(no subject)

[alexseanchai]

okay so like

exercise that

* won't fuck with any of my disabilities
* won't feel impossible to start or maintain
* won't get blockaded by my executive function or wtfever before I get started
* won't cost money
* won't make me feel like a fail on the grounds of continuing to not meet the 150 min/wk moderate exercise guideline
* won't tempt me into excessive ambition
* will help me learn patience
* will help me increase some number of my strength, flexibility, endurance, and cardiovascular health
* will start where I am wrt all four such
* will be enjoyable, not chorelike

am I chasing a unicorn here?

(I really appreciate the effort you all put in last time I posted here! just none of your suggestions stuck. /o\ and it's incredibly frustrating.)

(also I don't understand why I chose today to start caring again? I have been complaining all week about through-the-roof pain! this is maybe not the week to reinstate a practice of physicality?)

Comments

[alexseanchai]

...LET ME GO EDIT THE POST. free is V Import. :(

At home is almost certainly more doable than not.

[fred_mouse]

At home, what I've had the most success with is pairing specific small amounts of exercises with regular day time activities. So, for example, the stretches that I need to do to keep my thigh muscles from cramping I do after my shower as part of the way that I dry my legs, and I do squats (which are also about keeping those muscles strong and flexible so that my hips don't do bad things) while I clean my teeth at night. I cannot bring myself to do long periods of exercise unless I'm elsewhere, and even then, I'm better if I have someone controlling what I'm doing (eg. class).

I'm also a fan of 'put on a few minutes of loud music, and see how many things I can put away' - I can bounce around for one 3 minute song, and it doesn't matter whether I'm going up and down the house, and because I'm focused on the music, the weirdness my brain will usually throw at me about tidying isn't there, because I'm Not Tidying, I'm Dancing. If you need something that will trigger it, always getting up when a specific song is played is one way (Poison by Alice Cooper is one of mine).

The last one is going to sound weird, but if standing to watch television is an option it works for getting some amount of very simple exercise. Work on relaxed but 'strong' posture - if you have done dance or martial arts you will have a grounding for that, and start small, just a few minutes. As you get used to doing this, you can incorporate any standing stretches that work for you, or things like moving on to the balls of your feet and holding that.

These are the types of things that work for me. I can sometimes motivate myself to go for a walk (and I did start with the 'go for a jog/walk around the block as a break from study), but I'm not good about leaving the house.

[alexseanchai]

Okay, yeah, chain little bits of exercise into daily tasks, that makes a lot of sense.

Huh. Tidying-and-dancing as a singular verb. I like that. Probably less physically intense than dancing-alone, especially if it's a high-energy song, and gets some this crap from where it is to where it goes. I try that!

I don't own a TV, I cancelled Netflix 'cause money, and I don't often bother with my series DVDs. But yeah, I see your point :)

Thanks.

[fred_mouse]

You're welcome. Note that the standing thing can be done with the computer, if you have a good place to put it. The main thing I have to remember is to keep the weight on the balls of my feet, not on the heels, because that will lead to sore hips very fast.