Many individuals exercise to lose weight, but the very overweight and
obese have special concerns. Their whole metabolic and hormonal systems
are different than normal or moderately overweight people. Because of
their extra weight, they are often less coordinated and prone to injury
and athritis.
Many chronic and acute illnesses are associated with obesity, making it
imperative individuals be fully screened by their physician before
beginning an exercise program. Once you have a physician's clearance
you should work only with a fitness professional who has certification
in training with the obese and overweight.
When it comes to
program design, traditional strength training and cardivascular
conditioning programs aren't always the best indicators for success.
This is because traditional motivators rarely work with this
population. The key is to find activities each individual enjoys and do
not lead to pain or discomfort.
Also, the US Surgeon
General's recommedation of 30 minutes or more of moderate intensity
exercise most days of the week doesn't apply to the overweight or
obese. Many of these individual's are happy to walk out to their mail
box or make it up a flight of stairs without being winded.
Low
intensity and moderate duration is best for this special population.
Using ratings of perceived exertion (choosing a number on a scale of
6-20 which represents how hard you feel you are working) instead of
taking heart rates is a more accurate judge of intensity. Ten to
fifteen minutes at a low intensity works well for many overweight
clients.
Often specialized equipment is needed. For example, it
may be necessary to build a special seat for an obese person performing
cycling. If the person has arthritis, their chosen equipment and
activity should protect the joints. Elliptical crosstrainers, recumbent
bikes and recumbent steppers are popular among the severely overweight.
Water based activities are excellent for the severely overweight and
those with arthritis. It reduces the weight bearing effects of dryland
training. Some overweight individuals, however, do not feel comfortable
wearing a bathing suit in public.
Some experts recommened
overweight people perform some other sort of resistance training for
10-15 minutes, three days a week. Weightlifting can be difficult
because they may not have the coordination to lift free weights and may
not fit into the machines. A better choice would be to use lighter hand
held weights or elastic bands. Resistance training has been shown to
increase muscle mass, decrease fat mass and improve self esteem.
Despite our best trainer's efforts, adherence among obese and
overweight clients is low. For some, movement itself is new and
intimidating. Many are self conscience and don't want to be seen
working out for fear of being ridiculed. Luckily, there are always
those clients who will stick to their routine because they don't want
to continuing living their present lives. They will do everything it
takes to reach their health and fitness goals. |
