So I knew I was fat and out of shape but...

llybeck

I had no idea how bad it had gotten. I tried to do 20 minutes of Zumba and I'm pretty sure I got 10 minutes in before I honest to god thought I was having a heart attack, I was nearly positive my fiance was going to find me passed out in the basement when he got home. I need to ease into this shit. Any tips from actual Zumba doers? Persistence? Positive attitude? Performance enhancing drugs?

It's good that I'm actually trying to work out again but holy hell, I need some sort of encouragement that I can actually do this. I like it because it's dancing and it's fun but it might have more of an impact if I could actually do at least one full workout, lol.

sapphire0228

You are not alone! The girls from my office and I went to a pole dancing class instead of the Zumba class. (Same instructor/friend). Holy hell I couldn't walk for three days!! Pole dancing was supposed to be fun and cute and a little bit of exercise. Nope nope nope! She whooped our asses!! After the three days of muscle pain and hunching and whining I felt good. The next class I took it easier and felt great afterward.

As with almost anything you just have to ease yourself into it. It's cool that you are doing it at home though! That's a plus for convenience and kudos to you for actually turning it on. I have the wii fit...somewhere.

sunshine2929

Adrd47 said:

I'd love to give encouragement or tips on easing back into it, but I said I was going to start working out after I got cleared at 6w, and LO is now 4.5m. I still haven't even put my blubbery behind on the treadmill.

Im with you. I did one workout and started bleeding so I stopped cause I thought I over did it. Nope, it was just AF coming back and even with this knowledge I still haven't started again.. I really gotta get back at it. This damn jelly belly isnt just gonna magically disappear on its own!

jmjewell19

I don't have much to offer in the way of encouragement, but I can commiserate. I've tried to do a couple of different 20 minute workouts (Jillian Michaels and TurboJam) that have completely kicked my ass, which is just depressing. I feel like during pregnancy I lost just about every single muscle I had, and all of my stamina.

Not sure if this would be an option for you (because we've got nothing but time, right?) But could you split it into 2 10 minute sessions? Then you'd still be getting 20 minutes without the "I feel like I'm going to die" factor. I know it would be hard for me to find two separate times a day to workout--sometimes I struggle to find one--but it might help ease back in to it.

ETA:words are hard today.

TKtravels

You are all better than me.  

I was going to pop in a 20 minute DVD to see if I could still power through it.. and then I decided to plop my ass on the couch and catch up on The Bachelor.  

MegStark

I feel ya!!! It gets better, I promise. I also like Zumba because of the dance aspect. For that same reason I went to Pure Barre a few weeks ago. It's all isometrics stuff and a lot of it is at a ballet bar. I literally started crying when I got in my car afterwards. I was shaking the whole class (which is a good thing but I had no idea my muscles were really that out of shape). I committed to going another 3 times though within that same week. By the 3rd class I was feeling like I could keep up with others, and I wasn't sweating as much. Just keep at it! You'll feel so much better.

llybeck

Thanks everyone! I totally agree about doing too much too fast, I just thought 20 minutes was doable on the easy setting! I'm using a zumba "game" on our xbox so there is a camera that tracks your movement and tells you if you're doing it right. I was doing the right moves but yeah, I need to slow it down. The old body just isn't what she used to be!

I agree about splitting it into 2 10 minute sessions, I think that would probably work better. That way it's not such a time commitment at once, I can do morning and evening. Thanks again for your words and advice, we can do this, we got this shit! And I will commiserate anytime with anyone else struggling to work out, I feel like a weak little kitten.