[Sportsandrec] New list member with fitness-related questions and goals for the new year

Mon Dec 19 00:00:03 UTC 2016

Miranda,

Welcome to the list.

That seems unusual to me that your school gym would not provide assistance
for explaining equipment. This should be something they provide for anyone,
disabled or not. I would definitely check with the gym itself.

My husband and I are both blind, and we use our local YMCA. It's cheap, and
they provide a variety of classes along with cardio equipment and weight
room and pool. And our four-year-old enjoys going to the Y too.

When the weather is nice, we run and/or powerwalk to and around a park near
our house. It has a nice jogging trail we like to use. Our son can play on
the playground while my husband and I take turns on the trail.

I like to swim year round. I'm currently pregnant with my second child, and
I continue to swim as it's exercise but also great for pregnancy. I swim at
the Y. I do laps, swimming for about an hour.

I also have an elliptical at home I like to use. It's a basic machine, and I
have labeled the buttons in Braille. It's not a touch screen but is a flat
screen. There are three buttons for the programs, up and down buttons and a
start and stop button. All have Braille labels. I will hope on and watch a
show or read a book for 30 or 40 minutes.

I'm totally blind as well. Whether the gym or elsewhere, I explore and ask
questions, if necessary. At the Y, they have been helpful and always willing
to answer questions or point something out if we need it.

I like to do yoga and have found most classes to work well nonvisually.
Instructors usually are pretty descriptive, and I've not had an instructor
have a problem if I need more clarification about how to do a pose.

For running and walking, we use our canes unless working with our partners.
Both my husband and I do triathlons, so when in training, we work with our
partners. But when just at home, we run on the trail using our cane. We do
anywhere between 1 to 3 miles. I used to run track way, way back in the day,
then would come home and run even more, but now that I'm older, I find I
don't enjoy running that much. I do it but it's no longer my "thing."

Nutrition is easy, in my opinion. Rule of thumb, the more whole food you
eat, the better you are. I do most the cooking and prefer to make food from
scratch, avoiding prepackaged foods as much as possible. We do a lot of
fresh fruits and veggies. For me, I try to do low-carb. If you can't do
organic, that's okay, but stick to whole foods as much as possible, and the
biggest key to a healthy diet is sticking to portions. A lot of info is
available about food and nutrition, and much of it is accessible.

Personally, I'm not big into technology, so I don't use a lot of apps or
devices. My husband has a Fitbit HR, which is accessible through a
smartphone app. I do go online a lot to look up info or to get nutrition
labels, but I'm not big on using technology for much.

Hope this helps. If you have more specific questions, don't hesitate.

Bridgit

-----Original Message-----
From: SportsandRec [mailto:sportsandrec-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of
Miranda B. via SportsandRec
Sent: Sunday, December 18, 2016 2:23 PM
To: sportsandrec at nfbnet.org
Cc: Miranda B. <knownoflove at gmail.com>
Subject: [Sportsandrec] New list member with fitness-related questions and
goals for the new year

Hi everyone,

I am new to this list, and if appropriate, I have some questions regarding
health/fitness and public gyms.

To give a bit of background, I ran track in junior high and high school, and
throughout high school I ran 5 days a week and lifted weights 3 days a week.
Mind you, that was over 10 years ago, so the most exercise I do at the
moment is extensive walking.

I would like to eat healthier and exercise in the new year, both to lose
some weight before possibly traveling overseas for the summer, and just to
be more healthy and in-shape. I'm trying to plan ahead, hence my message to
all of you today.

I live in a second floor apartment, so any at-home exercise should be
minimal in noise. However, I do also have access to a gym at my university,
although I haven't yet had a chance to explore it as someone who is
completely blind. A couple of my visually impaired friends inquired for
themselves if anyone was available to assist them with learning how to
accessibly use the equipment, and it seemed that this was not possible.
However, I do have at least one sighted friend who I would trust to help me
in this way, if necessary.

I should also note that I have an iPhone, so I can use health and
fitness-related apps as well. For instance, I loved using MyFitnessPal
earlier this year, except it became tedius to enter and find the correct
ingredients for meals and recipes.

Do you have any tips or advice related to inexpensive gym memberships (in
the event I decide to go that route) or accessibility in my university's
gym, helpful iPhone apps, exercise mats, dumbbell brands, accessible scales
that connect to the iPhone, or anything else related to my goal for the new
year?

Thanks in advance for your time and assistance, and I wish all of you a
happy holiday season!

Best wishes, Miranda

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