Does anyone have any exercise tips for someone in my unusual position?

[Oly J]

Hi everyone, going through a bit of a self-improvement phase here, and I've decided to try my utmost to get into a consistent habit of exercise, thing is I have Cerebral Palsy, it doesn't limit me as much as you might think, but it does mean I can't stand or walk, as I'm incapable of straightening my legs, my hamstrings didn't grow with the rest of me so my legs are more or less permanently in a sitting/kneeling position. (it also affects some of the mobility in my fingers, my handwriting is bad and I can't curl my pinky finger on either hand without also curling my ring finger, which is odd,) also I can't sit upright without back support, even if I try the cross-legged approach on the floor I fall back (though granted this may also be to do with my larger than average gut)

I tend to get around on my knees a lot when inside, (the skin on my knees has thickened over the years to the point that it's not uncomfortable at all, though though that does mean my feet are pretty sensitive) when outside I use a wheelchair (I tend to ditch it when socially acceptable though, who wants to get ass-cramps from sitting in one of those all day?) due to my insistence on a manual wheelchair, and my habit of going quite long distances, I've built up some pretty good stamina and a decent amount of upper body strength. though I'm still pretty far overweight (around 230ibs, I think some of it is muscle, as I've met people lighter than me who look fatter, but a fair bit is fat) I had once lost a lot of weight, but a year of having absolutely nothing to do and not being able to find work, also just liking unhealthy food soon helped me find it again (I was down to 190, maybe a bit less, from 260 I might add,) I'm on the same diet now as I was then, but it's not working as well, due mostly to the fact that I don't stick to it as well as I did, but I've managed okay this week so hoping to drop that habit.


lately (almost every day) I tend to do as many push ups as I can (my frequency increased once my arms stopped getting sore the next day) the most I can do in a single set is 40, though today I've totalled with 100 in multiple sets, as my arms have finally started...well...not staying useless for the entire day after I tire myself out.


I also just tend to rhythmically punch the air a lot, (making sure to follow through with my hips as much as possible) I have no idea if this is a thing but I start sweating after a few minutes so I suppose it must be doing something, I gave up counting how many punches, I keep losing count so I just measure how long I keep it up, last time was about half an hour,


So anyway to the point, I'm hoping some of the more fitness-aware of you would be able to give me some advice for exercises I might do, priority one is burning calories, muscle building is unnecessary but I'm not against it,

thanks for bearing with me if you've read this far and I appreciate any advice

 

[Albino Boo]

Fundamentally you need cardio exercise to lose weight but because of your Cerebral Palsy most of the standards are out. Its the sort of thing you really need professional help with to design a programme for you. The only thing I can suggest is to have a look here http://parasport.org.uk/find-a-club and see if anything takes your fancy.

 

[Powereaver]

Shadow Boxing is always a good way to start for upper body cardio exercises... but like the post above me has suggested, I'd personally just ask some advice from your local gym.. I know a lot of personal trainers these days tend to branch out to the disability market... I've seen people in wheelchairs achieve some amazing results under the proper tuition and skillset!

 

[Sea Sponge]

As a personal trainer myself I will say don't take advice over the internet.

People can give you all sorts of weird and wonderful ways to "get fit" and you can write out every detail of what you can and can't do but without seeing how you take to certain exercises we can't help you because we don't know if it will have any adverse affects.

You need to talk to someone who can work with you and work out a plan. They need to be able to see what you can and can't do and work out what they think you can and can't do.

My normal go to for people in your condition would be sit ups, push ups, tricep push ups, chair push ups, shadow boxing and gentle inclines in a wheelchair until you're up for steeper ones. As I can't see how those would work with you I wouldn't advise it.

The only advice I can give is pop down to a gym and ask to have a chat with one of their trainers. They will be able to give you a plan that would suit you and help you exercise safely.

 

[renegade7]

That's a very particular condition, and I doubt you're going to find a great deal of advice readily available from Google or a general gaming forum. You should really think about talking to a physical therapist about that sort of thing, one who has background in training people with physical disabilities like yours.

 

[CatLafitte]

I agree with Sea Sponge. Don't take serious advice from the internet, and especially not a forum. SS says he's a personal trainer, but how do you know for sure? If you can't even know that, how can you know any of our advice is serious, or that we know what we are talking about? The only advice I can give is visit a local gym for advice, or talk to your doctor about a physical therapist.

Also, I'll do something I rarely do and show you a video on youtube. I know this guy has weight issues, but please ignore that. The real issue is what he went through, and how he ended up.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KbVpCc_r9Sw

 

[Stg]

In your position, I would definitely suggest upper-body gymnastic-style calisthenic workouts. If you are keeping your body in motion, your body is burning fat or turning protein into muscle. Doing simple calisthenics will help you bulk up and shed fat and since you are pretty much confined to only working out using your upper body, there are plenty of upper-body exercises out there (like simple pull-ups) that will help you shed some weight. Yes, it will take a lot longer than someone who can jog a mile every morning, but you will look a hell of a lot better than them with the final product.