Working Out for T1D[ummies]

Confession: I hate exercise.

Hate is probably too strong a word here, but I've always been an indoor dweller, a book reader, a laptop junkie.  For me, part of it just comes along with being a writer.  If I've got an idea, I want to be sitting somewhere committing it to paper or hard drive, not jogging along the street forgetting my next big idea before I even get home.

My ankles swell up on a regular basis.  It's one thing I truly dislike about my body.  It's hard to find a way to love a trait that makes shoe-shopping difficult.  It's hard to get the motivation to go out for walks when you feel too uncomfortable. 

I can't be the only person who doesn't like working out; however, I've come to a conclusion.  I've got to move this body.  I went to my regular (non-endocrinologist) doctor yesterday, and told her I'm concerned about some occasional pains in my knee.  It's also making a rather unpleasant crunchy noise when I go downstairs.  There are bad knees all over my family history.  "Strengthen your quads," said my doc.  "It'll help that a lot."

And so, I need to move it, move it.  And I need to move it, move it for not a lot of money.  I have a smaller living room now, so getting a Kinect or doing Just Dance on the Wii is not as feasible an option as it once was.  This is a shame because dancing is really my favorite form of aerobic exercise. The cruel irony of being out of shape is I can't dance as long as I want to!

I don't know how to ride a bike.

I don't mind walking, but I hate running.  Maybe if I were in better shape I'd like running, but I'm not a "push through the pain and keep your body going!!" kind of woman. 

And let's be honest--summer is upon us, and though I could go walking in my neighborhood, it's going to be hot.  Summer is my least favorite season.  I am less likely to do a ton of walking outside in the summer because I just find it oppressive.  Again, I'm not the greatest at pushing myself to do unpleasant, physically laborious tasks.

So how do you guys do it?  I really want some input here from the former-lazypantses among my readers.  Even if you are a fitness guru, I'd love to hear from you.

Is it hard to get into yoga?  Am I going to spend a fortune if I want to find a gym with a pool?  Ultimately, here's what I want:  be in better shape, strengthen everything, get my flexibility back.

Is a FitBit or other tracker worth my money?  Any decent apps that are free or cheap?

Also, there's a Planet Fitness near me.  Are they serious with their $10 a month membership?  That's sounding like a tempting option.

Let's throw our thoughts back to the early 80's:  Let's get physical, physical.