FLF #8 - Free exercise video for bad knees and more

We are always told by medical professionals that we need to exercise, and they are right. The problems begin when you have an illness or injury that prevents you from doing it. It's difficult to find the drive to do something when you know it is going to cause pain - not the "feel the burn" kind of pain, but the shooting, stabbing, debilitating kind of pain.  But we have to work to overcome this. 

Then, if you are like me, you face another issue of being embarrassed to exercise in public. I feel humiliated by my size and I don't want to be seen in a bathing suit when I go swimming or to be the fat woman who cant keep up, or god forbid, I have to stop exercising due to my pain while everyone else is still going. Whether it's true or not, in my mind these people are looking at me and thinking negatively about me. This is a life long issue I'm still trying to overcome, though I'm not very successfully right now.

So then we have to look at ways around this. I have an recumbent exercise bike at home that I can use even though it bores me witless. I have a lot of room outside at home so I can go about my business in private when it's daylight savings, if I have any energy left after work. I have a treadmill but it's not home at the moment. I can play games with my partner to get some exercise and have fun, i.e. we played cricket out the front the other day and we go to the pool when it's quiet (Steve can't go swimming at the moment due to an eye injury). Or I can do exercise inside the house following exercise videos.

The last one suits me the best right now because there are a lot of free options online via Youtube to choose from. After much testing and pain I have found the following routine that is only 10 minutes long and is suitable for people with bad knees. I try to do it three times a day. This works because it's low impact, takes up hardly any room so I can do it in my office (with the door shut), it requires no equipment and best of all I can at least get some exercise in via intervals. I'm embarrassed to admit that even 10 minutes is painful for me but if it gets to much I march in place. So far it's the best option I've found.

I think this would be a good start for a lot of people. Even if you work up to completing the 10 minutes over time, at least we can do something.

Check out the video and if you know of more please let me know. This video is from a woman named Jessica Smith & her little dog Peanut, and she has a good range online. I also have a list of other recommendations posted bythe  myfitnesspal blog that I will share below. But check out this first one and let me know what you think.

http://youtu.be/f0yVP_eixEI

My Fitness Pal Recommendations go to the following article which has all the links:  http://greatist.com/move/best-free-workout-videos-youtube

FLF #7 - What a flare up, bad day and pain looks like

I'm putting this video up not to gain sympathy but to demonstrate what people with lupus and fibromyalgia experience during a flare up. Please no disrespectful comments. I know I'm fat and I know this may seem like a whinge, but it truly isn't. People will only understand if they can see it with their own eyes. It's a constant battle. Some days you win, some days you lose. I often hate myself and struggle but I still hold down a full time job running a national centre, on good days I exercise for a minimum 30 minutes often for hours, and I take care of a household and hobby farm.

I'm trying and I still think I can beat this. My challenge is for the end of the year to post a different video. One in which I'm pain free, smiling and a lot thinner. One in which I'm happy.