I've found the answer to expensive gyms!

dragoriana

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Ok so the other day we had a treadmill delivered, which i didn't know about. Mum told me it was for everyone...but that was after my father came up to me and asked me what i weighed (no offence to me of course)....the limit for the treadmill is less than my weight. Now this sounds horrible. Yes i am fat. BUT i don't look what i weigh, i do in fact have muscle in my legs and arms from previous weight training and field sports. If you saw me you'd just see that i am a cuddly person, i can fit on train/bus seats, through doors etc you get the idea, i go for walks without falling over, i'm not HUGE i'm just fat *sighs* I've struggled with weight problems since my teen years.

So. I had the idea the other day, to get some of my own gym equipment. I looked into gym memberships in this area, one offers a 3 month membership for $255. Now, in a shop i recently saw multi use weight training equiment (legs/arms etc) for about $200-300 that lasts for many years, much better than a 3 month membership. I don't have to go out and buy new shoes, working out clothes, changing in front of other people/seeing nekkid people, waiting to get on a machine or someone else being impatient waiting for me, i can be on as long as i like and i don't have to get a bus/train out.

So tomorrow Tristan and i are looking around to see what there is available. Since moving here 3 months ago, i've had my computer/desk and art craft stuff out of my bedroom, as we now have 4 rooms instead of 3. So this room i'm in also has enough space to add something big like gym equipment.

So i'd like to know, what you think? Has anyone here done this? Why i'm choosing weight training for my arms and legs is because that is mostly what i used at the gym. I used the mens stuff because i can pull quite a bit of weight. I can strengthen my hip without having to worry about walking on rough surfaces (we're rural now, hilly, dirt/gravel paths for quite a way). I can also go on when it's pouring with rain, or i'm bored, or if i get a food craving i can concentrate on the weights to get my mind off it.

Tell me what you think!
 

kluchetta

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My understanding is that free weights give you the most "bang for the buck". I work at a rec center, although I'm not much of an exercise fan!


You gain a LOT more tone & muscle using free weights, and the more muscle you have, the more calories you burn just by "being alive". That's awesome you're doing that...what is wrong with your hip, if you don't mind me asking...?
 
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dragoriana

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Originally Posted by kluchetta

My understanding is that free weights give you the most "bang for the buck". I work at a rec center, although I'm not much of an exercise fan!


You gain a LOT more tone & muscle using free weights, and the more muscle you have, the more calories you burn just by "being alive". That's awesome you're doing that...what is wrong with your hip, if you don't mind me asking...?
I was born with hip dislocation (congenital hip dysplasia) as babies are very flexible, they don't always find these problems, in my case, not till i was about 4, i had my operation at 5. A femoral osteotomy - They cleaned overgrown tissues out of the socket, pushed the ball back in, cut into the femur and re-aligned it as my left foot would have been slightly outturned. Mum said i had the plate and screws in 3 or 8 months, i can't remember, then a second op obviousely to take them out. I had a cast going from under my chest, down both legs, i think to the toes on the left leg, and not as far down the right leg. I had this blue trolley thing which had wheels on it, that's how i got around the house! lmao. I remember when the cast was ready to be cut off, i screamed the room down, i didn't understand the the cutter was just using vibrations to get through the plaster, and that it wasn't going to hurt me. Dad still doesn't understand why i screamed, he said he put his finger on it to prover it to me. I was only 5!

So i have a slight limp, more prominent if i'm tired and being lazy. I'll probably get some sort of arthritis in there. If i'm skinny it will be easier to deal with. I've been on so many diets and things, it's just getting to the point where i am scared of dying, i don't want to become one of those people that can't even get out of bed. I'm only 24, i deserve to be happy with the way i look and feel. Most days my hip doesn't hurt, even after long walks. Other times i'll just get pangs of pain, it really is random sometimes. When i used to be a checkout chick, and even now if i have to stand in one spot for half an hour or something like in a conversation, i try to shift onto my right leg so i don't get uncomfortable, which isn't a good idea either.

I have that, and my blood pressure gets high sometimes, never measured my cholestorol but it's probably up. Don't have diabetes so far so good. In the end it seems i don't have huge health problems, and i want to keep it that way before something bad happens to me. I don't want to die like my grandfather did with diabetes and a heart attack. You know i never did ask mum. He was sick before he died, i hadn't seen him in years. He dropped a tonne of weight, no one's actually told me what that was.

Ugh i don't want to start crying.

Point is, my mum dropped 30 kilos a few years ago, and she is alot happier. Even my father dropped some weight, though he is diabetic now (not insulin dependent). I hate being at family gatherings being the odd one out. It's bad enough i don't have work, now i'm in a support program which allows me more freedom for my mental/emotional health to concentrate less on work and more on courses and things i can do between work. Being overweight just makes the world even worse. My weight was half the reason i got bullied and teased at school, my limp was the other half. I need to prove those people wrong. If i ever see them again, i need to show them i am not the same person they pushed around when i was a teenager.

for myself.
 

fwan

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I hope all the best for you!

I have a bike machine and a stepper I havent touched the stepper for 2 years and the bike machine in almost a year


Id give them to you if they were there hehe
 

gailc

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You should pick up a pedometer that measures how many steps you take in a day. "Experts" say one should take 10,000 steps/day!!

I have a treadmill that gets more use in the winter than the summer months. I have it positioned by a window for light and facing the TV so I can watch movies while I am on it. The time passes more quickly that way.

I think it helps if you keep a diary of the amount of time you workout so you can see that you are doing yourself good.

Perhaps if you get the gym equipment you could spend a bit of extra money initially on hiring a personal trainer to establish your goals and set you up with a routine??
 

kluchetta

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Originally Posted by Dragoriana

I was born with hip dislocation (congenital hip dysplasia) as babies are very flexible, they don't always find these problems, in my case, not till i was about 4, i had my operation at 5. A femoral osteotomy - They cleaned overgrown tissues out of the socket, pushed the ball back in, cut into the femur and re-aligned it as my left foot would have been slightly outturned. Mum said i had the plate and screws in 3 or 8 months, i can't remember, then a second op obviousely to take them out. I had a cast going from under my chest, down both legs, i think to the toes on the left leg, and not as far down the right leg. I had this blue trolley thing which had wheels on it, that's how i got around the house! lmao. I remember when the cast was ready to be cut off, i screamed the room down, i didn't understand the the cutter was just using vibrations to get through the plaster, and that it wasn't going to hurt me. Dad still doesn't understand why i screamed, he said he put his finger on it to prover it to me. I was only 5!

So i have a slight limp, more prominent if i'm tired and being lazy. I'll probably get some sort of arthritis in there. If i'm skinny it will be easier to deal with. I've been on so many diets and things, it's just getting to the point where i am scared of dying, i don't want to become one of those people that can't even get out of bed. I'm only 24, i deserve to be happy with the way i look and feel. Most days my hip doesn't hurt, even after long walks. Other times i'll just get pangs of pain, it really is random sometimes. When i used to be a checkout chick, and even now if i have to stand in one spot for half an hour or something like in a conversation, i try to shift onto my right leg so i don't get uncomfortable, which isn't a good idea either.

I have that, and my blood pressure gets high sometimes, never measured my cholestorol but it's probably up. Don't have diabetes so far so good. In the end it seems i don't have huge health problems, and i want to keep it that way before something bad happens to me. I don't want to die like my grandfather did with diabetes and a heart attack. You know i never did ask mum. He was sick before he died, i hadn't seen him in years. He dropped a tonne of weight, no one's actually told me what that was.

Ugh i don't want to start crying.

Point is, my mum dropped 30 kilos a few years ago, and she is alot happier. Even my father dropped some weight, though he is diabetic now (not insulin dependent). I hate being at family gatherings being the odd one out. It's bad enough i don't have work, now i'm in a support program which allows me more freedom for my mental/emotional health to concentrate less on work and more on courses and things i can do between work. Being overweight just makes the world even worse. My weight was half the reason i got bullied and teased at school, my limp was the other half. I need to prove those people wrong. If i ever see them again, i need to show them i am not the same person they pushed around when i was a teenager.

for myself.
WOW! I have SOOOO been there done that! I, too, was born with hip displaysia, but they did find it so I was somewhat treated as an infant. However, they didn't quite get the right hip socket deep enough. So I had an acetabular osteotomy at 38! (break pelvis, rotate cup, pin pelvis, LOL) It worked pretty well for about 4 years, and then I was in constant pain, and about a year ago I had a hip resurfacing, and I am totally great now!

So anyway, that's why I was asking, and mega for you!!!
 

twstychik

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Weights are great but if you have mild hypertension, some cardio is also a good idea. I've been wanting a rebounder (mini trampoline) for ages because it's low impact, doesn't take up much space and is a great cardio work out.
 

pookie-poo

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Originally Posted by kluchetta

It worked pretty well for about 4 years, and then I was in constant pain, and about a year ago I had a hip resurfacing, and I am totally great now!
We recently started doing the Birmingham Hip Resurfacing System at our hospital (within the last year, I guess.) Is that what you had done?

Sorry about the hi-jack!

I joined the fitness center at the hospital where I work. I do the weight machines there. I use my own treadmill at home, because the fitness center is just a little too warm for me. I have a fan set up on my own treadmill, that blows in my face to keep me cool as I'm walking. I work out at the fitness center 4 times a week (unless I"m on call) and walk on the treadmill 4 to 6 times a week. I had to stop going to the fitness center and using the weights for 6 weeks, while I've been getting my back injections, My doctor said I can resume the weights on May 8th. He told me that I didn't have to quit walking, so I've kept up that schedule.


Good luck!
 
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dragoriana

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Originally Posted by GailC

Perhaps if you get the gym equipment you could spend a bit of extra money initially on hiring a personal trainer to establish your goals and set you up with a routine??
If i had the money for a personal trainer i'd be getting the gym membership. I don't exactly have much money on me.

As i've been to the gym before, i know i need to do cardio as well, i can do that without a machine. I did have a plan set up for me at the gym based on my strength and needs so i can still do squats at home as well. I was impressed by the legs press i could push about 100kg and the lateral thingimabob i could pull about 40kg


I know about the pedometer thing as well, my parents do it. On really horrid days like yesterday i couldn't go out, it was pouring down as hailing. Maybe i have to walk on the spot for half an hour


Ooh kluchetta, i haven't talked to anyone before who's had the same thing as me

How does the resurfacing work? I've noticed that the left side of my hip/top of thigh sort of sticks out a bit more than the right. Also when they cut into me, they actually ruined the nerves. I have a whole patch probably the size of a loaf of bread that i can't feel on the surface from my hip to my knee.

I can walk normally, but i've always been protective of it because i can only feel hot/cold once it's been there for a while, if you put your hand, or a cold cup on it, i can only feel pressure not temperature.

I really can't believe that happened. I mean, most days i don't think about it, but it's still annoying.

Ugh, doctors.
 

kluchetta

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Originally Posted by Dragoriana

If i had the money for a personal trainer i'd be getting the gym membership. I don't exactly have much money on me.

As i've been to the gym before, i know i need to do cardio as well, i can do that without a machine. I did have a plan set up for me at the gym based on my strength and needs so i can still do squats at home as well. I was impressed by the legs press i could push about 100kg and the lateral thingimabob i could pull about 40kg


I know about the pedometer thing as well, my parents do it. On really horrid days like yesterday i couldn't go out, it was pouring down as hailing. Maybe i have to walk on the spot for half an hour


Ooh kluchetta, i haven't talked to anyone before who's had the same thing as me

How does the resurfacing work? I've noticed that the left side of my hip/top of thigh sort of sticks out a bit more than the right. Also when they cut into me, they actually ruined the nerves. I have a whole patch probably the size of a loaf of bread that i can't feel on the surface from my hip to my knee.

I can walk normally, but i've always been protective of it because i can only feel hot/cold once it's been there for a while, if you put your hand, or a cold cup on it, i can only feel pressure not temperature.

I really can't believe that happened. I mean, most days i don't think about it, but it's still annoying.

Ugh, doctors.
I've got a huge spot on the side of my thigh that's numb too!
I look at it this way...if I ever want a tattoo, I know JUST where it's going!


I had the Birmingham hip resurfacing. It was AMAZING!

So, Dragoriana, I was in really bad pain for at least 9 months to a year - so bad that I couldn't ever sleep. I knew from my previous experience with this surgeon (who is awesome) that he wouldn't really want to do a hip replacement at my "young" age (LOL.) So I put off going. It finally got so bad that when my husband went on business trips on the weekend, I wouldn't even get out of bed.
So I went to the surgeon, and my x-rays showed that I had NO cartilege (sp) left in my hip. I was bone-on-bone. He scheduled me for surgery 6 weeks from that day. First I cried, and told him that I hadn't tied my shoes for 2 years. Then I couldn't stop smiling.

So anyway, the hip resurfacing is where they dislocate the hip, smooth out the cup and place a metal lining in it, then shave down the ball of the femur a bit and cap it with a metal part (like a crown on a tooth.)

I stayed in the hospital 4 days, could've been 3, but I was lazy. I was driving 4 days after that, (it's my right hip) and went back to work in 2 weeks. I used 2 crutches for only a few days, and one crutch for a couple weeks. NO rehab!!!! I can't say enough for this procedure.

Maybe we should pm about this...sorry everybody, LOL!
 

pookie-poo

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That's the hip system that we've started doing in our O.R.! Dr. G says that his patients have had REALLY GREAT results from it. It's a lot less invasive than a traditional Total Hip Arthroplasty, but doesn't prevent you from being able to have one in the future if it becomes necessary.

What a wonderful story! I'm so glad to 'hear' it from someone i 'know', lol!


Here's a link to the Smith & Nephew page about Birmingham Hip Resurfacing (this is the manufacturer we use, where I work.) http://www.birminghamhipresurfacing.com/ It might give you a better idea of what's involved, and who is a good candidate!
 

kluchetta

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Originally Posted by Pookie-poo

That's the hip system that we've started doing in our O.R.! Dr. G says that his patients have had REALLY GREAT results from it. It's a lot less invasive than a traditional Total Hip Arthroplasty, but doesn't prevent you from being able to have one in the future if it becomes necessary.

What a wonderful story! I'm so glad to 'hear' it from someone i 'know', lol!


Here's a link to the Smith & Nephew page about Birmingham Hip Resurfacing (this is the manufacturer we use, where I work.) http://www.birminghamhipresurfacing.com/ It might give you a better idea of what's involved, and who is a good candidate!
That's a fantastic new development in joint repair, LOL! And now that I'm not in constant pain, I am finally able to get something done about my weight!
 
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