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As I indicated (maybe you didn't quite grasp it because I didn't use the actual words), many people do it as a form of physical therapy. Physical therapy doesn't have to be fast. It just has to be controlled. If you have to walk on cracked sidewalks with leaves and stones and tree roots popping up through them, you're not walking in a controlled environment. Thus - the treadmill. It is excellent physical therapy for people who need to prevent stiffness, but have some kind of disability that prevents them from being able to do strenuous exercise.
Oddly - I CAN do strenuous exercise. I spent an hour raking the leaves this morning, and then went to the gym, and spent another 40 minutes on the stationary bike (at 12mph, level 6 resistance), and THEN did my planks, pushups, situps, weighted bird-dogs (with a 10-pound dumbbell sitting behind whichever knee was lifting during the 40 reps per leg, and 3-pound dumbbell in which ever opposite hand was lifting), assisted chin-ups.
If I had also chosen to do the treadmill, it would've been at a slow pace, at varying inclines, mostly just to test my heart rate and allow my legs to move without too much stress.
If you're still not "getting it," then you never will, and hopefully you'll never have to find out.
I see this picture many times in the gym. A young woman (yes, most of the time it is the women who do this) gets on a treadmill, turns the speed up to 2.8, and casually walks for like an hour. How is this accomplishing anything? It's not like they're even speed walking, in fact sometimes they walk slower than they would in real life. The average walking speed in NYC was calculated to be 4.4 mph, so it seems as if you could get a better exercise just by strolling down Fifth Avenue.
I was friends with two of these "walkers" and tried to convince them to something more productive. One claimed that it was her "bad knees" which is fair. The other one's excuse though "I don't want to be like Arnold Schwarznegger". Because everyone knows that one session of 5lb bicep curls is going to make you as big as Arnold.
The last women is either lying or so completely ignorant it's really really sad.~
To all you Judgie McJudgers - There is no law that says a person at the gym must wear a sign indicating their infirmities or the reason they are strolling/walking/jogging/running on a treadmill.
If you go to the gym to get fit, for crap's sake, do it and stop worrying about what or why the others are doing there as long as it doesn't impact your workout.
My son is a personal trainer, and the workouts of his clients are intense. The owner of the gym where he trains has many elderly clients who are there, not to develop Arnie muscles but to maintain flexibility and function. While some clients at the gym are swinging 50# kettlebells over their heads, these older gym rats are doing simple stretching exercises, or standing/sitting exercises. You got a problem with that?
I wonder about it too. My trainer once pointed out to me a guy that was doing a particular exercise in a way that could have injured him. I asked him why he didn't mention it to the guy, and he said that if someone said something like that to him, he'd be angry that they had interrupted his workout. I saw the value in his comment, and I decided that it wasn't my place to tell anyone what to do, even if they were at risk of hurting themselves.
Man you guys are insanely focused on how other people exercise.
Exactly. I don't "get" why anyone would be at the gym, watching what someone else is doing, knowing how fast/slow they're going on a treadmill and for how long and what they do afterwards.
Crazy.
Just worry about YOURSELF and what you're doing. You have no idea why the other people are doing what they do and you're making up scenarios in your head about what they're doing.
Focus on YOUR workout and getting yourself better. Why the need to worry about someone on another treadmill?
I have some physical problems that are good on some days, bad on others. Yesterday, I did a lot of free weights and felt great, but last Friday my left knee didn't feel right so I kept it light and only did some low impact work on the eliptical. I guess if people had seen me on that day they'd probably be wondering why I was 'slacking'...but that's not really their problem now is it? Sometimes I just want to get out of the house and be out in public for a bit and the gym is great for that. I may not talk to anyone or socialize, but just being there and being even a little productive is better than sitting at home doing nothing.
everyone is getting so mad, that is funny. i must've stumbled into a thread full of treadmill snails
as i said, i didnt really think about it until someone made a thread about it. i dont really care. its more of a "now that you mention it'' type of thing. i dont actually care, do what you want. i dont give unsolicited advice. i am not the kind of guy. i like to get in and get out. have fun with your leisurely treadmill walk. try not to fall asleep from boredom.
Quote:
Originally Posted by AnonChick
If you have to walk on cracked sidewalks with leaves and stones and tree roots popping up through them, you're not walking in a controlled environment. Thus - the treadmill. It is excellent physical therapy for people who need to prevent stiffness, but have some kind of disability that prevents them from being able to do strenuous exercise.
yeah, because walking on a cracked sidewalk with leaves on it is such strenuous exercise that it should only be reserved for the toughest elite atheletes..
Quote:
Originally Posted by AnonChick
If you're still not "getting it," then you never will, and hopefully you'll never have to find out.
so touchy...tsk tsk tsk
it is amazing how easily offended people get on this forum. if it works for you, then keep on doing it. but if you're getting mad and defensive about a thread someone made, then deep down inside, you are insecure about it.
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