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Comment by leobelle | Hacker News Reader

What's enough exercise? I walk 20 minutes a day. That should be good enough or do I need to turn into a fitness nut and work on strengthening every muscle in my body, eating raw nuts or whatever and run 5 miles a day?

Like if the tradeoff for ultra-longevity is a shitty life of being obsessively active I think I'll pick a shorter life. If just a reasonable amount of exercise is ok and I don't have to work to look like I should be on the cover of a magazine, then I can do that.

Edit: reasonable question gets downvoted.

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http://running.competitor.com/2012/06/news/how-much-running-....

"A 15-year observational study of 52,000 adults found that the highest degree of survival and health was found from running less than 20 miles per week, in runs of 30 to 45 minutes over three or four days, at about an 8:30 to 10:00 pace. The benefits decrease at amounts greater than that."

That seems reasonable, but running causes shin and knee injuries. I cannot run without injuring myself. When I did run I ran maybe a few times a week, at reasonable rates for reasonable distances, even using a couch-to-runner guide. My shins ended up hurting so bad for months afterward. Overweight people cannot run.

Also I love running, I just cannot do it. It always results in long term pain.

My shins ended up hurting so bad for months afterward. Overweight people cannot run.

Running should not hurt. We were Born to Run, like it says in the title of the book.

Shin pain tells me that you may be running with bad form, impacting the ground like a pogo stick. Consider running barefoot. Read Run Barefoot Run Healthy.

If only it was so simple. The right advice should be "See an orthopedic specialist and then a physical therapist."

From my experience with running injuries:

1. Strengthen your core 2. Strengthen your thigh muscles 3. Strengthen ankle and foot muscles 4. Get the right shoes that work for you

Running barefoot is one possible way of achieving the above. But running barefoot also comes with its own problems, including increased risk of certain other injuries.

If I have to hazard giving advice, I'd say to the guy with the shin-pain what my physical therapist told me: build strength with low-impact exercises, maintain aerobic health while you do that via low-impact aerobic swimming/water-running/biking/tennis/climbing/xc-skiing/etc. etc., then once you have recovered from your injury, slowly ease into running.

Running is a "low-impact exercise" if done right.

That sounds like an expensive way to do it. Shin splints are incredibly common for runners of all types, and a lot of the solutions are well-understood.

1. Get fitted for proper running shoes. There should be shops nearby that will watch your running style, and advise the right shape of shoe for your foot.

2. I wouldn't recommend running 'barefoot' full-time to start with, either with something like Vibrams or literally shoeless, but this is actually what fixed my shin splint problems. Most people who haven't trained in running are terrible heel-planters - striking the ground first with the heel, then rolling through. That jars your shins and legs (and upper body etc, it's all connected) something fierce. Running barefoot pretty much forces you to knock that shit off, and the results are quite dramatic.

So maybe don't go straight for barefoot, but either do a few short runs on grass shoeless, and pay attention to the way you're running. Aim to run on the balls of your feet only, and slowly relax into a flatter running style, but DON'T HEEL PLANT.

Shin pain can also come from "compartment syndrome", where the muscle sheath is to tight for the muscles when the are expanded by exercise. I believe that the marathoner Mary Decker had to have an operation to treat that. I'm pretty sure a co-worker suffered it years ago--not originally from running but from an Israeli folk-dancing class at her synagogue.

You probably can run, but it will take a long slow process. Can you walk a mile? If so, do that several times a week. Gradually increase to two miles. Then jog (very very very slow run) for a a few yards at a time during the walk. Gradually increase the run distance. 6 months to 2 years later, you'll be able to run that whole two miles.

A huge barrier to fitness is that it is typically taught and promoted by those who find it easy, and they really can't understand how difficult it is. However, if you persist over a long period of time you can get enormous benefits. And this gradual approach means it is not painful - in fact the slogan ought to be 'no pain maximizes gain'.

I lost 80 pounds through walking->jogging->running over the course of about a year, going from 310 to 230.

There are so many steps in between walking 20 minutes a day and running 5 miles a day. Like, for example, I'm sure adding a 7 minute workout to your daily 20 minutes would do a world of good over the long run.

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5704485

Yeah, well those exercises are not at all appealing to me. Jumping jacks are not for overweight people. Crunches injure your back, etc. In fact, half these exercises look like they risk injury or look like they hurt something in the long run. If walking isn't good enough, I'm ok with that, but that's all I'm going to do.

I imagine most people here are in their young twenties and don't understand what happens to bodies when they get older. There's just no way any of these activities are realistic. Calorie moderation and walking should be good enough.

Yes, in that case, starting with calorie moderation is key. In fact, even if you don't do anything else, this alone should bring your weight down to managable levels where you can start doing exercises that look injury-prone now.

But exercise would make it much easier, because it releases dopamines, which makes you feel good, which lowers your food craving.

(I'm not in my early twenties and I've been overwheight for the most of my life.)

Holy excuses. Look, no one here really cares if you exercise or not. Walking is better than nothing, though.

Anecdotal evidence, but my parents, both in their mid-60s, are some of the most active people I know. Biking, hiking, skiing, you name it. And, neither of them is skinny. There's definitely some luck (good genes, etc.) involved in them being in good shape, but the rest is because they've put forth a bit of effort their whole lives towards being active.

Nearer 50 than 60 here. Run four to nine miles every weekend day (three this weekend, that is), walk an hour at least two days a week, generally 30 most others. I don't do weights because I never got in the habit when younger; I also ran more when young and wouldn't have wanted to add body mass--running was just better under 170 lb.

What happens to your body as you get older depends in part on what you do with it when younger. The one thing I don't do now that I occasionally did when younger is push-ups. Something in my left shoulder doesn't care for them. No doubt there's a fix for that, but I don't think it makes sense to pursue one--there's no MLB contract on the line.

You came here angry with the world because walking 20 minutes a day doesn't make a dent in the fat and running hurts. Well, here's the response.

Of course running hurts if you are overweight. Your bones and tendons are not made to support that much weight and neither are your muscles if you have been neglecting them. Bodies get neglected, that's what happens to them when they get old. If you really love running like you said, then drop some weight and start running. Do, don't cry. Walk more. Use nordic walking poles. Swimming is an excellent low-impact sport and so is water running. Walking 20 minutes with decent pace burns around 500-600kcal for someone weighting 120kg. That's a half a can of Pringles. You need to be really careful with what you eat if you want to drop weight with just that.

Edit: reasonable question gets downvoted.

Your question was kind of emotionally charged, and it sounded like you were getting upset, which is what probably set off the downvotes.

if the tradeoff for ultra-longevity is a shitty life of being obsessively active I think I'll pick a shorter life.

Being active doesn't have to suck. Sports are fun, man.

Sports are fun, man.

No, winning is fun.

Ah, spoken like a true loser

Winning is fun, but just playing sports is too, and I participate in plenty of sports that are not competitive, or competitive sports organized in a noncompetitive fashion (for example, constantly rotating or re-balancing teams)

They've never been fun for me. Social anxiety mixed with general incompetence and physical pain. Yeah lot's of fun.

So. There are sports which don't require competing with other people in any real sense - take a look at rock climbing, hiking, riding bikes, SCUBA diving, tai chi, yoga, dancing etc etc. Some of these can be solitary if you don't like big groups.

On the physical pain side of things - that's just the hump you have to get over, and I agree it sucks. Once your body is trained to do a basic minimum of exercise, the endorphins outweigh the painful aspects, and it feels good man. Like, really good.

To your original question, I suspect 20min a day walking is a bit low, both in terms of your overall exercise per week, and intensity. Intensity counts for a lot in fitness, IMO it's worth pushing it a couple of days a week, go for a run or something. Or join a club that does some kind of fun exercise.

Strong vote for rock climbing (to grandparent). It's an engaging puzzle that gives you a full body workout! And can be done by yourself or with a group. Check for a gym nearby.

Just as a counter-point to "shitty life of being obsessively active" - I've noticed my mental health is much better now that I've become regularly active. Plus, it's amazing how much of the city/country you experience when you're on a long run.

Probably not. Unless you're walking "vigorously", which most people tend not to do when they're just trying to get from A to B.

The good news is that it is very easy to add some form of exercise into your life. You don't have to become a gym rat, the key is to find a hobby that you actually enjoy and that involves some physical activity: hiking, skiing, surfing, join a local soccer league, etc. I highly recommend Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. It's like playing chess with your body; raw athleticism, strength, and speed are always defeated by intelligence and technique. It's also great stress relief.

The thing a lot of people don't realize, I think, is that short bursts of intensity can yield a lot- and you DON'T need to be too obsessive about it. Just lift heavy stuff, and do stuff that gets your heart rate elevated for a few minutes- sprints, etc.

You don't need to micromanage everything. Some intense workouts here and there give you the energy you'll have to micromanage the stuff that you WANT to micromanage.

I think you can establish what's enough by how you feel, provided you have a minimum amount of sensitivity. e.g. notice how you feel now if you did some uphill walking and lost your breath earlier today.

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