Killed my knees doing 30-day shred. Now what?

[Anonymous]

I used to love doing Jillian Michaels' 30-day shred, and I used to occasionally run on weekends.

However, my knees have been awful the last 5 months. Walking up and down stairs is now painful and sometimes excruciating. I've stopped exercising, and I'm going to see a doctor in a few weeks.

I'm desperate to exercise (it has a big impact on my mood), so recently I've been doing the Shred but not doing any of moves that can exacerbate my knee pain. Is there another exercise video one might recommend that can provide a great workout but will not hurt my knees? Now that I avoid doing lots of the moves that hurt my knees with the Shred, it's not much of a workout anymore.

Thanks!

[Anonymous]

No suggestions. Just wanted to say that you are not alone. Shred KILLED my knees too! It turned me off of her workouts.

[Anonymous]

Have you tried spinning? You can get an inexpensive spin bike (I've linked to one below) and buy a few spinning DVDs.

I'm a big Cathe Friedrich fan and she has a Low Impact Series that might work out for you (also linked below). It's low impact, but it will deliver results.

Good luck.

http://www.amazon.com/Sunny-SF-B1001-Indoor-Cycling-Bike/dp/B003ZVHK04/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1365082617&sr=8-2&keywords=spin+bike

http://shop.cathe.com/low_impact_exercise_dvds_s/90.htm

[Anonymous]

Biking or swimming would be best. Riding a stationary bike is the first thing the PT have you do post knee surgery.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the replies. I can try to bike on the weekends, but at the moment I am looking for a video (or something I can watch on Amazon prime or YouTube) because I need to be able to do something at home, after work, when I'm home with the kids. I'll look into the Cathe Friedrich videos for sure.

I do have an elliptical, and am reluctant to buy another big piece of exercise equipment, but maybe will consider it. The one you linked to has good reviews (and the price is right), but I'm tall (5'10") and the reviews suggest it is a small one for smaller people.

[Anonymous]

Shred was hard on my knees too. I have the kettlebell workout series and love it. Sometimes an exercise comes up that I know is going to be especially hard on my knees so I just skip it or do a modified version.

[Anonymous]

I did the Shred once and decided my knees couldn't take it. (I had a knee operation years ago.) I bike and do Jackie Warner dvds. I love Jackie Warner.

[Anonymous]

If you don't mind spending a little more $$ for DVDs, I'd suggest the physique 57 DVD set. Low-to-no impact on knees. It's a barre workout. It doesn't look like it'll torture you, but believe me, it will, and it should be ok for your knees.

[Anonymous]

Check out Grace & Gusto by Ellen Barrett

[Anonymous]

I recommend joining a spin gym.

[Anonymous]

Just take a long break from jumping and running.

Fast walk (>4 miles/hour) is best for weight loss and relaxation, better than running.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just take a long break from jumping and running.

Fast walk (>4 miles/hour) is best for weight loss and relaxation, better than running.

I mean better for the body and mind. You do need to put more time in to burn the same amount of calories.

[Anonymous]

shred is too high impact for my knees unless i modify as well. if i remember the six week six pack and the yoga meltdown were much better. i would stick with low impact workouts especially until you have a doctor look at it. seimming and biking are best. barre dvds amd elliptical are good too. anything that doesnt hurt should be ok but def avoid high impact.

[Anonymous]

My mom has issues with her knees and high-impact workouts so she uses Walking away the Pounds for a DVD workout and she also uses an elliptical and rowing machine.

[Anonymous]

I love the Insanity DVDs with Shaun T. I bought mine off of Craigslist much cheaper than on the beach body website