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They'd start me on a machine that was like a bike except you used your hands instead to turn it. Followed by lots of stretching. Then I'd go to some kind of slight resistance cable that was mounted on the wall with pulleys and move one arm up and the other down while holding the cable handles. They said this encouraged blood flow to my back. After that, I'd do several reps on the row machine and "not sure the name" some cable machine with a hanging bar that I'd stand in front of, grab onto with arms straight in front of me and about 90 degrees to my body and pull it down toward my thighs. They said I should be feeling it in my core, which I did sometimes. But mostly felt it in my back and shoulders. I'd do 3-4 sets of 10 reps on all and increased weight a little each appointment.
I'm in pretty bad shape. My chest is chronically tight, my posture is awful. If I go more than a few hours without using my foam roller I'm hunched forwards, feel tight and am in a lot of pain. In the past, stretching my chest a lot and using the machines at physical therapy to strengthen my back and core helped me a lot. I can no longer go to PT and I never make it into the gym when I have gym memberships. What could I buy to help me do some good back and core exercises at home? I've looked into a functional trainer but they're too expensive. I need to be able to target my upper back/shoulder blades. What kinds of equipment would you be looking to buy if you were in my position?
You don't need to buy anything to start. There are a lot of Youtube videos showing home exercises for upper back/shoulder blades. Check out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0hpxqIePaQ by a physical therapist.
If you do want something to add to the exercises, I'd suggest starting with a good set of bands. I bought these and was very pleased (some are too hard to use and are for very advanced muscular people, and some are too weak. The set I got is pretty good with different levels.) A person progresses rapidly through the various strength levels of the bands, so you may have to buy a heavier duty set later on. The set I bought is mainly for lower body. But there are bands that are more for upper body, the difference being that the upper body ones will usually have handles. Do a search for "resistance bands for upper body."
They'd start me on a machine that was like a bike except you used your hands instead to turn it. Followed by lots of stretching. Then I'd go to some kind of slight resistance cable that was mounted on the wall with pulleys and move one arm up and the other down while holding the cable handles. They said this encouraged blood flow to my back. After that, I'd do several reps on the row machine and "not sure the name" some cable machine with a hanging bar that I'd stand in front of, grab onto with arms straight in front of me and about 90 degrees to my body and pull it down toward my thighs. They said I should be feeling it in my core, which I did sometimes. But mostly felt it in my back and shoulders. I'd do 3-4 sets of 10 reps on all and increased weight a little each appointment.
I'm in pretty bad shape. My chest is chronically tight, my posture is awful. If I go more than a few hours without using my foam roller I'm hunched forwards, feel tight and am in a lot of pain. In the past, stretching my chest a lot and using the machines at physical therapy to strengthen my back and core helped me a lot. I can no longer go to PT and I never make it into the gym when I have gym memberships. What could I buy to help me do some good back and core exercises at home? I've looked into a functional trainer but they're too expensive. I need to be able to target my upper back/shoulder blades. What kinds of equipment would you be looking to buy if you were in my position?
My top recommendation would be a TRX Suspension trainer. There's just so much you can do with that single piece of equipment. It opens you up to dozens of exercises. And since you use your bodyweight as resistance you can adjust the difficulty very easily. It's not cheap but in my opinion a much better investment than much of the fitness equipment out there.
Another option would be getting a resistance band. You can loop one end on a door (or sturdy surface) and do rows with it or you can do pull aparts and other exercises to strengthen the shoulder blades and upper back with it.
In regards to core exercises, you can get by without equipment. Doing planks (or plank variations), side planks, curl ups or dead bug variations can go a long ways. And there's ways of regressing those if they are too difficult to begin with.
I'd hire a professional to help you get the things you need and help you develop a program you can do on your own. A pro can teach you proper techniques to avoid doing more harm than good. You've been to PT, someone there might be able to help you get going on your own at home.
My top recommendation would be a TRX Suspension trainer. There's just so much you can do with that single piece of equipment. It opens you up to dozens of exercises. And since you use your bodyweight as resistance you can adjust the difficulty very easily. It's not cheap but in my opinion a much better investment than much of the fitness equipment out there.
Another option would be getting a resistance band. You can loop one end on a door (or sturdy surface) and do rows with it or you can do pull aparts and other exercises to strengthen the shoulder blades and upper back with it.
In regards to core exercises, you can get by without equipment. Doing planks (or plank variations), side planks, curl ups or dead bug variations can go a long ways. And there's ways of regressing those if they are too difficult to begin with.
This looks interesting and is much cheaper than the functional trainers I was looking at before. Might look into replacing my bands with this eventually.
When I was 36 in 1967, I was totally out of shape, when an acquaintance drew my attention to the 5BX program. I thought it was fantastic, because it could be done at home and used your own body to become fit in every aspect. It had 5 levels with (from memory) about 30 stages in each level.
You start at a very low achievable level and gradually increase the degree of difficulty, only as you feel comfortable with it. It involves all over muscle toning as well as cardio-vascular development. It involves 11 minutes a day. That is the only commitment.
After 12 months, I became fit enough to enter a One-Mile Handicap swim, starting off number 24 in a field of 72 teenagers and swimmers in their 20s from local swim clubs. I didn’t know if I could still swim a mile till a month before the race, and I received a cup for second place.
This link tells you something about the program --https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Canadian_Air_Force_Exercise_Plans .
I continued to do a modification of the program right up into my 60s, when I started going to a gym because of knee arthritis.
Anyhow, I would unreservedly recommend it to anyone desirous of getting into shape at home -- without any outlay at all for equipment, and, of course it can be done if you have to leave home for any reason.
It's something else for you to consider. But as one earlier poster suggested, the only thing you have to supply is motivation.
This looks interesting and is much cheaper than the functional trainers I was looking at before. Might look into replacing my bands with this eventually.
Yes - I'd highly recommend them. Super easy to use, lightweight and easy to travel with.
Just make sure you buy them directly through TRX (there are counterfeit look-alikes online).
All you need are Powerblock dumbbells (they start 10-50 pounds, and you can add up to 90lb each dumbbell) and a bench. They take up no space. Just pull out the bench when you want to work out.
You can build a great physique, gain a lot of strength, with just dumb bells and a bench.
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