Menopause Matters Forum
Menopause Discussion => Other Health Discussion => Topic started by: Taz2 on August 31, 2017, 03:06:26 PM
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Following the report last week that a high percentage of 40-60 year olds don't do enough brisk walking and the encouragement to get out and walk briskly for ten minutes each day I downloaded the App and gave it a go. It was the word "brisk" that got me thinking. Maybe I didn't walk briskly when I got out and about but, to be honest, the recommendation that you should walk at 3 miles per hour seemed a bit slow to me as I usually take thirty minutes to walk two miles.
The first day I set off, checking the time, and walked hell for leather to my friends house were we were meeting for tea (and cake). I felt sure I'd walked for at least ten minutes by the time her house came into view and I was dismayed to find that I had actually only been walking for four minutes. This then meant I had to walk around the roads near her house, still at a brisk pace, getting some very funny looks from people out in their gardens etc., to get to the required "ten minutes of brisk walking without stopping". I arrived on her doorstep an incoherent and sweaty mess to be faced by her looking the same as she opened the door! She'd just done her ten minutes too. Cue extra cake!
The next day I walked to the shops as I normally do forgetting about Active 10. Surprise, surprise when I got home the App told me that I had completed thirty minutes walking of which "thirty minutes were brisk". My normal pace is brisk. I didn't have to race around after all as I was already doing brisk walking!
Joking apart though it is a good way to even just get ten minutes walking in. I did wonder whether I should get a Doctor's note as I'm over the target age.. ;D
Taz x
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Did you do what I did and take off much faster than usual? Obviously one persons brisk is another person's stroll. :scottie:
Taz x
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I have always started off quicker than I ought to do, then I flop after about half an hour ::). We have lovely countryside here but I have completely stopped walking. Whereas I was walking 2-3 miles daily and more when on holiday and at weekends.
I do lots of gardening which is up and down ......... but no brisk walking.
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I average a 120 minutes a day of active walking spread over two walks some up hill and get a good steam on ( and my 14.4 year old Westie does it 🐶 ) all weathers .....had my cholesterol/ BP / done recently and both tip top ....it's the only thing that keeps me mentally stable walks in the open countryside . Today I have walked 7 miles, plus eat the Mediterranean diet , so not weight gain.
Sounds rather 😇 but from my life before VA where I was outside 7 hours a day with horses , I have to keep active both mentally and physically, otherwise I would be a mess. 😊
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Do the Active 10 CLKD. It's supposedly really good for our health if we don't walk much. Doesn't take long... about ten minutes.. ;D
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/get-inspired/41024987
That's great Maryjane. I couldn't do that much as it brings on the fibro symptoms but I'm aiming for an hour within the next month or so. When I get in from work I just can't always work up the enthusiasm though! I think the interesting thing about the Active 10 is that it has to be continuous walking which is sometimes difficult especially if you meet someone who wants to chat or you have to keep getting out of the way of cars/cycles around country lanes.
Taz x
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Taz I don't work very different ... I am certain you will reap the benefits and your fibro may even improve , helps my pelvic pain / sciatica etc I have.
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It was very frustrating when I first developed fibro almost fifteen years ago now (diagnosed as M.E. for a couple of years) but I've gradually built up walking again although I have to work out how much walking I can do and still manage to do my job properly the next day. It's all about pacing yourself - not something I've ever been good at to be honest.
The fibro is usually ok if I don't go over the two miles but I find that if I do that three days in a row then by day four it's really beginning to tell. Not just the the pain but more the foggy thinking and loss of balance. Relax relax relax is the key I think - never been very good at that either!!
Taz x :)
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Following the report last week that a high percentage of 40-60 year olds don't do enough brisk walking and the encouragement to get out and walk briskly for ten minutes each day I downloaded the App and gave it a go. It was the word "brisk" that got me thinking. Maybe I didn't walk briskly when I got out and about but, to be honest, the recommendation that you should walk at 3 miles per hour seemed a bit slow to me as I usually take thirty minutes to walk two miles.
The first day I set off, checking the time, and walked hell for leather to my friends house were we were meeting for tea (and cake). I felt sure I'd walked for at least ten minutes by the time her house came into view and I was dismayed to find that I had actually only been walking for four minutes. This then meant I had to walk around the roads near her house, still at a brisk pace, getting some very funny looks from people out in their gardens etc., to get to the required "ten minutes of brisk walking without stopping". I arrived on her doorstep an incoherent and sweaty mess to be faced by her looking the same as she opened the door! She'd just done her ten minutes too. Cue extra cake!
The next day I walked to the shops as I normally do forgetting about Active 10. Surprise, surprise when I got home the App told me that I had completed thirty minutes walking of which "thirty minutes were brisk". My normal pace is brisk. I didn't have to race around after all as I was already doing brisk walking!
Joking apart though it is a good way to even just get ten minutes walking in. I did wonder whether I should get a Doctor's note as I'm over the target age.. ;D
Taz x
I am long legged for my overall height and have always been a fast walker. I get impatient when stuck behind people who dawdle and find it hard to slow my pace except when tired. I do at least the 10 mins every day. Just walking from the tube to work is 10 minutes. However I must get back into weekend walks. I started well at the beginning of the year but lapsed mainly because of 2 extended throat infections and also the length of the walks. My walking group tends to go for 12-15 miles in the summer and that is too long for me. I prefer 8 to 12 miles.
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I'm sure you'll soon get back into it once you start again. I am very short-legged and when I go out walking with my tall friend I walk so many more steps than she does!
Taz x
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My daughter has 38" legs 😳6foot tall size 8 feet , and calls me merry legs from black beauty , trotting along to keep up.
I am the shortest in my family at 5"8 , well except my dogs. 🤣
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Short at 5' 8?? I'm 4' 10. ;D My sons are all over 6' - they had a tall dad!
Taz x
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My daughter has 38" legs 😳6foot tall size 8 feet , and calls me merry legs from black beauty , trotting along to keep up.
I am the shortest in my family at 5"8 , well except my dogs. 🤣
I am only 5 ft 6 or 7 but still take size 8 shoes!
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DH has downloaded this app, but I'm not going to. With asthma challenges, my brisk walking is another persons amble. My speed varies according to my lung function, but I can travel several miles and enjoy the scenery. For me an app like this would take the shine off my walking achievements.
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I can understand that Ju Ju. I am doing the Active 10 separately from my usual walks which I always thought of as more "ambling" but are actually brisk so you may be surprised. I think it's a way of getting people who never walk to do just a little which is all to the good. It shouldn't take away the pleasure of walking and enjoying being out and about.
Taz x
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I find walking with my husband can sometimes be a challenge. I am 5'3" and he is 6'. Also I have a long body and short legs. Therefore, his brisk walk would make me run.
I generally find I start slow and then warm up, and speed up. My husband starts fast and slows down.
So Active 10 is an app to download? I read about the recommendation to do 10 mins exercise but didn't see the name Active 10 until I read this discussion.
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I don't have an i phone or android or internet enabled phone. I just have an old Nokia 100 that I have had for years. Anyway I don't need an app to enable me to walk briskly as I have a little dog that likes to do just that every day :scottie: Now he is older if he doesn't fancy it one day I just go by myself.
The trouble is, every time 'they' tell us we should be doing this or that it locks into my issues with my upbringing and the worry that if I don't do it, or dont do it right then I will get into trouble, so for my mental health I am best not subscribing to the things 'they' tell us to do. They usually change their mind after a while and tell us to do something else instead ::).
'they' must think we are all daft, it's common sense to try to keep well and active, we don't need faceless entities telling us what to do. For me, and this is just me, subscribing to something like this would do more harm than good but I hope everyone who is doing it enjoys the challenge and feels better for it :bunny:
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I think the main point of active 10 is for people who never walk briskly for ten minutes without stopping. It's the 'without stopping' which is the important part. It does encourage sedentary people that they can do a brisk get-you-out-of-breath ten minute walk which doesn't take long but has a positive benefit for heart health. It is difficult to walk for even ten minutes sometimes without getting distracted and stopping.
Taz x
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We haven't exercised as a species correctly for years ::) - kids don't get as much playtime as we did because Education Authorities were allowed to sell off land for building. Since the 1970s many homes now have 2+ vehicles available. Many are time short, I can't fit in walking to my day as I prefer to be in our garden which needs a lot of work.
Active 10 focusses the mind on exactly how long 10 mins. really is! It's a good reminder that we need to concentrate on more exercise in general including housework?
Maybe we need a MM swimming pool? ;D
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The point of it is that you walk briskly which exercises the heart enough. Ten minutes of non-stop walking. Briskly. Housework etc. is good too obviously but the specific aim of this regime is to keep the heart pumping harder for ten minutes without a break. Everyone can spare ten minutes so it is easy to fit in. It's so daunting when we read that we have to do 150 minutes a week of exercise and easy not to bother. Apparently one brisk ten minute walk a day reduces your risk of early death by 15%. Mind you - we incorporated our brisk ten minutes today during our walk to the pub ;D
Taz x
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;D Its possible to walk briskly to our pub, but stumbling up a steep hill in pitch black ( no street lights) on the way home is a bit of an ask for me! Once I left a friend's house early one morning without a torch, no house lights or moonlight to help me. It was a bit scary as I couldn't find my drive. I knew I had gone too far when I started going downhill. Got home eventually and now remember to take a torch.
I'm encouraged that my children take exercise more seriously than I ever did. My DD walks, climbs and does yoga, my son runs, walks, cycles, swims and skis. My niece runs marathons, triathlons etc and my nephew, football, cricket and other team games. Puts me to shame, though I do have asthma challenges.
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I can't find 10 mins.. We have a treadmill too ......... but can't find time for that either though am loathe to sell it :-\.
Have gardened, walked round the supermarket with a trolley and run up and down stairs when possible. Must Try Harder ;-)
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Must Try Harder ;-)
Why? Because 'they' say so? We are all different (thankfully) and this might not be right for you CLKD. It is not right for me because of my tendency to get obsessed with organised routines and it would be a trigger for my issues about failure. That does not mean I am unfit and do not take exercise. You sound in a similar position.
When I walked the dog earlier I passed three different ladies of a certain age who all looked as though they might be doing this challenge, trainers on, hair tied back, phone attached to ear piece and brisk walking. :)
'They' are trying to make us all clones doing the same things in the same way. We are individuals and our needs and choices are individual too :)
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Well said ;) "Must Try Harder" was on many of my School Reports ;D ....... I have rarely conformed though. What you see is what you get :o
It's such lovey weather though .......
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I don't believe you can't find ten minutes to go for a brisk walk CLKD. You mean you don't want to ;D
Walking, gardening etc are good obviously but they don't give you ten minutes of sustained raised heart rate which is the whole point of the new advice. As I said it is aimed more at people who never go for a brisk walk of at least ten minutes.
I don't think that it is to do with making us clones - just advice which may help give us a longer life which doesn't take up much time. I can't always find time for a brisk half an hour but I can do a brisk ten minutes, even before work, so that gives me hope that my heart might stay healthy. It's no good for weight loss of course as ten minutes isn't enough which might put some people off bothering.
Taz x
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Which bit of 'can't find time' don't you understand :-\ ? Many years ago I walked 2/3 miles daily, often more and even further when on holidays. But I have slowed up in recent years and not owning a :scottie: means that I don't need to go far. I also don't have as much energy, though probably if I walked regularly energy levels would to a certain degree, return. I don't have time to use the treadmill either ....... I would love to have enough energy and time to get up and go.
Whatever.
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I only meant that if I can find time then anyone can but only if they want to. I too have energy problems and suffer with fibromyalgia but the ten minutes is doable and I find it comforting that even if I can't go racing around the 5k course like everyone else I can at least do a little bit to help myself keep fitter.
How about getting up ten minutes earlier? I'm sure that you are fit anyway with all of the gardening you do and walking around various places of interest and antique fairs etc. If you had the treadmill near the tv you could have a quick ten minute walk while you are watching something interesting. Time would fly by.
Taz x
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Ooh I've only just seen this - sounds like a brilliant idea!
I haven't got the app but I see it's a Public Health England Initiative. I can see some people don't want to be told to do things and it's not relevant to those who exercise regularly, but any idea that "they" come up with that might increase the overall fitness and health of the population has to be a good thing! The more gimmicks the better in my book.
The one thing I was wondering is if you do say 60 mins in one day - does that count as three days worth - eg my hour of Zumba? There are some days when I definitely don't do 10 mins vigorous (out of breath) exercise although I am up and about, of course, every day.
Unfortunately there is no space on my phone for apps and my contract runs until next August so I'm stuck with this useless one! I would quite like to try it though...
Hurdity x
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It doesn't actually count as three days worth but it's still great to do the sixty minutes in one day as all brisk exercise is good. It would count as six lots of Active 10 :hapij:
The important part is that you do at least one Active 10 every day - a daily brisk ten minute walk is known to increase heart health and reduce your likelihood of dying early by 15% (I think).
I didn't do mine yesterday :(
Taz x
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I stand by my opinions and comment based on me, in my life. The theory is very good but it will not be right for everybody. For me the regimentation and having to do it every day with the pressure of 'oh my goodness I haven't done it today' would be counter productive for me. Each person has to assess what is right for them. We are individuals and while exercise is beneficial in some form for the majority of us, this would not be right for me, or for everybody.
How nice we all have the choice to find what works for us :)
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I don't think anyone disagreed with you babyjane ???
Taz - Heavens - I think I need to do it just for my brain!!! Where did I get 3 sessions worth from 60 mins!!! ;D . So it does matter to do something every day then - I really must make more of an effort on the days when I don't have activity already planned and especially as the gardening season comes to an end - although my gardening is not exactly vigorous - good for muscles and joints with all the stretching and bending but leave the digging to my husband these days (softie I know!).
Hurdity x
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I am conscious that I don't do enough walking - I exercise my brain more than my legs. So I may just download this app and take my phone round the garden for a 10 minute walk. It's a catch-22 thing like everything else - the more unfit you are, the harder it is, so you tend not to do it...............I do lots of gardening but that doesn't count as aerobic exercise unfortunately.
Bramble
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GET UP EARLIER :rofl: that assumes Taz that you know what time we get up :-\.
I've thought about this thread a lot when in the early hours when unable to sleep: I know I should be out walking more often but other things take up our time :sigh:. I also know that I should do more walking but do not have the time ....... I've had plenty of sunshine this year by gardening and sitting watching my efforts with a cuppa. I have a tread-mill if I really wanted to up my walking experiences but Oh So Boring ;D
Earlier we had the discussion as to how did we fit things in, both working, :scottie: walking for hours during the week - we walked miles++. But I'm older now.
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I know I should be out walking more often but other things take up our time :sigh:. I also know that I should do more walking but do not have the time .......
Says who? :) I was always wailing over what I 'should' be doing, this, that and the other. Before my psychotherapy last year I had counselling on the NHS with a very nice lady who advised me that 'should' puts us under pressure, implies rules that we are required to follow and is a term that needs to be avoided. She advised me to replace 'should' with 'could'. It makes a difference, takes the pressure off and implies that we have a choice. Try it, it works :)
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:thankyou: I think that 'would' be even better ;) ::)
I would if I could .......... I think that my brain is the most active part of me these nights.
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I ought to exercise my quads a lot more.
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I can do that from the settee or when standing in a shopping queue ;-)
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Bit like pelvic floor exercises, anytime, any place, anywhere. ;D
apart from the give away look of intense concentration on your face :whist:
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:lol:
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Taz2
Just had a go with the Active10 app. It recorded me as only doing 6 minutes of walking, despite me timing 10 minutes with my stopwatch, and none of the 6 minutes was classed as brisk walking. Despite me being out of breath. So, two problems here - 1. it doesn't record the time properly and 2. it cannot take into account what 'brisk' walking means to people of different health levels.
However, I do take on board the big picture and will continue to do 10 mins of, to me, brisk walking a day.
Bramble
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Oh that's odd. Mine is really accurate i.e. it records the same amount of time which I've been walking as is showing on my phone clock. The aim is to walk at three miles an hour apparently. It seems to be the sustained ten minutes which is important and you did the ten despite what the app says.
Taz x :foryou: