Embarrassingly weak...

I am 5'5 and somewhere around 150lbs, I got weighed in 2 different places, 1 said 156 and one said 144... anyway, I have barely any physcal strength and I never did. :( I cannot do a single pushup. Most people, when it comes to running, say start out with a mile a day... I have never been able to run a mile in my life! AT school we were required to run 1 1/2 miles, 9 laps, I could only run 2 and could not even walk the rest in the 22 minutes... and I injured myself and got laughed at when attempting to do a pull up. :( I know this sounds silly, but this is all true. I cannot go to a gym and I have no gym equipment at home besides 2 8lbs weights (I CAN lift those but I must use both hands unless I want a lot of pain or just a few lifts) and 1 40 pound weight... I feel humiliated. :( I only eat 1000 or less calories a day, I ate 900-something today and 600-something yesterday, I know that is very very low but it makes up for the fact that I am not on my feet much.. But I gotta do something, help?

ALSO one more thing, I CAN swim when a pool is open. But like a bike? I never learned how to ride one...

Eat more, pick up some heavy stuff, and walk around more.

Anyone can build strength and endurance, even if they're starting from nothing.  If you can afford it, get a trainer who specializes in beginners, or else make sure the trainer understands your situation.  A good trainer will see it as a challenge to build your strength.

But your biggest problem is your low-calorie intake.  If you don't start eating more, you can't really address the strength situation.

Welcome to the club! I'm also really weak (5'6" 121 lbs) but I'm doing something about it. I exercise regularly (strength training and weight lifting every second day, and some cardio in between days), and eat healthy food, trying to get to 2000-2300 calories daily. And it feels quite good! Even though I've been doing this routine for only a few days, I feel a bit stronger already.

And considering that 1200 calories is the mininum for your body to function properly, it's no wonder that you have no strength. Go fill up on rich,yummy, healthy foods. :)

Original Post by glindas:

But your biggest problem is your low-calorie intake.  If you don't start eating more, you can't really address the strength situation.

 

Agreeing with the above.. I've also had/have the same problem, feeling so weak I can barely walk up a hill. But eating such a low number of calories will not help, it'll only contribute to your weakness.. So you need to up your calories so you canhave some energy, and be able to at least go that mile;)

You could do pushups against the wall to start.

Agreed.  Or against a kitchen counter.  Push-ups get easier the higher your hands are relative to your feet.  Proper push-ups against a wall/counter/table/step are far better than "girl" push-ups (the ones with your knees down) because they still make you hold your core properly.

For core strength, try planks.  Essentially, you put yourself in the "up" position of a push-up but with your whole forearms on the ground instead of just your hands.  Hold that position for as long as you can.  If you can do 2 minutes or more, try a harder version (on hands instead of forearms, or feet up on a chair/sofa/bench/step).  If you can't even hold the position for 10-15 seconds, try it with your hands elevated (e.g. push-up position with hands on a step/counter/table) as that's a bit easier.

For legs, try squats and lunges.  If you have trouble with balance, start off doing them near a chair or wall that you can hold on to when necessary.

For endurance/cardio, how about jumping jacks?  Time how long you can do them (or count the number).  Next time, add 5 more jumping jacks (or 5 seconds).  Every time, do 5 more.  Or walk up and down the stairs and see how many times you can do it.  Next time, add one more up-and-down.  Keep adding one every time.

They key with all of these suggestions is that you're constantly challenging yourself.  Don't compare yourself to other people.  If you can only do the plank for 10 seconds, that's okay.  That's your starting point.  Next time, aim for 15 seconds.  And if you only make it to 12 the second day, that's still okay.  15 seconds becomes your Day 3 goal.

You cannot eat less than 1200 and be healthy.  That is the bare minimum for a woman, and almost all women need more unless they are comatose.  To have energy to do things, you have to feed your body.  Enter your stats into calorie count, and follow the calorie goal.  It is better to go above the calorie goal than below it.

The biggest thing as far as exercise is to start where you are, and work up.  If you can't run a mile, walk it briskly.  When that becomes easy, run as far as you can, walk until you've caught your breath, then run some more.  If you can't do a push-up on the floor, do them off the kitchen cabinets until those are relatively easy, then from a sturdy chair, then try them on the floor.  You have to baby-step things so you can work up to them.

There is a book entitled "Strong Women Stay Slim"  I checked it out from my library, and it had some really good, basic exercises for beginners, that required little to no equipment.  I would recommend you look into something like that.