How much physical activity do you manage?

Weightlifting and aerobics may help slow down declining memory problems, a study has found......... Now where did I put those weights ?

At this time of year I swim every day as we have a small pool in the garden (fortunately I'm not very tall!!) Watering my pots and tubs takes about an hour a day , whilst DH waters the lawn & veg. In winter I have an excercise bike down in the garage that I use.

I am afraid that if I could not do the things I love, walking and swimming, I would take very little exercise. I would still like to do some dancing and roller skating and juragran is going to persevere with my cross-country skiing next Winter. I have never been able to keep up with boring exercises and I have never been to a gym.
Respect to anyone walking or running a marathon!

greatnan I really only join Gyms for the pool but always feel obliged to go for the induction sessions about using the gym! The youth i saw wanted to make me do press ups...me! hahahahahaha! I explained as kindly as i could that although I do want to be fitter and less saggy doing press ups is not a way for me to achieve this!!!

I'd like to walk the dogs more but the garden is huge so it takes up loads of my free time. Luckily terriers can more or less excercise themselves if they have plenty of space to chase tractors run around in. How is it that men manage their retirement so they lead a more relaxed life? DH goes fishing twice a week so not much excercise there. He cuts our lawns with a ride on mower and uses a strimmer which means walking slowly, waving it about while I rake up the mess

'My' gym is either white (snow) or green, possibly golden russet (autumn). The indoor grey ones are just too boring. I sometimes take my mini-trampoline into the garden and bounce about, at least the view is great.

Been horse manure picking again today, so as I push the wheel-barrow up and down the field in the longish grass, I tuck my tummy in and pump my arms up and down (not easy with a full poo filled barrow).

frankel - well done, it must be very satisfying to complete a marathon. And Annika - how I wish I had your self discipline to use the wii every day. Mine sits (glaring at me) unused under the coffee table. I walk a lot, several miles a day with the dog, swim once or twice a week and, of course, yoga classes twice a week. I think I do enough, more than my OH anyway who's only exercise is walking from kitchen table to armchair, to computer and bed

I walk almost every day and I also have a house and garden requiring more than enough activity from me. But it's the beautiful countryside and a friend to walk with that gives me the most enjoyment. I firmy believe that enjoyment is the key to keeping up a sufficient amount of excercise.

My exercise is looking after my 2 DGC from 7am till 7pm, swimming when I can fit it in, went to Zumba for a while loved it but it clashed with the rest of the household.

We try and walk five or six miles a couple of times a week, and swim when we can find the time, but I don't really enjoy swimming so I go under sufferance! With school holidays coming up, we will get a lot more exercise I expect as GS likes to be out and about.

I am like jeni and do absolutely no exercise, dreadful really as I played badminton until I was 61.

I was surprised to find the gym quite fun but suspect that the novelty will eventually wear off. I haven't finished exploring all the things the machines can do to vary the exercise. I am also fascinated by the bits of information that pop up – my heart rate, the number of calories used so far, the distance "travelled", the number of metres "climbed" and so on. Little things entertain me.

harrigran - jeni does have a note from her doctor to get her out of PE!

Janthea Of course you get lots of excercise, all that rushing around on the underground using your sharp elbows to push through while muttering b*** tourists. You must be very fit

I had a really good exercising year from May 2011 but it all fell apart when I had a 6 week cough. Got quite good at jogging. Trying to get myself motivated to get back in routine and do my 5 times a week . Weather does not help.
I am v bored with gym and need to put my (expensive) notice in.
Does anyone else find that exercising gives them sore muscles in their lower back/upper buttocks. End up taking a weak ibuprofen in the night sometimes (often).
DH and I have reached an agreement whereby I lie on floor and he massages upper gluteus with his heel while watching something on TV. (or watching my backside) That helps.
But feeling more bouncy with stronger legs is a big bonus. Psyching myself up. Not in the mood. But I am going to the gym this morning.

I have never, ever, felt the need to go to a gym so never have. I've always had an active lifestyle though (walking, cycling to work, swimming with the kids, Scottish dancing with friends), gone on active holidays (walking in the Highlands), and done plenty of physical work (e.g allotment). A gym is more likely to put menoff exercise than anything. DH likes "exercise programmes" though. He was recently doing a "mowing" exercise with weights (or something). I just looked at him, baffled, and said Why don't you just mow the grass? Swinging a scythe is excellent exercise, as is maneuvering a heavy lawnmower on our hill.

When I was young exercise made me hurt but it was a 'good' hurt; I knew that when it went away i would feel better for it. Now exercise just makes me hurt and it stays hurt . A few years ago I three jobs; one of them involved a lot of walking; I looked after two dogs and a horse and went walking in the Peak District at weekends. Now I have one job and all my time is spent maintaining my house; someone else walks the dog. Not sure how this happened.

I hate these threads and programmes, because I get virtually no exercise.

I have a problem with my balance which makes it very hard to do any exercise - I also have a disc problem and a bad hip. I have tried swimming, but it gives me terrible pain afterwards in my hip.

What I like is to plough on as best I can without these threads making me feel guilty!!!

Aw. You don't need to feel guilty, mishap. I've had to stop cycling, swimming and dancing because of pain. Like you, I just do what I can. x

Same here!

My sister is the same - she can walk only short distances and standing for more than a few minutes gives her very bad back ache. She doesn't feel guilty, though - she just accepts that that is the way things are now. She does manage to keep her house and little garden looking very smart and she gets out every day on the bus to Morrisons, where she has a wander round leaning on a trolley and gets a cup of coffee and a cake with a friend.
I do feel a bit guilty remembering the years I lived in Chelsea and worked in Kensington High Street, and drove the 3 miles to work. (I had a residents' parking ticket for both areas). There was absolutely nothing wrong with my health - I was just idle. My only exercise then was dancing in singles' clubs till the early hours. I was also drinking about a bottle of wine a day and eating out nearly every night. No wonder I put on weight.
I suppose that having discovered the joys of pleasurable exercise, I am like most converts - annoyingly enthusiastic!

Mishap If your body says, NO! Then don't do it. I have a curvature of the spine [born with it] and arthritis in several joints and I also suffer from fibromyalgia. I've also got a b****y tiresome bowel problem. I used to swim for the county as a teen. I walked mile upon mile and could dance forever. Held down a busy full time job until I was 62. All that has changed. Have just given an hour to dusting books on a series of shelves. Guess what? I'm well and truly knackered. I believe that mind over matter keeps me ticking over. I may move like an ancient lady [right this minute] but, once I've recovered, I shall have a girlish sprint in my step. There is nothing wrong with taking things easy. Do hope that you can relax and enjoy the fact that sun may soon shine.

Is yoga exercise? I do that, and gardening and a bit of walking, but not much else! And I have no excuse, because I'm very lucky to have no health problems.
There again, I'm not overweight and feel OK, so I won't worry too much about it.

It sounds as though you and I are paddling away in a similar boat soop - I do lots of things for lots of people, but none of it constitutes exercise - too much pain. And the giddiness is a killer frankly - I do not feel stable on my feet at all, even though I look young and fit (or so I am told!).

And I too have tiresome problems in the gastrointestinal department - some mornings I am tied to the house - maybe that is where I get my exercise, chasing to the loo and back - I will "reframe" it, as the psychologists would say, and regard it as an asset from now on!!

Goodness me, this is turning into a 'why i can't take exercise' thread.
They mentioned yoga as a form of vigorous aerobic exercise on the bbc news last night. Wot, I thought. Depends entirely on what kind of class you go to. Some are very energetic, requiring a lot of strength. Others very much not.