Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with health and fitness

Downward Dog is not for me...

TrickyLib — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 15:58:12 -0800

Can anyone give me recommendations for yoga dvds that do not contain downward facing dog poses? I really do not enjoy this position for reasons I don't want to explain here. I tried taking a yoga class at my park district, but there was so much downward dog I ended up quitting after just three classes.

I'm looking for a good set of free weights for my apartment. Any suggestions?

decrescendo — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 15:15:21 -0800

I'm looking for a good set of free weights for my apartment. Any suggestions? I'm looking to buy some free weights to use in my apartment. Does anyone have any recommendations?

I've seen PowerBlocks advertised before but I've never seen them in person.

Anyone have any ideas?

Or should I just finally suck it up and go to the gym? I seem to be avoiding that for some reason. I feel like I want to be a little more in shape before I take the gym plunge. Is that stupid?

Joint pain after treadmill usage

Anonymous — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 11:46:43 -0800

YANMD (or my personal trainer) but I need advice on a cardio workout that will help me lose weight and also not kill my joints. Difficulty: I am quite overweight...my BMI is just shy of 60 I have lost 50 lbs (yay me!) but still have a ways to go. To keep the momentum on my weight loss, my wife and I joined a gym this past weekend.

Living in a small town our gym options were limited and we settled for a Snap Fitness which has no 2 year contracts, is reasonably priced, and consists of a number of bikes, ellipticals, treadmills, and some nautilus-type weight equipment.

I am gunning for an hour workout a day, and as my goal is to build endurance and lose weight I'm focusing on cardio. My plan for these early days was 30 minutes on the bike and 30 minutes on the treadmill.

On Sunday, our first day working out, I did a bit over 30 minutes on the tradmill, my heart rate held around 140, and my average was just under 3MPH. I was happy with that result...it was a well paced walk, which is what I could handle at this point.

I quit after the treadmill, not moving on to the bike, because after stopping I realized I was in a lot of pain. It wasn't muscle pain, which is what I anticipated, but instead it was severe joint pain, focused in my ankle and my knee. My feet also ached.

I took some Advil and resolved to go back the next day, but the pain actually worsened the more time passed. It's now been over 48 hours and I'm still on a heavy Advil rotation and have not returned to work out as standard walking is quite painful at the moment.

(background: despite my weight I have no history of joint problems, and my feet do normally bother me if I walk a good distance of a couple miles, but never my ankles and knees like this).

I'm not sure if I should "push through the pain" and hop back on the treadmill, if I should just focus on the stationary bike for a while and do 60 minutes on the bike completely foregoing the treadmill, or if there is a better option.

Suggestions would be most appreciated.

Is Green Tea Good for You even when it's cold?

lynnie-the-pooh — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 17:09:17 -0800

I heard Green Tea is extremely good for you. If I drink it cold, will it give me the same benefits as hot green tea? I like the Snapple Green tea drink you can get in a glass bottle and you drink it cold. Thanks, Lynnie-the-pooh

Mild sickness, when must you rest and when is it okay to maintain normal activity?

JoannaC — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 20:33:32 -0800

Recovering from lingering sinus infection, when can I work out again? I am a teacher exposed to tons of germs on a regular basis, but I am pretty healthy. I get sick maybe once a year, and I am having it now. I had a small cold a few weeks ago, it seemed to clear up for a day or two, then it came back and my ears felt like they were under water. A few days later they started hurting. I went to a walk-in clinic and was diagnosed with a sinus infection. That was two weeks ago. I feel mostly okay, but my throat is still scratchy and my neck is still a little sore.

I am itching to get back to my fitness routine (I was rocking a Tae Bo rotation) but don't want to make things worse. I think the reason the cold escalated in the first place was because I didn't slow down and take proper care of myself. But it has been going on three weeks already, and I feel like if I wait until I am 100%, I will be waiting forever because I have asthma and these things tend to linger in me. And due to my job, I am just exposed to so much stuff. Surely, since I feel mostly okay, it's safe to start it up again? How do I know when I should be taking it easy so I don't make things worse and when it's okay to just carry on?

What are some good protein-rich meals I can take to work with me for lunch? I'm trying to gain some mass.

decrescendo — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 16:11:25 -0800

What are some good protein-rich meals I can take to work with me for lunch? I'm trying to gain some mass. I'll have a refrigerator and microwave present and my commute is only 15 minutes. I'm 6'3" 190 lbs and I'm trying to gain weight. I also eat out during lunch way too much. Saving 8 dollars a day would be fantastic on top of eating meals that will be better for my mass gain.

I automatically think pasta because I'm a terrible cook, but that doesn't seem like the route I should be going in order to bulk up.

Have any ideas?

(Maybe this will help me become a better cook somehow, too).

Reading for a Reinvention

cuando — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 14:49:30 -0800

I've decided to make some big changes in how I live. Things like exercising more, eating better, dressing nicer and so on. Things are going pretty great now, but I am looking for some useful reading (magazines, books, websites, blogs) to help me stay motivated and generate ideas. Further info... I'm a guy so I'd prefer suggestions (especially anything relating to style, fashion, & health) that are unisex or male-geared. Some examples of what I currently read are:

NYTimes Well blog
Gimmie20.com
ExRX & StartingStrength
Uncrate
A.Continuous Lean
Lifehacker
Triathletes Training Bible
Runner's World

I was also thinking of getting a magazine subscription to like Men's Health. Any thoughts are appreciated

Please recommend decent New York Sports Clubs group class instructors

sidecar144 — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 09:12:35 -0800

Has anyone had a good experience with any of the group class instructors at New York Sports Club? I am trying to find a Pilates class there, and most of the instructors don't appear to know what they're doing. I used to have a cruddy, evil job with great benefits, which included a cheap membership at Equinox. This, I fear, spoiled me for all other gyms. I now have a wonderful job with decent benefits, which only offers membership at New York Sports Clubs. I can't afford to go back to Equinox without the corporate rate. NYSC is ok...I usually just work out on the machines, stretch, and sometimes do some light weight lifting. It's bread-and-butter. The major disappointment is the classes. I have a passport membership and have been trying to find a decent Pilates or Yoga class, with no success. Are there any NYSC members on here who can help me out? Do you know of any good instructors, and when/where they teach? I'm mostly interested in Yoga and Pilates, but I will give anything a try if I could trust that instructor knew what they were doing.

I'm a huge fan of traditional Pilates, and the Pilates instructors at NYSC all seem to over-aerobicize it until it barely qualifies as Pilates anymore. They don't often check for form, and I often get scared that some of the things they're telling us to do are harmful. I've considered just using NYSC for cardio and buying Pilates group mat class packages elsewhere, but every time I price it winds up being more expensive than my beautiful, lost, beloved Equinox, where all of the instructors were excellent. The majority of NYSC instructors barely seem certified.

I've heard that NYSC doesn't treat its instructors well, and that anyone good leaves. I can hardly blame them. Unlike some better gyms, NYSC never posts the names of its instructors in the online schedules, making it difficult to spot and avoid instructors I've had a bad experience with in the past.

How to get into health and fitness industry

ecco21 — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 07:40:07 -0800

I am interested to hear about opinions about the health and wellness industry and potential jobs. I have been in corp. america for almost 10 years and tired of the inability to help and make a difference in peoples lives. I have over 20 years of athletics through team sports, individual sports, gym time, and other outdoor adventures. I have always been interested in nutrition, personal training, health, and getting through to people about the importance of their health. Most of the books sitting around my place have to do with things like muscle anatomy, strength training, nutrition, stretching, etc...

The challenge is figuring out if I need to go back and get a biology degree? If I should just jump in and do personal training? Or if there are other alternatives out there?

The biggest catalyst lately for a change has been this rekindled affair with working out/getting back in shape and the realization that corp. america is not a good fit for me.

Is this exercise plan insane or just ambitious?

Merzbau — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 22:44:50 -0800

After a somewhat less than satisfactory personal training session, I've decided to go it alone, but I'd like to check with others who've tried a similar plan first. Much more detail inside. Last week I had a free session with a personal trainer at my gym, and while he seemed to know what he was doing, I had a few concerns. First and foremost, it seemed like he was required to push for the hard sell instead of giving any truly useful information in the first session- try as I might, I couldn't get a workout plan out of him that I could use on my own, or even a summary of what I did that day. Hell, he even did all the stretches for me at the end of the session.

As best I can remember, this is the routine he had me on:

5 minute warmup on the elliptical, staying over 70 RPM (this seemed a bit excessive; I couldn't keep it above the mid-60's after a minute or so, and it sent my heart rate through the roof, somewhere in the neighborhood of 160)

*10 bodyweight squats, with the help of a bench, followed by holding the squat position for 20 seconds

*10 step up/step down with each leg (sorry, no idea what the actual exercise is called, but I had one foot up on a low bench and stepped up and down with the other leg)

*one minute rest, then repeat the above

*one minute rest

*10 pushups

*? shoulder presses (can't remember how many he had me doing, and instead of barbells he used his own weight, pushing against me with his hands- another bit of potentially useful info unattainable)

*? skullcrushers (same, can't remember how many reps, and he pushed against my hands for resistance instead of having me use a weight)

*rest, repeat the upper-body exercises

*20 situps

*cooldown and stretching

I can't afford further sessions at my current salary, so I went looking around the web for basic strength training plans to go along with my current routine (1 hour of moderate cardio every day, split between the treadmill and elliptical). Starting Strength comes highly recommended, but it has a heavy emphasis on squats, and as I learned at the gym bodyweight squats are absolute murder on my knees, let alone with a barbell- I messed up my knees pretty badly falling down an escalator when I was a kid, and they've never totally recovered.

The upper-body stuff was much easier, though, and I've decided to give One Hundred Pushups and Two Hundred Situps a shot. My questions are:

Have any fellow MeFites tried either program? How did it go?

Is it overly ambitious for an untrained beginner to try and do both programs at once on alternating days, or am I setting myself up for failure?

If, as I strongly suspect, they'd be better done one after the other, how should I incorporate the first exercise into my routine after I've finished the final test? For example, I'm probably going to do the pushups program first, as I find them a bit easier; how then to add situps to my daily fitness routine while I'm doing the 200 situps challenge?

Sorry about rambling on so much, it's all a bit overwhelming and I figured too much information would be better than too little.

I need to start working out, but other than my lack of motivation, not having a workout plan is keeping me from starting. How can I solve this? Personal trainer? Websites?

decrescendo — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 18:31:13 -0800

I need to start working out, but other than my lack of motivation, not having a workout plan is keeping me from starting. How can I solve this? Personal trainer? Websites? I feel like having no direction and structure is keeping me from working out. Yes, I realize working out without a plan is better than not working out at all, but I think I'm the type of guy that needs a plan for this.

I'm trying to bulk up. I want to gain weight and gain muscle. I'm 6'3" 185 lbs. How should I go about this? I need some structure.

Where can I go for a 'healthy' break?

fernbritton — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 16:38:41 -0800

Where can I go for a 'healthy' break? I'd like to take a week away and come back feeling healthier. Somewhere in the UK or Europe.
I have no willpower so I need something organised, something that would encourage exercise and keep me away from alcohol, cigarettes, junk food etc. etc.
I'm not into 'alternative' therapies, though I think I could tolorate that environment if there was a good programme overall.
I realise that a week isn't going to make a great difference but hope it would kick-start me for a healthier lifestyle overall.

Thanks for any suggestions!

Help me, O Exercise Gurus.

canadia — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 01:26:01 -0800

Burning calories while exercising: how important is how much effort you put into it? Does difficulty enter the equation, or is it all time and distance? Here's an example of what I mean: I've been riding my single gear bike to and from work for the past month on a route that is rolling hills that go as high as a 7% incline. It takes me about 40 minutes to get 5 miles, and I'm huffing and puffing for most of the trek. A few hours later, after standing on my feet all day, I turn around and bike home, which takes me roughly an hour. As I get more used to the ride and it becomes easier, does the amount of calories I burn drop, since my heart rate is no longer skyrocketing, or does it go up, since I'm going faster?

What counts as "moderate" exercise? Does all my heart-pounding biking count as "leisure," since I'm only going a total of 10 miles? Do calorie calculators take effort into consideration, or is "difficultly" measured by how fast you go in a certain amount of time, regardless of your heart rate?

Are there any safe workout supplements?

ascetic — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 17:01:47 -0800

Are there any *safe* supplements I can take for added muscle gain/weight loss/etc? I'm only 20 years old... Perhaps I don't "need" supplements but I sure would like to get more out of my workouts without comprimising my health and wellbeing.

I eat clean 90% of the time - fresh fruits, veggies, home cooked meals, etc. I RARELY eat McDonalds or any other kinds of junk food. Currently I make a protein shake after working out... Two scoops protein powder, nonfat milk, and 1 tbps of flax seed oil... Sometimes some berries and banana.

Help me build an exercise routine.

so_gracefully — Fri, 08 May 2009 00:22:29 -0800

General advice in the area of finding my exercise/fitness niche? Good, structured DVDs or programs to try? I am a female in my mid-twenties, and I have never been too "sporty" or all that excited about exercising in general. I want to become excited about it, but I have not yet been able to find something that I really like or something that feels like it's working well for me. I also have no idea how to structure it so that I'm doing something that is definitely worthwhile, so I guess that's my main question--what can I add in to create more structure so that it's effective and simple to stick with?

Goals:
- Improve heart health, lose a little bit of weight, feel more connected to my body, strengthen my muscles and make myself less vulnerable to aches/pains in my largely sedentary job.

Limitations:
- Can't afford a gym membership or even yoga classes right now
- Don't really have any equipment, or access to any

Things I already know/like:
- I am working on the nutrition part, and that is going well.
- I like to try to challenge myself a little bit throughout the day, like taking the stairs instead of elevators whenever possible, parking at the back of a parking lot to give myself more of a walk, etc.
- I have really loved yoga classes in the past, but the DVDs I currently own are very meditation-focused, and I want something more strength- and challenge-focused.
- I like walking and sometimes hiking; how can I incorporate them in a way that maximizes their benefits?
- I would love to be able to swim, but don't have access to a pool!
- I have been having fun playing Dance Dance Revolution. Dance-focused workout videos make me feel very defeated because I have some problems with coordination.
- I like to follow along with DVDs, and currently I have: some basic yoga videos, some basic pilates, cardio pilates (this is the one I enjoy the most). I am definitely looking for recommendations on good videos that are meant to increase overall strength and encourage weight loss, while being fairly simple and not complicated with a lot of intense dance moves!

Help us design a fair exercise competition!

bristolcat — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 13:27:46 -0800

Help us design a fair exercise competition! My cousin and I have both decided to put an effort into incorporating more exercise into our daily life. Instead of working toward some kind of tangible reward, we agree that competition would be a good motivating factor.

We are both women at nearly the exact same age (27) with very similar physical builds and goals. Our chosen exercises include a variety of things including bicycling, running (C25K), strength exercises and "leisure exercises" such as golfing or walking the dog.

In the past, we have tried doing a competition based on cumulative minutes spent at the gym, but this turned out to be somewhat lopsided when we found we had different levels of activity going head-to-head, such as forty minutes of walking and light strength exercises versus thirty minutes of intense cardio.

We like to record our efforts on a shared Google spreadsheet. How can we "score" our activities fairly? Would it make sense to have different tiers of exercises worth different points? What would the tiers be based on - something such as calories burned per hour?

In summary, we are looking for a way to compete for fitness based on effort, rather than weight-loss or achievements. Have you had a similar plan that was successful? How can we make this as fair as possible?

Thanks in advance!

On my knees!

Ambrosia Voyeur — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 16:16:37 -0800

How do knees stay healthy? I'm a young woman with healthy knees. At least, I think so. They never hurt. Though, lately, probably because I'm heavier presently than I like to be, they get stiff sometimes, or even go "pop" a little. This when I've been sitting Indian-style or curled up some other way for too long. Nothing that I think is too worrisome, and I've been chalking it up to reduced flexibility commensurate with reduced range of motion or "fat thighs." But it has me thinking...

My question is really pretty general: What can I do to keep my knees healthy? What are the knee-dos and knee-don'ts? I love my knees, I love to hike and bike and... WALK with them. Yeah that walking, it really rocks my world. What should I know to make sure they stay functional as can be for another 80 years?

Of course, I know one thing is: Lose weight! (So please don't everybody say that, agggghh.)

Gimperobics

EatTheWeak — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 11:01:10 -0800

Please help me develop a one-legged workout. Last Wednesday, I broke my ankle - a distal fibula fracture. The doctor instructed me to not put any weight on the foot, to elevate it as often as possible and to avoid moving it in any way.

All good advice, but it does present a problem. Over the last year or so, I'd finally developed a workout routine that worked for me - lots of standing dumbbell and resistance band exercises, push-ups and situps, jump rope for cardio and lots of walking and biking. In short, all stuff that requires two working feet - a feature I won't have for about two months.

Thing is, I need my workouts - they keep my anxiety and depression at bay better than anything I've ever tried. I don't want to lose my fitness progress, either - this weight was goddamn hard to lose. But this injury has put just about my whole routine out of reach. Even sitting down for some concentration curls exerts forces on the bracing leg.

So, what do you think? I've accepted that I'm not likely to maintain the same level of intensity during my convalescence, but I don't want to become completely sedentary. How can I work out as much of my body as possible without moving my right leg or putting any weight on it?

Help my legs.

lpsguy — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 07:29:19 -0800

Help my legs. Is there any way to help my legs recover faster/better?

Here's my current activity level. I run three days a week at ~8 minutes a mile that gives me a 10 mile a week total. I play basketball (full-court, man-to-man with ex-college players most of whom are younger than myself) once a week for ~three hours a pop. I walk five days a week about 30 minutes a day (my commute from the train station to my office and back.) Oh, and I'm 52.

So, excluding the walking, that has me doing something four out of every seven days. And while there are rest days built in, I obviously have to do two of those days back-to-back.
Most of the time, my legs feel, well, heavy and tired. I'm wondering if there's anything else I can do to help them recover faster/better?

I should add that my diet is good. My weight is good. And I have no other restrictions. No knee or joint pain nor muscular pain beyond what could be normally expected for my workload.

My knee-jerk reaction is to shed weight. But I believe my body is at its comfortable set point and weight loss would be artificial. So am I missing something? Vitamins? Supplements? Or is this just probably what I should expect for a 52-year-old guy refusing to slow down?

What type of foods should I be eating in order to bulk up?

decrescendo — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 15:49:51 -0800

What type of foods should I be eating in order to bulk up? In reference to this question.

It seems that the common response to my previous question was I need to eat better and eat more before I can really gain muscle/bulk. I feel that I don't eat enough or well enough.

My daily meals are as follows:
breakfast: 3 hard-boiled eggs
lunch: Chipotle
dinner: whatever I can easily find to stop being hungry

Can anyone give me some help on how to immediately turn my eating habits around to make myself able to build muscle (or at least bulk up)?

I'm sick of feeling like I'm wilting away to nothing. I've been lazy about this for too many years and it's time to turn it around. (Yes, I'm pissed off at myself.)

I am not a very good cook at all so I'm kind of at a loss for where to begin. Any help would be fantastic. Thanks!

How does a 19 year old couch potato lose 50 pounds?

BoldStepDesign — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 22:07:24 -0800

Ok I’m an overweight college student here. I’m a male coming in at 6’2” weighing 275 pounds. I want to lose 30 in 30. Ideally I want to shed 50 pounds and get down to 225 lbs, which is what I was back in highschool. According to my BMI I need to lose 70-100 pounds.
I’m allergic to all nuts, fish, turkey and oranges.

What I eat:
3 Scrambled eggs; cheese and or Katchup, or 3 Over easy eggs; 2 pieces of toast
Lunch, Sandwich (usually grilled cheese, or ham/turkey sandwich) or soup with pringles chips
Usually Pasta for dinner, maybe a cheese burger, soup or a steak, salad always with ranch, a veggie maybe jello
Two days a week I get anything from pasta, donuts, chocolate, basically leftovers at work
2-5 starbucks style coffee’s a week have cut down sizes to mediums, some times smalls
Fridays:
Friday night’s are Pizza and a bottled soda with friends, I’m not giving that up. Pizza is home made, usually IBC root beer or cream soda. One thing I refuse to give up.

Exercise:
I work out 3 days a week, usually 30 minutes on the treadmill, 2 miles, then some ab/chest workouts
Realizing how badly I do eat. I need to cut out what I eat, or atleast down 50%, increase my work outs.

That being said, to get where I want to be, what would you recommend for me?
I need diet ideas and work out ideas, plans etc...
Any helpful suggestions would be apprenticed!

Help me work out my gym routine .

handee — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 16:59:22 -0800

I am getting to the end of my weightloss programme (62lb gone, 9 to go before healthy BMI), go to the gym 3+ times a week, and am wondering if I should consider optimising the gym part for something other than calorie burn. Exercise geeks, please read the more inside and give me some advice... Right now, a long gym session is 30m X-train, 15-30m stepper, 5m hand bike and 5m row, with 240 varied (straight, each side, legs up, sets of 30) situps twice a week for core stuff. I've been upping the "levels" and I now do the step and X-train on "hills" setting about level 12 so (looking over the shoulders of others) I figure I'm quite fit. But I don't do weights. The 5m on handbike and row is because I find them really boring, so I do short on high resistance rather than anything longer. Maybe once a week I swim a km breast stroke. Should I introduce resistance training? Why?

My aim is to be fit and to keep fit and to generally be healthier - I'm not interested in building bulk, and I'm not training for any event. I'm sort of worried about getting in a rut, but I quite like what I'm doing now.

Using the rowing machine for resistance training.

arha — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 13:27:55 -0800

How much of my resistance training can I replace with 15 minutes/session on the rowing machine? I have come to the conclusion that I despise the weight machines at the gym for a variety of reasons. I have been considering replacing the majority of my resistance training on the machines with 10 - 15 minutes on the rower.

My question is, what muscle groups am I missing out on here? Is this a reasonable substitution? I have access to free weights and I don't mind working with them to make up for any shortfall.

I was coached in rowing for a couple of years so assume I have good form. My goals are toning up and improving my fitness level rather than weight loss at this point.

Part time-jobs / social groups / hobbies that are a great workout -- Help me find my Mr. Miyagi!

jkl345 — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 13:52:53 -0800

What are some physical jobs or hobbies that I can get involved in to be more healthy, but also something that will be regular enough to require me to keep going? I have a problem. I can't seem to stick to a workout routine.

You know how in Karate Kid, Mr. Miyagi tricked Daniel into doing the household chores, while also training him awesome ninja skills and getting him physically ready to crush all the Cobra Kai jocks? You know -- wax on, wax off, sand the floor, paint the fence, etc.? I need something like that.

Whenever I get into a workout routine, it's great for a few weeks, then I tend to let other projects side track me or I'll get bored. I've tried changing my workout every few weeks but it doesn't really make a difference.

Back when I was in school, I worked a handful of physical jobs in warehouses to make good money, while also getting in shape. I need a solution like that to trick myself into working out. In general, I always seem to work much harder and stick to things when I'm working for or depended on by other people, but when it comes to myself I'll often let things slide. (Please hold your lectures on discipline. I know, I am weak and inferior to you.)

So I need to find a job, some sort of hobby or social group to be active with and I'm looking for suggestions.

For example:
Possible hobbies / social groups: Fight clubs, hashing, Grizzly bear wrestling, ???
Possible jobs: Construction, lumberjack, warehouse work, ???

Anyone have any other suggestions?

Ideally it'd be:
+ Available / easy to do in the evenings and weekends
+ Available year round so I won't lose focus when a sports season ends
+ Not too crazy expensive (Something that I can actually make money doing would be really cool, so I'm kinda leaning towards job ideas, especially since there's a rigid schedule)
+ Bonus points for activities that have social or personal development benefits

Thanks for any advice you can offer!

How do I shift my bike, and where can I ride it?

digitaldraco — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 09:42:46 -0800

I am the owner of a LeMond bike. It has been sitting in my living room for the better part of the last year. I don't know how to ride it. Specifically, the shifting system confuses me. I'm not sure what to do with all those gears on both the front and back wheels. The bike is a LeMond Tourmalet and the shifting system is Shimano Tiagra.

I live in a mostly suburban Californian city that isn't really bike-friendly. I'm not sure where I could go to ride it in order to get a good ride. Part of my goal for riding is to use it as part of a fitness program. It doesn't fit easily in my car, but I can get it in there if I need to, to get to a good path.

I'm new to all of this so if I left out any important details, apologies.