Exercise and anxiety

[MyNameIsTerry]

Wear ankle weights on your less intensive cycle to boost intensity.

Jump rope.

Stair climbing with some weight in a backpack.

As you are a keen gardener I'll bet you have a tub 40l+. Fill it with soil and carry it around. If you really want to make it heavy fill it with water which is far more dense so 1l will equal 1kg. Something like a farmers walk will get your heart up and tax your leg and back.

Ballistic movements like box jumping if your knees are ok. If it's too easy add weight so it becomes hypergravity training.

[fishman65]

Did you study sports science Terry? I never knew there was so much to it. I'll bear those ideas in mind, thank you. I've located a second hand exercise bike. It's an Opti bike and cross trainer combined, I pick it up tomorrow. I never realised my anxiety would kick off so much over not having a bike. Its not like I'm going to lose fitness overnight.

[MyNameIsTerry]

No, but I've done a fair bit of reading as you tend to when you lift weights. It's a massive industry with new things coming all the time.

Eddie Hall goes to the same fish & chip shop as my GF if that counts?

[ankietyjoe]

I have an emergency guys. My exercise bike pulley/strap has broken. Its an old model that we got second hand so its done well. I do have a traditional bike but I can never get the same degree of intensity and then with the winter on its way. Any tips on leg strength/cardio while trying to sort a replacement?

Brisk walking and body weight squats is all you need tbh. Exercise has become overly complicated imo.

You could look at some basic HIIT training videos too, anything like star jumps or burpees will destroy you fast

[Carnation]

I agree with you ankietyjoe on both points.

[fishman65]

No, but I've done a fair bit of reading as you tend to when you lift weights. It's a massive industry with new things coming all the time.

Eddie Hall goes to the same fish & chip shop as my GF if that counts?

You'll have to enlighten me on who Eddie Hall is Terry OK I've got the cross trainer/exercise bike combination but I'm not overly impressed. I've had to up the resistance to maximum to feel my lungs are being tested and even then I have to pedal like crazy. Its not like riding a bike, more like wading through treacle. And those footplate thingys, it feels like the machine is controlling me rather than the other way round. Doing sprints is possible on lower resistance but the whole thing rattles like the London underground. And I took the handle bars off before someone was killed. So I feel that's 80 quid chucked away.

[MyNameIsTerry]

You'll have to enlighten me on who Eddie Hall is Terry OK I've got the cross trainer/exercise bike combination but I'm not overly impressed. I've had to up the resistance to maximum to feel my lungs are being tested and even then I have to pedal like crazy. Its not like riding a bike, more like wading through treacle. And those footplate thingys, it feels like the machine is controlling me rather than the other way round. Doing sprints is possible on lower resistance but the whole thing rattles like the London underground. And I took the handle bars off before someone was killed. So I feel that's 80 quid chucked away.

Yes, they aren't easy to get speed up on. Running on them will take some practice so your feet don't come out. Do they have foot straps? Cycling in those things feels very different.

You can up the intensity by adding weight to your body for walking. Through on a backpack with stuff in. Or hold weights in your hands if you are swinging them rather than using the poles.

Eddie Hall won Worlds Strongest Man in recent years. Been competing for years. Comes from my area.

[fishman65]

Yes, they aren't easy to get speed up on. Running on them will take some practice so your feet don't come out. Do they have foot straps? Cycling in those things feels very different.

You can up the intensity by adding weight to your body for walking. Through on a backpack with stuff in. Or hold weights in your hands if you are swinging them rather than using the poles.

Eddie Hall won Worlds Strongest Man in recent years. Been competing for years. Comes from my area.

Thanks for all your advice Terry, I do appreciate it. I have a rucksack somewhere so will find something to put in it. The footplates don't have any straps. It does feel a lot different to a bike but today I reattached the handle bars as they add a bit more weight for me to pedal. So on max resistance its a bit more testing, not as much as a proper exercise bike but getting there. It will do for now until I can get another bike. I did 10 sit-ups last night and it nearly killed me LOL. Haven't done any for years but trying to make these things a habit.

[MyNameIsTerry]

Is it tensioner based on your weight? If not adding a rucksack whilst sitting won't do anything but it will do plenty if standing. Even more if you have an angle setting for the front. You could also create an incline with objects as long as it's safe which will make walking harder.

Have a look at crunches. Sit ups put stress on the joint but crunches don't and keep your top four abs under pressure more. Also place your hands against your temples (I always make fists) as it will stop your pulling with your arms when things get hard to cheat.

Leg raises will work the lower abs. They are hard though but if you struggle start with legs raised on books or don't raise as high to provide an assist until you can.

Ab exercises are versatile. You can combine them, add twists or go full on Rocky with added angles e.g. an abdo board so you are stretched and hanging (think Rocky 5 hanging off the upstairs floor). Also things like bear crawls might be easy.

The same with your push ups. You can add height with stands or books. There are variations like dive bombers. Hand position variations e.g. triangle, fists...or the Bruce Lee finger push up.

I've got a bodyweight exercise book written by a former US rescue diver and drill instructor with tons of exercises in like these but there is plenty online.

[fishman65]

Is it tensioner based on your weight? If not adding a rucksack whilst sitting won't do anything but it will do plenty if standing. Even more if you have an angle setting for the front. You could also create an incline with objects as long as it's safe which will make walking harder.

Have a look at crunches. Sit ups put stress on the joint but crunches don't and keep your top four abs under pressure more. Also place your hands against your temples (I always make fists) as it will stop your pulling with your arms when things get hard to cheat.

Leg raises will work the lower abs. They are hard though but if you struggle start with legs raised on books or don't raise as high to provide an assist until you can.

Ab exercises are versatile. You can combine them, add twists or go full on Rocky with added angles e.g. an abdo board so you are stretched and hanging (think Rocky 5 hanging off the upstairs floor). Also things like bear crawls might be easy.

The same with your push ups. You can add height with stands or books. There are variations like dive bombers. Hand position variations e.g. triangle, fists...or the Bruce Lee finger push up.

I've got a bodyweight exercise book written by a former US rescue diver and drill instructor with tons of exercises in like these but there is plenty online.

Thanks for all this info Terry. I did find a rucksack which I filled with books. I considered bricks but the rucksack would be unlikely to take the weight, or me for that matter. Also doing crunches after looking on youtube.

OK one big issue for me when it comes to hands/arms/upper body workouts is that it really triggers my anxiety. I have an obsession with my hands shaking/people seeing it. I think that's why I was concentrating on lower body and cardio while avoiding upper body. So avoiding the trigger. My solution is to do upper body late at night. I don't know what the answer is here other than my body adapting to the workload. Did you get this kind of reaction?