No More Diets

Is there anything to help me lose weight without exercise as I’m in wheelchair?

While not wanting to put anyone off exercise (because it helps with weight issues in many ways both directly and indirectly) I have to say that, in my experience, it is usually eating too much food which is the main problem with weight management rather than the amount of exercise a person takes. And changing food habits which is the main key to losing weight.

I say that because when you gain weight it is not usually the lack of running or going to the gym that is to blame (after all you have to run more than a marathon to lose a single pound of fat). The problem is that it is too easy to swallow a pound of fat’s worth of calories (about 3500) without thinking about it. And even easier to let weight creep on little by little with 200 calories too much here and there.

With exercise many people get discouraged by how much physical effort they have to make to get results, and many others sabotage their exercise efforts too by “rewarding” themselves for all their hard work with more calories than they used up!

With healthy eating, portion control and eating less (small changes to your habits leading to bigger changes if necessary) you can often make a big difference to your weight with a lot less effort.

Of course, it always helps if you are active when you want to lose weight - every calorie you use up helps - but you can still lose weight even if you are not taking exercise. You just have to reduce the amount you eat accordingly.

But why not do what you can in terms of activity?

Think about what you CAN rather than what you can’t do. What range of movement do you have in your upper body for example?

There are some very fit wheelchair athletes around the world so being in a wheelchair does not in itself stop you getting fit and being active.

If it’s not actually that you hate exercise just that you don’t feel that you are able to do any because you are in a wheelchair then there are quite a few sites which might help you see things differently depending on what you are able to do of course (and what your inclination is).

Active wheelchair users enjoy a wide variety of sports including tennis, water-sports and Tae Kwon Do. Take a look at the pictures on this site “A celebration of wheels” and see that your limitations might not be as great as you thought.

Of course it depends on your whole physical picture. You may not be able to do those sports. You may not want to. You might have to build your upper body strength or lose a bit of weight first. It really depends on your circumstances and your preferences. If you decide you’d like to try something, be sure to speak to your doctor first about what is suitable for you.