Body exercises for the obese?

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nickale

New member
I’ve been going to the gym to use the pool for a couple months because I can’t do a lot of normal things on account of my size. Since the quarantine the gyms been closed. I’ve still been walking to keep up the exercise, but I’d really like to get back to building some muscle, doing full-body stuff. I’ve had a hard time finding youtube videos intended for people like myself so I’d appreciate any suggestions on what to do or where to look. Thanks!

Edit: I want to thank everyone for their advice! Even the advice that totally ignored what I was asking and assumed I eat way too much and need to change my diet lol. I know your heads are in the right place because you wouldn’t be wrong two years ago. I’ve been through a lot of trial and error and found out what works for me diet-wise. I’m losing weight without exercise but working out has helped with a myriad of other things, like keeping my sleep routine, giving me energy, and making me stronger which I desperately want and need. That’s why I want to keep it up.

Anyone reading my post hoping to find exercises too, should 100% listen about the diet thing. If you’re eating excess calories, you’re going to have to exercise that much harder to make up for it, and we gotta be honest that’s hard to do when it’s hard to move lol. I know it’s hard to give up what’s fast and easy but it’s worth it.
 
@nickale There are probably a 1000 different opinions on this, but my recommendation both to avoid injury and to actually make exercise enjoyable is to keep it simple.

That means just to light cardio (fast walking, cycling, swimming) and focus on calorie restriction until you are no longer obese. When you are down to a BMI of "just" overweight you can start to add more into your workout routine.

Exercise is hard when your obese, risk of injury is greater and it's not important to lose weight (contrary to popular belief). Some also experienced increased hunger when they start to workout which is the last thing you need when you need to permanently decrees the amount of calories you consume.

Good luck friend :)
 
@helencostello91 Solid advice. Even bodyweight is too much when you're just starting out if your body weight is high. In my weight loss journey, while working out has added muscle which helps, most of my weight loss has been driven by my food choices and eating habits
 
@reality777 Agree on the diet and lifestyle choices. I would say it's 30% weight lifting 10% cardio though.

If you build the muscle it'll work to burn some calories even on rest days. Cardio only works when you're doing it, and at any kind of increased weight will tear through your joints at an accelerated rate. So unless you're gonna live on the treadmill, weightlifting has some significant advantages over cardio.

Additionally, if you're willing to work out with machines then even an overweight person can safely start building muscle which will give you a 6-12 month head start over cardio for calorie burning for people who are obese

Finally, and probably most importantly: weight lifting builds muscle, muscle looks good. If you look good, you're more motivated to stick to whatever habits you're building.

That all applies during normal times when it's safe to hit the gym. So in the interim OP should start building up his intermittent fasting times, if they can hit extended fasts they'll burn fat like a 19th century oil lantern. Add very light cardio (leisurely 1-2 mile walk) on nice days provided you can avoid people and are careful about doorknobs. Nothing wrecks your weight loss motivation like getting sick.
 
@living46 I was confused at first been then I realized that more muscle = higher basic metabolic rate (bmr), the amount of calories you passively burn throughout the day through normal body functions.

solid advice.
 
@an2nette There are two ways to create a deficit: eat less and work more (including raising bmr by increasing muscle mass).

If you're just looking to lose weight, sure, you can do it on your couch eating ice cream as long as you're at a deficit.

If you're looking to improve your health, you need to think about the nutrition in the food (not just calories), do some sort of strength training (at least ab work esp if you sit all day for work), and cardio (lung & heart health).
 
@phytoscience1 The thing is that you can’t out-exercise a bad diet. Plus exercise makes you hungry, so if you aren’t counting calories, you’re probably going to end up at the same neutral or positive calorie balance as before you started exercising. While the exercise would be good for your cardiovascular health, losing weight is also really good for your health.

A 300-pound person would have to walk around a mile to cancel out the calories from one slice of cheese. What’s easier - walking one mile or just not putting a slice of cheese on your burger?

The best advice to anyone looking to lose weight is to count calories. Exercise is an optional second step.
 
@phytoscience1 I never said that exercise isn't important to good health, so please don't argue against a straw man. Please reread my last comment if you're still confused, and let me know if I can clarify anything.
 
@phytoscience1 I think he just meant that exercise isn't necessary as far as weight loss goes, which it isn't. Not trying to diminish the importance of exercise as it does have important health benefits, but if people are exercising for the sole purpose of burning calories, they're missing out on a lot.
 
@an2nette Yeah, no doubt. Eating less is the biggest factor. Cardio and working out tho increases caloric use, so pairing it with decreasing caloric intake will provide better results.

Those percentages are not scientific.. I made them up to exemplify the point that diet is most important, followed by exercise. And some lifestyle choices impact that too, like smoking, what you do in your free time, stress levels, etc
 
@reality777 Sure, but it's a lot easier to refuse 1 small bean burrito from taco bell than it is to go run your ass off for an hour, which has roughly the same caloric value. You don't "need" to do cardio. Hell you don't "need" to exercise at all to lose weight, not that I would ever discourage anyone from doing so.
 
@reality777 In your original post you implied that weight loss can be attributed to any other thing other than a caloric deficit, and that 60/30/10 ratio thing you made up is just confusing.
 
@an2nette Those are the portions that contribute to a caloric deficit should you be doing them. His percentages are off because diet is like 90 to 99% of it but his point still stands. Burning more calories through weight lifting or cardio increase your calorie deficit.
 
@helencostello91 It really depends. The low end of what’s considered obese is smaller than most people think, and people in that range have a wide range of physical capabilities. I’m obese (not borderline, well into the obese range) and I can do way more than light cardio and haven’t injured myself. And strength training while losing weight is really good for preserving muscle mass, which is generally a good thing and also keeps BMR up, making it easier to lose weight.

Edit: reread OPs post and saw they said they can’t do normal things on account of their size. So your recommendations are probably good for them right now. But more challenging exercise doesn’t necessarily have to wait until they’re out of the obese range.
 
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