tolerate and accumulate with the best! One of the great virtues of going to the gym is that it is NOT housework, and no-one can expect one to be doing housework while one is at the gym!!! It is a wonderful refuge and alibi.

To my mind exercise divides into two categories: aerobic training and strength training. Oh, and there is also flexibility training. They are all important, more and more so as we age. I do know about this, as I am now 76. Housework, gardening etc are much better both for the heart and the bones and muscles and brain than sitting down, but if one is able-bodied enough to do more, more will be better. Since you have started to go to the gym, I suggest you explore the world of resistance training. You might find you like it better than aerobic. Also explore the current thinking around aerobic exercise. Sometimes alternating brief but hard moments of running / walking / rowing / pedalling with easy recovery minutes can be more effective (and more fun) than just slogging away endlessly. Sometimes however a longer, easier session can be good. The important thing is to know the WHY of what one is doing.

I have my own Concept2 rowing machine at home, and I consider rowing just about the hardest aerobic exercise there is. 10 minutes is usually enough for me! But if you can stand it, rowing is superb exercise.

Personally, my ideal is to alternate days when I do resistance training sessions at the gym with days when I run/walk in the park. I loathe treadmills almost as much as housework. I do occasionally have a go on the stair climber at my gym, but there again 10 minutes IMO is a good session. Have you considered doing some swimming? You could pretend to be snorkelling!

Good luck!

You got to start somewhere and the replies really do sum it all up. Try everything but if you find it a chore then use the classes (providing there are ones that suit your timetable). This is often very motiviating, high intensity work where the best part is you're get to know people (Assuming you have no other health conditions that can prevent this). Most often if you're not enjoying the exercise then finding someone to encourage and get your going will help you along.

Otherwise, if it doesn't work out for you in the long run just make way for exercise and movement where possible in your day. Avoid the car where possible, walk or cycle to work etc.

No matter you're doing a great job.

JohnEGreen said:

I think if I was forced by my offspring to do endless largely pointless exercise which I did not enjoy I too would claim I was cured just to get them off my back.

The amount of calories you burn per mile is equal to double your weight in pounds divided by 3.5. For example, if you weigh 175 pounds, you burn 2 x 175 = 350 / 3.5 = 100 calories per mile. Since there are 3500 calories in 1 lb. of body fat, a 175-pound person needs to walk 35 miles.

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If that formula works then as you lost weight you would have to walk further and further to keep losing the same amount.

Mr_Pot said:

If that formula works then as you lost weight you would have to walk further and further to keep losing the same amount.

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Yes Mr Pot, you do have to. I had to give you a hug to console you there.

Mr_Pot said:

If that formula works then as you lost weight you would have to walk further and further to keep losing the same amount.

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Yes. One of the reasons people often regain weight is that they don't allow for the fact that, the lighter one is the less calories one needs, and similarly, the more well-trained one becomes the less calories one expends to complete a given bout of exercise.

Alison54321 said:

Yes Mr Pot, you do have to. I had to give you a hug to console you there.

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Thanks for that, hugs are all too infrequent at my age!
Actually I don't need to lose any more weight, I was just pointing out the difficulty of losing weight by exercise, diet is the key as others have said. I have a quite lot of exercise, walking mostly, not the sweaty gym stuff, but no more than I did before diagnosis and accidentally losing weight with a low carb diet.
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