Does Anyone Use Only Walking For Cardio????

L

LoriSax

Cathlete
I am really having a hard time figuring this out. I broke my neck when I was 17. It gives me alot of problems, and Migraines, which I do not enjoy. I work out in my basement. I can not do the Imaxes any more, they just cause me pain and discomfort. I feel like my shoulders are scrunched in with my head. I was just going to ditch all of my Cathe cardio's, but after thinking about it, I can do them low impact and still get a good workout. My SIL walks everyday, and that is great excercise, but I feel it is not enough, like I am a wimp. I also want to enjoy my workouts, and sometimes I do not. I am considering walking 5 days a week for an hour first thing in the morning, and adding on a UB, a LB, and a full body workout throughout the week, and on Sat.'s, maybe doing KPC. I would appreciate all of your opinions, please. Thanks!!!!!
Lori
 
All I can tell you is that walking is my only cardio, and has been for years. However, it is not possible for me to get to my target heart rate zone by walking outside. I walk on the treadmill at the gym while listening to music and wearing a heart rate monitor. I stay in my target heart rate zone for 35-45 minutes per session by adjusting the incline and the speed. Calculating and staying within your aerobic zone is very important in order to get cardio benefits.

A heavier person might be able to get such benefits just walking outside, but once you start to lose body weight, your heart will not have to work as hard and the treadmill is the only way to keep your heart rate up.

I believe that walking is the best and safest exercise because it is low-impact and it is almost impossible to get injured. The only problem is the boredom factor, which I deal with by changing my music often.

Hope this helps.
 
Lori,

I agree with Nancy that walking is excellent exercise. I also agree that it is difficult to maximize intensity outdoors without the assistance of electronic speed or incline adjustments. No walkers are weenies or wimps- that's why many are in fact POWERwalkers :)

I don't have a treadmill right now. I fell off mine in the basement a few years ago, which is a whole klutzy funny story, and I avoided them for a while. I've done some of Leslie Sansone's Walk Away the Pounds workouts, and they're pretty cool. A little more exciting than plain old walking, and though she's not Cathe, she's friendly and non-annoying.

Gina

Gina
 
Lori,

I agree with Nancy that walking is excellent exercise. I also agree that it is difficult to maximize intensity outdoors without the assistance of electronic speed or incline adjustments. No walkers are weenies or wimps- that's why many are in fact POWERwalkers :)

I don't have a treadmill right now. I fell off mine in the basement a few years ago, which is a whole klutzy funny story, and I avoided them for a while. I've done some of Leslie Sansone's Walk Away the Pounds workouts, and they're pretty cool. A little more exciting than plain old walking, and though she's not Cathe, she's friendly and non-annoying.

Gina

Gina
 
i live on a very hilly road..it is possible to get a great workout..major burn in the glute/hamstring area too going up the hills...what i hate about walking outdoors, are loose dogs!!!!and there seem to be alot around here!!!x(
 
Lori:

You are being a realist here and I salute you for that. There's nothing that says that you have to do the Imaxes to be a real exerciser. They cause you pain: you have stopped doing them. That is rule number 1: listen to your body, and you do, so good for you.

I think what you suggest for your possible program is excellent. An hour's walk *5 per week, with weight training added on *2 per week. Adding KPC *1 or *2 per week if you can is great, and don't forget, Cathe is bringing out a Low impact Hardcore DVD soon, so you might be able to add that to your program.

Walking can still include interval training, which can maximize cardiovascular benefits. As Nancy suggests, using a treadmill at the gym can really get the heart rate up and will make this walking program every bit as effective as the Imaxes.

I had a echocardiogram/stress test done this past Winter and believe me, they jacked up that treadmill to the max and I managed to keep it as a fantastically fast walk even on the max setings: I didn't have to break into a jog, and that was a fabulous workout. I was as sweaty and worked out as after any Cathe cardio. Working out like this 5 times per week will kep your legs and glutes in tremendous condition. And if you can take it outside sometimes for hill walking, you get added benefits of fresh air, the change of scenery blows away many mentaal ccobwebs. I just love it. In Summer I walk for my cardio more than anything else because I crave the sunshine and being out and about seeing life in action down at the local park. It changes your perspective and mental/emotional health is just as important as building strong glutes, right? And yes, music or great books on tape provide the motivation to go faster or go longer and challenge yourself.

You can be fabulously fit and healthy with this new program you suggest. Cathe DVDs are just one way to keep healthy: they are not the be all and end all.

Stay healthy and have fun! And BTW, Walkers are not wimps, they are pragmatists!

Clare ;-)
 
I'm trying to do walking for most of my cardio. I like step, but it hurts my knees, so I should (ideally) only do Cathe cardio 1-2 times a week (her weight workouts don't really bother my knees at all). I walked for almost an hour today -- part of it was up a fairly steep hill -- and I felt like I got a really good workout.
 
I have a neighbor my age (50) who walks 2 miles just 3-4 days a week, and loses all the weight she wants to, if she finds herself over a bit. That and a variation of weight watchers. I hate her.

<> could walk from here (midwest) to California and back every day for a year and not lose and ounce! ;( And that is while eating as clean and sparse as I can.

I do agree that with the treadmill and it's inclines and programs that you can burn alot more, but my dog doesn't like it when I do the treadmill. ;)
 
Thank You guys, for all of your great comments and support. I do have a treadmill, that I have used many times, and I will be again, this winter. We have very many hills around here, steep hills, and I will use them as much as possible. I am going to start a walking program. Monday morning, I am to be at my SIL's at 7:15. I am going to leave a little earlier and hit a couple of good hills before I get to her house. She walks 3.3 miles. I was very happy, and surprised to see Cathe was doing the Low Impact Workout. I will be the first buyer!!!!!!

I do like the P90X cardio's, also. They are high impact, but they are just easier on the joints. Those cardio's do not bother me much.

Thanks again Guys!!!!!!
Lori
 
Enjoy Lori! I'll be thinking of you this week. Today we're heading out for a vacation in Southern Vermont and the inn we're staying at has no gym, so I'll be outside walking with my heart rate monitor on to see if those Vermont hills can do the job. I sure hope so, because with all that great food we'll be eating, I'll need my exercise this week!!

-Nancy
 
Here's what I did when I could only walk for cardio - I would do 10-15 minutes of the warmup and first cardio segment of a Firm tape (that's all I had then, now I would use Cathe). It would get my heart rate up as well as loosen up my muscles. On days when I did that, I found it very easy to keep my heart rate up while walking.
 
interesting question. I was NEVER a person who walked... but recently I've been doing this as well and really like it....

Just got back from a WONDERFUL week and LOTS of hiking in Glacier NP, Grand Teton, and Yellowstone... YES hiking can be a HUGE work out!

YES i DEFINETLY kept my heart rate UP :)
 
Lori -

I may be sticking my nose where it doesn't belong -

Have you ever considered an "alternative" form of physical therapy such as myofascial release or sacrocranial physical therapy? When you said your felt like your "shoulders were scrunched into your head" and that you sifferedfrom migraines (which I do too) I thought these two types of therapy would be excellent possibilities for you.

I have had both of these types of therapy, with excellent results. The theory behind the myofacial release is this - your fascia, which is the thin membrane that covers you muscles, guts and gizzards, is like a table cloth on a table - it should be smooth and evenly distributed. If you were to suffer injury, like your broken neck, you "pull" and cause strain on one part of the "table cloth". Well, if you pull on one part of the table cloth, you know it affects the whole of the table and all the plates and silverware on it - and it does the same with your facsia. All that tension on one part of the facsia, surrounding the injured part, stresses and pulls the fascia throughout the rest of your body causing tension and other problems. The myofascial release consists of massaging the facsia into releasing itself.

Sacrocranial therapy also works in a similar way but focuses on the alignment of the cranium and the spine and the systems of your body - kind of like chiropractic, but not as forcefully (I've never had chiropractic). The therapist uses your own body weight and flexibilty to manipulate your body into positions where the tension releases itself. I know that sounds kind of strange, but it works - it really does!

I'm sure there are many websites that can explain these therapies more intelligently than I can!

Anyway, just my two cents - good luck!
 
You are not sticking your nose in where it doesn't belong, I appreciate your advice. It sounds very interesting, and sounds like just what I need. Especially the Sacrocranial Therapy. I hate going to the chiropractor. He scares me. I only go when I am desperate. I tool my Immitrex before I went so I could open my eyes, and it really relaxed me. My neck cracked at least 25 times. It did bring me alot of relief, this time. But, he scares me. Your therapy sounds like a much better solution. thanks for the advice, i will check on it.
Lori
 
Lori -

Good luck to you!

Although I have never experienced pain from either therapy I've mentioned, sometimes the positions can be "uncomfortable" as the body corrects itself. If you get a therapist who reallly knows what he or she is doing, they will only push you as far as your body allows - there is never anything "cracked" or pushed past it's limit to the point of pain. I have felt shifts in my back and extremities, like my toes (yes, the tension goes there too - LOL!), but it wasn't painful, more like something sliding back into place.

I hope you find some relief soon!

Best,

Susan L.G.
 
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