There are pros and cons to every piece of equipment and every type of exercise. My philosophy is to do a little bit of everything and do it with quality form and technique so I can keep doing it for a long, long time. This means doing a little bit of strength work, a little bit of cardio, and a little bit of stretching/mobility work each week. This may or may not include all the fancy gym gizmos and equipment. I also tend to focus on different parts of that strength/cardio/mobility equation in any given week, but over time, incorporating all of those on a regular basis has definitely improved my overall health and will continue to do so.
I think fancy gizmos like the Tonal or a Peloton (Iâm guilty of getting a Peloton) can help people get in to working out that may not have otherwise, for various reasons. I think the key to not having it turn in to a clothes rack is to incorporate variety in to your routine. Donât rely solely on the Tonal/other fancy piece of equipment. Do some bodyweight exercises instead. Go to a local yoga studio. Just change up your routine in some way.
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this sounds a lot like youâre doing real world things. Another way to say that could be âfunctional movementsâ.
And youâre shifting it up a lot. So, âConstantly variedâ seems right.
Bet you like to work up a sweat, right? Maybe, âhigh intensityâ?
Put it all together, you get: âFunctional movements, constantly varied, at high intensity.â That sounds like a pretty good mantra. Maybe Iâd better trademark that phrase.
CrossFit didnât invent it, but they definitely capitalized on that catch phrase.
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The other perspective is that itâs easier to form and keep a habit than to have to think about what you will do before exercising. For those of us who donât like to exercise, any excuse to skip/delay it is likely to get used.
(I hate sweating. Anything that makes me work up a sweat is something Iâd prefer not to do.)
What do you do if you need more than your body weight?
Iâve never felt the need for more than my body weight. Iâm pretty heavy.
Iâve given it almost a year of thought and another 5-10 pounts. I think Iâm getting the Tonal.
- I do Hot Yoga once a week (Mondays) pretty regularly but Iâd prefer to do that at least twice a week (but thereâs not as many options as Iâd like - Weds or Sat).
- Dance (Tuesdays) is additional cardio (that is apparently so intense that I might throw up).
- Husband and me are going to start walking occasionally (hopefully 1-2 times a week but I canât guarantee that with weather factors).
- So then I have this huge gap Wed-Sun that includes only maybe yogas and maybe walks. I need something at home to fill this in with exercise that isnât going to be another external thing that Iâm signing up for (but Iâd still like it to be instructor led somehow).
I feel like Tonal is my best option if I donât want to explode.
(If youâre wondering if itâs my diet that is causing the biggest problem see my skinny husband who is also the cook).
It IS mainly your diet. Probably very good food, but you donât have to eat all of it.
Also, what are you eating that heâs NOT cooking? And you donât have to answer to us, even though we care a lot.
I just donât think 1500-4000 bucks is the solution.
Fewer calories, more protein, and 16/8. Just a little more money per week to eat righter.
And I recommend higher-intensity workouts, not longer ones like walks. Walks are for off-days.
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What is tonal, and why does it fit your needs?
Exercise matters more to long term health than weight, ideally both aerobic and weight-bearing exercise. So adding more exercise is usually a good idea. Is tonal in particular worth the thousands drT suggests? Can you comfortable afford it?
Mark Manson (of The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck) has a phrase to help you make big decisions:
That is, if youâre not at âFuck yeah I want that!â, then youâre not committed enough to actually make it worthwhile. Until youâre eating, sleeping, breathing, and diddling yourself to thoughts of working out on a Tonal, youâre not ready for it.
It is an exercise machine that is installed on a wall, with a monitor, plus a monthly service to guide your workout.
Huh. Thatâs not for me, but it might be great for Tiffany, if sheâd find it motivating.
Honestly, Iâm kinda intrigued. But i think it would be too easy for me to just ignore it.
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Doesnât even make a good laundry hanger.
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It looks like you could hang your bras to dry on those arms.
when I decided about 10 years ago that I was going to walk to work every day, I started losing weight like crazy. It was about 5 miles round trip. I lost 40 pounds. Gained some of it back, but I had gotten too thin, so, I disagree with this.
just walking is likely not great for preserving muscles, but i disagree that it doesnât work for weight loss.
although, it does preserve some muscle. when the pandemic hit and i was therefore sitting on my ass, my joint issues flared up bad, likely because I was no longer walking. so i finally found a good physical therapist who gave me some decent exercises.
now, my fitness routine is a combination of PT exercises, which is good for muscles and walking at least 10k steps per day.
Iâm also curious about this tonal thing, but not curious enough to buy it. Even if I was curious enough to buy it, it wouldnât fit in my apartment.
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More. Now this is from a man site, so maybe it doesnât apply (though it does include some beefcake pics):
Tips on How to Lose Weight Fast
While Westâs advice will kick-start your fitness journey, there are other methods for dropping the kilos. Here is a list of 10 simple steps you can take to lose weight fast.
- Avoid sugary drinks and fruit juice. While we knew soft drinks arenât good for us, some juices have a similar sugar content.
- Increase your protein intake. High-protein foods make you feel fuller for longer, which may help to reduce your snack cravings.
- Eat soluble fibre. Studies show that soluble fibres may promote weight loss.
- Weigh yourself at the same time every day. Your weight will fluctuate over the course of the day, so maintain some consistency by picking a set weigh-in time.
- Drink a large glass of water before meals. This will help you to eat less and feel fuller.
- Drink coffee or tea. Caffeine has been proven to boost your metabolism.
- Get good quality sleep.
I see nothing on this list about exercise. Exercise tones the body. Diet determines overall size. The rest of the article is also good.
6 & 7 are somewhat contradictory
Iâve been told weight loss is 90% diet and 10% exercise. Both categories can be subdivided into quality and quantity, with quantity being the more important factor in both cases.
Timing of caffeine is important. And quantity.
I donât think artificially and temporarily increasing metabolism is such a great idea anyway. Mean, cocaine does the same thing.
@Tiffany , whatâs your goal? If itâs just to lose weight, then @dr_t_non-fan is probably right, that you should look first to your diet. If your goal is broader fitness, then tonal might make sense for you. There may be nothing more important than weight bearing exercise for maintaining overall fitness. (Although the importance of weight bearing exercise increases as you age, and you may be young enough that itâs not as important.)
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