Exercise

[Guest]

I've just started after oh so many years and while I seem to gain muscle pretty quickly exercising (noticable improvements in a couple of weeks) I can't run. Not at all. After a mile of alternating walking/jogging, I'm lightheaded and seeing spots and my lungs feel like they're going to explode. I can walk a couple of miles slowly, but any time I try to pick up speed, like say do it in anything less than 13 minutes, I can't go more than a mile. It also seems like the more I jog than run, the slower I am..which makes no sense at all to me.

Even when I was a kid, I avoided exercise and I smoked for close to 20 years, so that might be part of the reason, but it seems like I'm way behind what I should be able to do after a couple weeks of 2-3 times a week.

Are there tricks that I'm missing here?

[XLMiguel]

Agree.  Full physical with stress test is in order, m'dear, especially when starting back on exercise regimen after a long lay off.  The ability to tone up/bulk up without corresponding cardio-vascular improvement isn't typical.  Prolly nothing you've never heard before, but do get checked up, then lay out some goals, pace yerself, and perservere, eh?  Good luck!

[Preacherman]

Barbara, I'm in the same boat...  after 15 months of being house- and (often) bed-bound with a back injury, I've put on quite a bit of weight and lost just about all my fitness and muscle tone.  In a couple of months, after (hopefully) being cleared to do so by my doctors, I'm going to start a rehabilitation period of at least 6 months of exercise and therapy, and I'm not looking forward to it at all!

Hang in there.  I'm sure the end result will be worth it.

[Standing Wolf]

I've resumed exercising. I hate the monotony of it and the time it takes, but it's making a visible difference in both my air pistol and bullseye scores.

I do light stretching and upper body exercises. I ran a lot as a kid, but you couldn't pay me to resume it today: I've known too many people who've had to have their knees surgically taken apart and reassembledand they're never fully functional afterward.

I've found the trick is twofold: 1.) go slowly, and 2.) enertain none but the lowest expectations.

[nico]

I think a physical and whatever else your doctor recommends would be a very good idea.  Also, it's important to do these things gradually.  After smoking for 20 years and not exercizing for a while, it doesn't sound all that unrealistic that you'd have trouble jogging more than a mile after only 2 weeks of exercize.  

You might want to look into buying a heart rate monitor.  They are relatively inexpensive and will give you a quantitative measure of how hard you're working.  Generally, for fat loss, you want your heart rate to be 60-65% of your max heart rate and maintain that for about 20 minutes.  The distance you cover is much less important than sustaining the proper heart rate for the proper amount of time.  To calculate your max heart rate, a general formula is to subtract your age from 220.  60-65% of that number is what you want your heart rate to be while doing cardio.  If you can't do this initially, don't worry.  Just start out doing what you can and work your way up to it.  Once you've been doing cardio for a couple months, you might also want to look into high intensity interval training (HIIT).  It takes about 10 minutes but supposedly gives a better workout than you'd get in 20 minutes of normal cardio.  A lot of people swear by it.

For fat loss, weight training will also help a lot, and diet is as important as any exercize you do.  A good site for tracking your progress is www.mybodycomp.com.  It calculates body fat percentage based on a bunch of measurements and has some decent fitness resources.  

hope at least some of that helps

[Guest]

Thanks, all.

Weight isn't a big deal. I'm 5'3 and range from 130-137, depending on what holiday we just passed. I'm not interested in losing weight so much as getting in much better physical condition. I'm also not willing to diet in the sense of eating things I don't like and not eating things I love, although I'm trying to make a point of eating more fruit and less rice crispie treats.  

I think part of the reason I'm doing better at building muscle than at CV is that I'm putting more effort into it. I exercise a little 3 times a day, and only run 3 days a week and then only for a 1- 1.5 miles. Just seems like everything I'm reading is suggesting I only start jogging 2 miles at a time and I just can't do it yet. I'm going to give it another couple weeks and see what happens. If I had some place to walk/run at work during the day, I'd go a mile or so at lunch, but its just not possible.

The good news is that I'm able to hold that Garand up a lot better now. A couple months ago, I could barely shoot it off-hand and now I can get off 10 shots without collapsing.

[Chas]

Good to hear you're being pro-active in taking care of your health Barbara. I second the motion of suggesting you get a full physical ASAP and talk to your Dr. about the problems you have when running. Maybe ask for a blood test to measure your oxygen levels. Remember, you can reach a plateau at anytime in your routine. Vary your routine to make it harder to reach that plateau.

I too have been a smoker for years, 30+ for me, and I don't have any problems running other than what would be expected for someone my age that's out of shape. Before I started doing serious workouts, I did a little reading specific to my goals. I learned quite a bit when I read about sports nutrition, a sometimes forgotten aspect of a healthy lifestyle. What are your goals other than "Better physical shape?" Nothing wrong with that, but it's a bit vague when you're talking about doing something as complex as the human body.

Off the top of my head, how's your BP?

[...has left the building.]

Don't be ashamed to run a shorter distance. Do you start gassing out as soon as you speed up or if you keep it up for a certain distance? When I had bad asthma as a small kid, I would be dead tired after a quarter mile and I was ashamed of it. The more I shrugged off worrying about how far I went and started worrying about pushing my limits each run, the more distance I could cover. Distance will come with time.

[Jamisjockey]

I have to recommend cycling.  Of course, good equipment isn't cheap, but its alot easier on your body.  Four years ago I was 193lbs (I'm 5'3" mind you).  Today, I've got my winter fat layer on at 159lbs.  By the end of the season I'll probably be about 150.  If I'd stay dedicated during the winter I'd probably be 150 right now, but I hate winter
I have a hard time running.  It hurts everything from the hips down.  

Skip anything thats sold in a department store.  Go to a real bike shop.  Try renting a good road bike or hybrid a few times to see what you like and don't like.  I recommend to anyone that is getting started to just go straight for a road bike, or maybe a 700c wheel hybrid.  You'll need to spend around $800+ for the bike to get something worth your time and money.  Get shorts with the Chamois (you can get baggy style shorts if you cant stomach wearing lycra), a wicking jersey with rear pockets (yes, these come in a looser fit, too), helmet with removable visor, eye protection (sunglasses....don't want to take a bug or rock to the eye), good gloves, and learn to use clipless pedals.  For the recreational fitness rider, go for some mountain bike shoes and dual sided pedals.  A small camelbak is a lifesaver, as you can carry extra gear and clothing in there (like rain gear).  Budget about $1500 total for bike, clothing, and gear.  
Make sure and carry a kit including a spare tube, patch kit, and pump.  These can be shoved into a jersey pocket, a saddle bag, or an empty water bottle.
If anyone has any specific questions about getting started cycling, fire away.

[Guest]

Ok. $1,500. I'll just wait till the kids are out of the house and I can sell a kidney.

I'll stick with free stuff like jogging and pushups for now.

Anyway, I the problem is a few things..one, I haven't run my entire 36 years, so its probably unreasonable to expect a 10 minute mile my few times out. I only do this 3x per week, as opposed to stretching and exercises 3x per day.

Also, I think the timing thing has to do with my stride. I have short little elf legs, which make it tougher..my walking time is almost faster than my jogging time..plus, I'm less tired. I need to get to the point where I'm actually running, but it might be a while.

What do you think is reasonable to be comfortable running a mile and able to start moving up to more distance? A month? Should I start running every day? That'd be hard to fit in..

[grampster]

Barbara, you need to start running with the vaccuum, running to wash the dishes, run between the washer and dryer, jog up and down the stairs because you could put the ironing board in the basement and keep the dryer upstairs, or vice versa, jog around the kitchen when yer cooking.....
***Grampster ducks while trying to tell Barbara that it's a joke, Barbara....it's a joke, really it's a joke, Barbara....Put down that Garand Barbara....Yer looking pretty buff today, really....***
:  :    

[Azrael256]

You might try a little jump rope.  Supposedly it's more intense exercise than running.  It has a higher probability of injury, so if you have bad knees, it's a nono, but you might try it.

[...has left the building.]

I would have to second jumping rope as well. I currently do that as part of my workout. It gets your heart rate up rather quickly and develops good leg strength/endurance/explosiveness as well.

[crt360]

I would second the cycling.  As a kid I played just about every normal sport (football, baseball, soccer, basketball), motocrossed, bmx'd, skated, skied (water & snow), and did a lot of hiking around with a gun (aka hunting).  In college, both the rugby and lacrosse teams tried to sign me up.  I was pretty athletic all my life until I got out of school and became a potato in a suit behind a desk.  

Even though I ran a lot in high school and college, I never liked it.  I find it extremely boring, if it hadn't been for a Walkman or two I probably couldn't have tolerated it as much as I did.  

Cycling, on the other hand, is fun.  I've ridden some kind of bike since I was about 5-6, and it's the one thing I can go out and do a few times a week (along with a little weightlifting) that produces noticeable results in my fitness.  I'm currently riding a Cannondale mountain bike that I dropped some skinny road tires on for trucking around the streets.  It's inefficient as hell, with the full suspension and all, but a great workout.  (Im sure Jamis could smoke past me with one leg.)

You could get a really nice ride for $1500, but if you just want a pretty good recreational bike and quality gear your local shop could probably set you up for about half of that, or less.  Like Jamis said, avoid the $79 steel-rimmed, Chinese tanks sold at Wal-mart and many sporting goods places.  If you do decide to try cycling, watch out for the dogs, they are attracted to those who move on round spinny things.

[Guest]

Hehehe, Grampster. I'm just happy I can *lift* the Garand now!

Jumping rope..good idea! I'll try that!

[Jamisjockey]

Barbara:
No worries at all, its just my personal mileage.  I had a hard time getting started running again, and now find that much running makes my knees and ankles ache like I have the flu.  Now I race recreationally, and its quite the thrill

Jumping rope is an exremely good workout, just ask Boxers.  Its a great way to supplement your workouts, search the internet for some rope workout plans.

And for your running, let me impart some training advice:
You can't just get much faster by just running/cycling/skating/skiing.  Speed work begets speed.  You need to find an interval training program that takes advantage of your natural ability to go faster.
IE:  wind sprints.  Obviously, you have to have base fitness mileage.  
Firstly, don't try to increase your speed yet.  You need to go a touch slower and start bumping your mileage up.  Force yourself to relax and go just a touch slower and add 1/2 a mile per 5-8 runs.  When you can run 3 miles without stopping even at a slow pace, then its time to start running intervals.  A great place for that is on a track.  
4x4x100's:  You need to be able to recover between each sprint.  As you get started, this might even be a walk inbetween sprints.  Warmup by fast-walking or light jogging 1/2 a mile (800=2 laps).  When you reach the straight away, give 'er hell for the length of the straightaway.  Recover (fast walk or light jog) for 300 (the rest of the lap).  Hit it again.  Try and do it 4 times.  Cool down for 2 laps.  Do this 2 days a week.  Start timing your sprints and laps.
Strides:  Warning!  You want to be on a level grass field for this.  If at anytime you feel pain or discomfort, stop.  Start at one end of a marked field.  At a slow gait, jog 50, cool 150, jog 50.  You're going to use a very exagerated running step. Imagine you're a gazelle, push off and stretch your back foot out far and raise your front knee high.  Be very careful with this, it can cause injury.  But done with patience, you're training your legs to take longer steps, which in turn will help you put the sprints to good use.
Bleachers:  Find a set of stairs.  Run up them, run down them.  Run up, run down.  A set of High school bleachers are great, just start with 1/2 the heigth, go across, come back down, across, up.  
Good luck!

CRT:  Have you thought about a cyclocross bike?  Great for bombing around and you can run skinny road tires for higher speed stuff.

[Jamisjockey]

Oh, yea, and my money recommendation ($1500) was for all the gear together.  I find that having the appropriate clothing and gear makes any experience better.
There is a web store called www.Supergo.com that has some unbelievable deals on bikes, that are getting rave reviews.

This bike is a screaming deal for a beginner.  The downside is you need to be familiar with fit, and a local bike shop is going to have to assemble it (around $50 typically).  If you buy a bike locally the can fit it for you, and usually at no charge, including changing seats, stem length, and the angle.  Often times they throw in service for a year or two, and little things like waterbottle cages and bottles, roadside kit, etc.
For those who run, check into making sure your shoes fit properly.

[Big_R]

Good to know I'm not alone.  I quit smoking a couple weeks ago for the last time.   My problem was I've been traveling a lot for work this year, and drank too much/ate too much while on the road, got bored and started smoking after quitting last year.

As for your dilema, what days do you run and work out?  What works for me is to lift weights M-W-F, and cardio on Tu-Th-Sa.  Sunday is a rest day.  When I started running, I could only go about 5 minutes on a treadmill.  Now, I'm up to 2 miles in 20 minutes.  That took about a year to achieve.  Stick with it.

Ryan

[crt360]

CRT:  Have you thought about a cyclocross bike?  Great for bombing around and you can run skinny road tires for higher speed stuff.

I've definitely thought about it.  I've even considered a straight road bike, but I can't afford another good bike at the moment.  If I start riding a lot more, I'm sure I'll figure something out.

Thanks for the link to Supergo, I had not heard of them before.

[DustinD]

Your symptoms seem normal. I had the same problem when I started running in 8th grade. My lungs would hurt after a few miles and I would get dizzy when I stopped. Each time I ran I could go a little farther until I could literally run all day without any trouble.

After I stopped running for a few years I could no longer run very far. I have been running the last few weeks and can easily run for about an hour now. In a few weeks I should be able to go for as long as I need to.

I have stopped and started running a few times in my life, it is the same each time. The dizzyness and pain goes away with time.

I suggest running three times a week if you can. There is a diminishing return for running more than that.

[Guest]

Thanks for the advice. I tried something different today. I twisted my knee a little this week, so I skipped yesterday and am still a little sore today, so I decided just to walk at a liesurely pace for a hour..no problems at all. I did a a little over 4 miles and while I could feel a little tightness in the back of my calves, no lung problems at all. Then I ran the last quarter mile and got a little winded but not bad. My knee hurt from it, though.

I need new shoes. I realized I can't remember when I bought these since I don't wear tennies much, but it had to have been the early Clinton Administration.

Any suggestions on shoes? (under $1,500, heh.)

[Jamisjockey]

Thanks for the advice. I tried something different today. I twisted my knee a little this week, so I skipped yesterday and am still a little sore today, so I decided just to walk at a liesurely pace for a hour..no problems at all. I did a a little over 4 miles and while I could feel a little tightness in the back of my calves, no lung problems at all. Then I ran the last quarter mile and got a little winded but not bad. My knee hurt from it, though.

I need new shoes. I realized I can't remember when I bought these since I don't wear tennies much, but it had to have been the early Clinton Administration.

Any suggestions on shoes? (under $1,500, heh.)

Shoes are a very, very personal choice.  I'd strongly suggest finding a running shop in your area that does fitting.  Try on as many as you can, too.

[Brad Johnson]

Barbara,

Take it easy girl! Don't try to do too much at once. I did, and ended up in the emergency room with severe hyperventilation and my blood pressure spiking at 220/140. On my doctor's instructions I started back in slowly, working up to three miles a day at a brisk walk on a 3% incline. Since I am rarely home during daylight hours I bought a used treadmill - $700 at Play It Again Sports. I knew that putting it in the office or bedroom was an invitation to ignore it so I parked the thing smack dab in the middle of my living room. Now I can walk to music, TV, a movie, whatever. The extra exercise, and a switch to a sensible eating regimen, has resulted in a loss of 30 pounds since December and orders of magnitude more stamina, energy, and strength. And I have muscle definition in my legs again! In fact, even though I've lost 30 lbs I have actually GAINED a half inch around my calves. From walking!

Keep it up!

Brad

[El Tejon]

Spinning!  You get the exercise of the bike and you get to meet hot chicks.

O.K., O.K, . . .

[Guest]

Great..well, ok..not really.

I think 4 miles was fine. I'm sore as hell, so something got worked, right?

Through the week, I'm going to go for 2 miles, 2x a week, and then 4 miles on Saturday.

I also bought a jump rope today..too lazy to use it yet.