Aura Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 I'm on my feet...a lot. I walk...a lot. But much of it is on concrete. I work on really hard floors. Our home is on a slab. My feet ache. I went to the podiatrist, and he gave me these expensive arch/orthotic inserts, but they really don't seem to help much. Now, my hip/groin is really starting to bug me. I know losing weight would help, but I have no luck in that area. I just can't get off the weight I've gained during pregnancies, and it doesn't matter what I do. I'm about 50 lbs overweight. Anyway, I'm thinking that the stretching with yoga would be most beneficial to me, but maybe water aerobics would be a better choice. What saith the Hive? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fraidycat Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 Yoga. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baseball mom Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 My mom does water aerobics or walks and does some simple workouts in the pool. She says it doesn't hurt her like regular walking\working out. She has lost some weight and toned some. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poppy Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 Water aerobics if you're truly feeling out of shape. You can work hard or not and still feel better afterwards. The only risk is that it won't feel like you're working as hard as you are, so you might be sore the next day. It will help you feel better..... but I don't know of anyone who has actually lost weight or gotten fit from water aerobics. It can increase your energy levels and be as unintimidating as possible, so, I say go for it. Yoga is tough if you are overweight and have achy feet since many very common poses require you to put your weight on your feet in ways that can be uncomfortable. Down dog, chair pose (utkatasana), lunges, the warrior series. I think yoga is worth doing, but I'd start gently and not make it the main focus early on, if I were you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurie4b Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 Most water aerobic classes will incorporate stretching, and the whole activity does not put stress on the joints. One cheap solution that helped me when I worked on conrete floors was wearing Crocs shoes. (I don't like the clogs, but found some that looked like shoes.) My feet and hips did not ache when I wore them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ottakee Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 Water aerobics is great. The best part----------people can only see you from the neck up. The worst part--------when your 80 year old partner kicks your butt :-) It is great for the joints, etc. as it isn't as high impact and you can do as much as you can and work your way up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
umsami Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 Do whichever you enjoy more….because that is the one you will continue with. Personally, I like them both. :) Most weight loss they say is 85-90% diet-related; however, IMHO you need to look beyond that. Doing regular yoga or regular water aerobics will help your body in many other ways besides weight loss (or in addition to.) Depending on your size, there are some yoga DVDs (and classes if you're lucky) for fluffy people. Megan Garcia is one teacher. megayoga.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingersmom Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 I would do both. I do exercise videos at home and swim several times a week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettyandbob Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 Both start with 3 classes a week, 2 water aerobics and one yoga. Our community center has a variety of classes so you can try out the various levels and types of water aerobics to find what will be the best for you or you can simply pick the class time that works ask the teacher how to make things easier or more challenging as you go. After you get through a session of yoga you should have picked up a little on form so you can get some beginning yoga video to do from home. When you get into a good yoga routine at home, replace the yoga class you took with another water aerobics class--possibly looking at the more intense offerings if you are ready. Be aware that in some water aerobics classes there's a weird culture. Some classes seem to be social club for a subset of the group. This is more true of the mid morning weekday classes that attract a lot of retirees than the evening classes that get the after work crowd. You may need to ignore them, just focus on the instructor. This type of thing varies with the location at which you take the classes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettyandbob Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 I want to add if the idea of doing both is too challenging to think about, start with the water aerobics. You will get the weight off you feet during class and you can work on improving you range of motion in a forgiving environment which doesn't require a lot of balance (well it does in a different way, but for the beginner exerciser balance is often easier in the water) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 Do both. Water Aerobics is easy on the joints, yoga stretches and strengthens. I took up gentle yoga after finishing chemo. Two years later, I'm still enjoying the variety that yoga brings--I go to a class two or three times a week depending on my work schedule. My husband and I do a bit of yoga each evening to help with his back. He has been surprised how challenging those easy looking yoga poses are. I know a gal who did water aerobics--she had bad joints, hip, knee, and feet as well as being overweight. She really enjoyed exercising in a way that didn't hurt. And it really seemed to help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trulycrabby Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 Do both, if possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aura Posted October 28, 2014 Author Share Posted October 28, 2014 LOL....Okay, so the consensus is to do both. I will look into it. Exercising at home just doesn't work. I don't do well with DVDs, and it is impossible not to have a million interruptions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anne Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 Aura, I agree with you about the DVDs. You may find, however, after you become more comfortable with yoga and learn some of the poses, that you can do them at home - with no dvd! And, you might find that your kids want to join you!! Anne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 this is what I learned from my chiro (who cured my plantar facisitis. - the md just gave me stretches to do, and orthotics, and didn't do very much.). later, I would have foot pain after doing some specific yoga poses. your calf muscles are tight - and you need to massage them to get the knots out everyday. I have a vibrator massager for my back - so I ran it over my calves - and boy could I feel the knots when I hit them! massage them every day - it will do more good than the stretches my dr gave me. the orthotics could be pushing your pelvis/hips posture out of alignment and making more problems. and in comparing yoga and water aerobics - I'd do yoga. there are yoga weight loss practices that aim at increasing your metabolism, as well as building muscle. Ashley turner is a great instructor and I have some of her dvd's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aura Posted November 7, 2014 Author Share Posted November 7, 2014 this is what I learned from my chiro (who cured my plantar facisitis. - the md just gave me stretches to do, and orthotics, and didn't do very much.). later, I would have foot pain after doing some specific yoga poses. your calf muscles are tight - and you need to massage them to get the knots out everyday. I have a vibrator massager for my back - so I ran it over my calves - and boy could I feel the knots when I hit them! massage them every day - it will do more good than the stretches my dr gave me. the orthotics could be pushing your pelvis/hips posture out of alignment and making more problems. and in comparing yoga and water aerobics - I'd do yoga. there are yoga weight loss practices that aim at increasing your metabolism, as well as building muscle. Ashley turner is a great instructor and I have some of her dvd's. Would you mind expounding on how you cured your plantar fasciitis? Maybe give some more information on the massage? I have plantar fasciitis. I was reading up on a bit more, and interestingly, my dr. only gave me these expensive, custom inserts to help my arch (that's what he said was causing it...I've become flat-footed) and no stretches or anything, just "wear these and your problems will be solved." It did improve, but I still had issues. :glare: Lately, it's become worse again, probably due to my job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted November 7, 2014 Share Posted November 7, 2014 I missed this post originally, but I would really recommend trying both and then choosing one. One might be better in theory but you might find that one of them has a really annoying instructor, and an instructor who makes you feel welcome and like you can really do it even if you're out of shape is a huge bonus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwik Posted November 7, 2014 Share Posted November 7, 2014 Aquafitness is the funniest exercise I've ever done. Yoga is too earnest and you have to role about on the floor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aura Posted November 7, 2014 Author Share Posted November 7, 2014 bump for gardenmom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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