
Since I started doing chair yoga and chair pilates I have since discovered a whole whack of different workout vids by this woman. They vary from quick 10-minute stretch/strength videos to 35-minute cardio ones and there’s lots of variety. The good thing is that there is never any excuse not to do SOMETHING each day, though I try to fit in at least half an hour, and obviously you can mix and match them. Some of them are quite challenging and, as you can see, I am also getting out of my chair (!). The whole point of starting with the chair stuff was to avoid having to sit or lie on the floor (knees! back!), so the standing ones work just as well for me. My goal is to also start fitting in some of the shorter ones (that don’t make me all sweaty) during the day, just for a bit of extra movement. Have to say that my back, and even my knees, are feeling much better.



So dammit! Years ago I used to run almost every morning. It was the only aerobic exercise that I enjoyed. Then when I reached 40 my lower back and hips gave out, so I had to stop. And so I bought a bicycle and took regular jaunts along the river (though it actually felt like more exercise lugging the thing up and down three long flights of stairs). More recently I’ve taken to riding the recumbent bike at the gym, where I actually get a good sweat going, usually riding for about an hour.