Concept2 Forum

hi guys,<br /><br /> i have started diet this week, current weight 24 stone 8.5 lbs, and i have severe arthritus in left ankle due to rugby, squash and football injuries. I am now going to get below 14 stone and be fit by next summer, any help/advice you can offer would be fine, i have a concept 2 at home in my garage along with a cross trainer and sky tv. i can do both the above but cant run, or walk more than .5 mile. Just joined weightwatchers, i have got my mindset on achieving this goal<br /><br />any help greatfully accepted<br /><br />simon<br /><br />

Welcome aboard Simon...<br /><br />This is a great place for support for weight loss. My advice is to take it slow!!!! I have arthritis in both knees, ankles and wrists from playing hockey for years (no I don't play anymore... ). I started out hard and fast and found out very quickly that my legs and back couldn't keep up. I found good long stretching to be extremely helpful. Before I begin I also strap myself in and just push myself back and forth on the seat several times to get my legs used to that paticular movement (so it's not such a shock to my knees and ankles when I really start).<br /><br />Hope this is helpful....It's been about 3-4 weeks since I started and with a well balanced diet I have dropped 7lbs.<br /><br />Jacquie <br /><br />'ERG IT OFF' <br /><br />

Simon,<br /><br />No question you're in the right place. As someone who has been trying to lose weight for years, the combination of sensible eating, the Concept erg, plus the motivation that a forum and a team like this provides, is the ONLY thing that works for me. It's a combination of reducing calorie input while increasing calorie output.<br /><br />Control your eating. Weight watchers should help there, but I'm a bit wary about calorie-counting and nothing else (got the tee-shirt). No need to starve, just make a big effort to:<br />1) resist junk - no crisps, peanuts, biscuits, cakes, chocolates, ice-cream, etc<br />2) make fruit and vegetables your main bulk in a meal<br />3) avoid eating very much of anything that looks and feels like 100% carbohydrate - spuds, pasta, carrots, bread, many of the soggier breakfast cereals<br />4) NO SECOND HELPINGS<br />5) watch the booze - a few pints at the weekend can wreck a week's effort.<br /><br />Get the exercise going. You have a major advantage in having a C2 available at home: those of us who have to schlep down to the gym are envious!<br />1) Register yourself on the C2 log website, and record all your km's. <br />2) Look at the site for a recommended work-out pattern to suit you, your goals and the time you're prepared to put in. Start here:- <a href='http://www.concept2.co.uk/weightloss/interactive.php' target='_blank'>http://www.concept2.co.uk/weightloss/in ... php</a><br />3) As you begin to make progress, start rowing some of the standard distances and enter your times into the ranking tables (this is semi-automatic from your online rowing log). Then you'll have some personal bests to aim to beat as you improve<br />4) Join a team for support and encouragement (see the thread here on Row Pain, Row Gain for details of how to join our dedicated weightloss team)<br />5) Row every day you can, even if it's only for a few minutes to start with.<br />6) Read the Row Pain, Row Gain thread (I know - it's getting a little long!) and you'll see there are people out there now rowing distances like half-marathons, who had barely sat on a erg a month or two back.<br /><br />Go for it, it's worth it for the sake of getting your body back.