Exercise - How Much Is Too Much?

[Sall1]

As some of you know by now i'm suffering from an eating disorder. Anyhooooo, I was just wondering how much exercise is too much exercise for an ED person do be doing. I'm desperate to lose weight. I feel disgusting and huge!

I've noticed lately (last couple of weeks) that i'm becoming obsessional with exercise again and am gradually increasing the amount that I do on a daily basis. I'm constantly creating new exercises to do in my room at night once my other alf has gone to work as well as doing the bog standard stretches etc to excess (until I feel shaky and wobbly). Every night i'm so tired afterwards and my food intake has dropped AGAIN! The buzz that i'm getting from exercise is great however, and it always takes my mind off the hunger pains. It's becoming addictive.

Anyway............... how much exercise is safe per day?

Thanks

Sall

 

[saffron]

Hi salli

I think it would really help you to make a diary and set yourself some realistic goals that build up gradually the amount you do, this will give you a sense of achievement and monitor how much you are doing. over doing it can cause tremendous harm to your joints and muscles and strain your vital organs.

therefore set yourself a realistic plan of action:
this can be done in the morning or evening or even both. you can combine this with an eating diary as well to monitor what you are eating and how much.
sleep is a very good therapy and gives time for the body to heal itself.

for instance
day one:
Time: 9 oclock am
15 minute warm up excerses
five sit ups
five leg stretches
five lunges
15 minute warm down and relaxation

day two
15 minute warm up
20 minutes brisk walking
15 warm down and relaxation

day three
rest. find something to exersice your mind, a self help book, a novel or a challenge or make something healthy.

day four
15 mins warm up
practise two easy yoga poses
15 mins relaxation techniques

day five
15 mins warm up
10 sit ups
10 lunges
10 leg stretches
15 min warm down and relaxation

day six
swimming

day seven
long walk somewhere nice

etc etc, you get the jist

I think it is a great thing that you are exercising but overall health is holistic and should include mind body and soul.

best of luck
S

 

[quality factor]

Hi Sall1,
It is becoming more accepted that exercise is good for people with mental health problems.... exercise can give you that buzz which makes you feel good .However you need to eat enough of the correct foods to provide fuel for your body to accomplish exercise safely. If you are not eating properly because of your ED that is probably the reason why you feel shakey etc.
I feel it may be a good idea to seek some medical advice to find out which foods that you do eat will help boost your energy levels. Some GP's will now give you a sort of prescription/letter to get you signed up for a local gym where you can get professional help. It may also help you to get out and meet people instead of being alone in your bedroom. This of course doesn't mean you heed to stop exercising alone if you really enjoy it.
Take care and be careful.

 

[Apple Star]

Hi!! Firstly, I sympathise with your issue, sufferring from ED myself, and I know how it feels to want to excercise until all the fat's gone away.

It's probably best if you take moderate excercise, but don't push yourself too hard. The most important thing is to recover, but that means you need to feel comfortable with yourself. If you do a realistic and sensible amount of excercise, hopefully you'll feel better, but not too tired!!

I do excercises in my room when other people don't know, a set routine whenever I have a spare moment and the energy. It makes me feel like I'm compensating for where I've gone wrong. If you give yourself a small set routine that doesn't need to be secretive (As suggested!) Then that would be a useful start

I hope my information helped, and I hope you feel better about yourself soon xx