Lose Weight... In Front of the Mirror! (And Other Effective Tips For Indoor Weight-Loss)...
For many of us - even us countryside folk with fields all around - it's a problem to actually get outdoors to do some fat-burning exercise. For example, if you have a baby and no-one else to mind it whilst you exercise.
So what can you do when you can't get out?
Well, you do it indoors of course! And if you an open a window then you get the benefit of some fresh air circulating too. Great stuff.
During my pregnancy I piled on a whopping 5 stone. That was half to do with pregnancy complications that meant no exertion at all (not even housework) and half to do with comfort eating following the death of my beloved young cat Magic. My C-section meant no exercise for a further 6 weeks after my boy was born, but since he was premature and suffered a collapsed lung, I was advised not to take him outside for 2 months... But even after that the ferocious winter storms confined us to the house most of the time for months. I was very frustrated and despised the weight of my unfamiliar body! I didn't feel like myself at all and was pretty depressed.
So, one day I decided rather than moan about a situation I couldn't change, I'd have to figure out a way to work with it. So this was what I did...
I began an exercise regime in my bedroom... with my baby in his cot or on the bed behind me. I would do aerobics and on-the-spot running right here in the space between my bed and the mirror.
This is a REALLY EFFECTIVE TIP for on-the-spot running - do it in front of a mirror. Why? Well, as you soon find out when you begin to run, the scenery in front of you goes up and down, up and down, and can make you feel kinda sickly. But in front of a mirror, as you go up and down so does your reflection, and no sickly feeling at all. Try it and see!
I can run for hours this way, and most of that 5 stone was lost right here in front of my mirror. Aerobics and running. First thing on a morning before eating.
I also bought an exercise step. They're inexpensive and really useful to have when you're confined to indoor exercise. Most of them can be adjusted higher or lower, so you get a good leg work out, walking or jogging steps. This one came with dumbells too, only 0.75kg, but still enough weight to get some extra exercise to your arms! Great for power-walking/running. Or sit on the sofa and work your arms... why not? Every little movement helps!
The last bit of equipment I found very helpful was this turbo trainer. If you haven't seen one before it's also known as a 'stationary bike stand'. You simply place your bike onto the stand and it makes your bike stationary, then you can cycle anywhere you like in the house/garage/garden. You connect it up to your bike gears so you can adjust the resistance, and pretend you're peddling up hills! Cycle in front of the tv, or right next to your baby as he/she lies on their baby gym. A parent-baby work out, perfect!
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("5 Cs" shared with kind permission of @kiwideb)
Great post - For C-section mamas, how long do we need to wait before we can start working out? I am going to be a c-section mama and would like to learn more about what to expect.
They generally recommend no physical exertion for at least 6 weeks after a C-section, and even after the 6 weeks is up you should take it easy. Maybe no working out for at least 2 months, just gentle exercise like walking and build up gradually to a more physical work out :-) It is a very painful procedure, I will be honest about that, and you will need a lot of assistance from family and friends for a few weeks. But your body will tell you what it needs, just listen to it and all will be well :-)
This is a really good article about How to Have a Natural and Gentle Cesarean, which gives great tips and also discusses the Microbiome, which is very important. You will see the section in the article, it explains very well. I hope this helps! But any more questions feel free to ask anytime :-)
First of all i am really feeling sorry for your hardships because, i know my mother take tension even when we get an small scratch, but it's really difficult when you heard some problem to your child and to addon the pressure, weather also played it's part, but hats off to you how you fight with your problems and you achieved what you want to be. Specially it's inspired me towards this mirror stuff, because mirror can showcase your real self. Thanks for sharing your experience with us. 🙂
Stay Blessed.
Thanks very much for your thoughtful words @chireerocks, I appreciate it. It was a difficult time for me and I was very self-conscious as well, so doing exercise at home gave me the privacy I needed until my confidence returned. Yes, exercising in front of a mirror gives a lot of motivation actually, because you can see your progress, your clothes getting more baggy as the weight burns off over the weeks and months. I like to run in the forest when I can, but when the weather is bad I still run in front of the mirror!
Welcome, and really motivating words you said. 🙂
Hey you hv given great trips how one can do exercise without going to the gym or outside and that too with yr own experience 👏👏
Indeed @lucky17 - no need for the gym, just get thinking creatively and you can stay in the comfort of your own home :-) Thanks for your comment!
Love the tips! Such an inspiration for other people who may not be able to make it to the gym for any reason. I really enjoyed the mirror idea. I'll have to try it out just out of curiosity! It does make perfect sense. Even though I have access to all kinds of equipment every day, I still love a good body weight workout!
Yeah you're lucky having access to equipment. What's your favourite thing to use if you don't mind me asking? I'd love to build up a little more muscle, but only a little because I don't fancy being one of those very muscley women all veiny and shiny. I just like being strong enough to haul logs from the forest for chopping up, that kind of thing :-)
Hauling logs is an excellent exercise by itself! :) It's usually really hard for most women to get ridiculously ripped, so I wouldn't worry too much about that. Hands down my favorite piece of equipment is the TRX (suspension training straps). They are a little pricey to buy initially, but so versatile! You can use them at home if you can anchor them on the ceiling or in a door, or you can take them to a playground or hook around a sturdy tree. You can make certain moves easier by using them, or they can make other moves really challenging. It's a great way to be able to manipulate your body weight to gain strength! I need to post some more workouts using them. I believe @hangryginger has posted a few moves before on her blog.
I enjoy using bands, kettlebells, BOSU balls for balance training, and have a love/hate relationship with the rowing machine, but the TRX are still my favorite. It's hard to remember what it was like being a trainer before they came out! :)
I've never used training straps, but I will check out @hangryginger's blog, thanks! Always interesting to look at all the different things people use/enjoy. I have been on a rowing machine a few times and really liked that. If ever I have the money I'd buy one of my own for sure!
Great post... following you and upvoted this post, regards from Venezuela
Many thanks @anabellaelvir :-)
Just seen this post, that's how observant I've been this week, funny as my yesterday's post is kinder similar how weird!
What an interesting tip to spot run in-front of the mirror.
Gaining weight when pregnant can be frustrating as you expect it to come right off when the baby pops out unfortunately reality heads when it doesn't.
Glad you and baby are now both healthy and well.
Thank you! It was the hardest time of my life but thank God we both recovered well :-) He was in intensive care the first month of his life so even though I pumped my milk I wasn't producing that much, and so it took even longer to lose the baby weight.
I saw your post, yeah funny we both did similar posts, but I thought it was good timing as I could re-steem yours and people would benefit from the tips that mine didn't mention... so in that way we made a pretty good team!!! :-) I think a lot of people don't even think to exercise at home, so I hope we inspired some!
Your first child is normally the hardest as they are the learning curve, but it makes it really hard when they are ill as well. You were surely thrown in tot he deep end, glad you both are well now.
Tag post team, great minds must thing alike.
I don't like exercising around others for me it's the best choice but found it really hard to start and find the right exercises.