Relatable. I haven't worked since my diagnosis in July and I put on 10 pounds in the first month. Some of that was because I wasn't working a physically active job anymore but most of it was because I'm home all day where the food is and tend to eat when I'm bored. We've all found out how boring life can be once we've gone blind. Here's what I've done to cope.

My wife and I have a bicycle built for two. If you have a riding partner it's a lot of fun. Spend a little more for a better quality bike if you can. Ours is cheap and it doesn't stay adjusted. It seems I have to realign the handle bars after every ride and the rims aren't sturdy enough for the weight of two adults.

We dance each weekend at the eighties club. We dance holding hands so she can steer me away from other people. We hit the floor when the music starts and we dance for an hour with a two minute water break halfway through. It's our cardio. That's our mindset. We're not there to drink, we're not there to socialize, we're there to burn calories. Most nights we're the only couple on the floor for the first 30 or 40 minutes. Loud music intensifies our workout. If we can't make it to the club we put an eighties dance mix on YouTube and dance in our living room but it's too easy to flake at home. We only get the full hour at the club.

For solo exercise I jog each day with the dogs. I don't go far, just a couple hundred yards a day, but it's enough to work the stiffness out of my joints. I hold Ellie's leash in one hand and Blue's leash in the other and mostly let them steer. They're still young enough to want to run everywhere.

Finally, swimming. I took up endurance swimming in college when I had access to an Olympic sized pool. I don't have a ride to a pool any more so I can't swim nearly as often as I'd like, but when I get to it's a treat. I approach swimming like I do dancing - I'm not there to splash around or blow bubbles, I'm there to exercise. I've only swam twice since July but I'm trying to come up with a plan to make it a weekly activity.

You mentioned martial arts. Judo and wrestling are great for blind people. You're constantly in contact with your opponent so your lack of vision isn't too much of a competitive disadvantage. But lessons tend to be more expensive than other forms of exercise.

I got a stationary bike (if you already have a bike there are bases you can buy to convert a bike that are cheaper than getting a whole new system) and put on music. Even 15 minutes gets me going.

If you’re interested in martial arts I’d highly encourage you to look into it more seriously.

Although I don’t have any experience in doing it myself, I believe grappling type fighting is pretty accessible for blind people.

I once met a guy at a bar who had low vision and did Brazilian Jujitsu for exercise at a Dojo He tried to explain how the sport was adapted to suit him but to be honest he was pretty flogged and he wasn’t making much sense haha!

I’m pretty sure Judo is a Paralympic sport with a blind/low vision classification too.

Cool thing about martial arts is that you’d be a part of a group or at least a pair which could be good if your sight-loss is making it hard for you to maintain a social life.

All the best with it!

Totally with you on this, exercise is great. I do three main things. I go to the gym which is really convenient because there's usually someone to help out if you need it, but normally after you've been a few times it's all good. I also go running if my running partner is in town, but she's away for weeks at a time so that's not ideal. And finally I do judo, which is pretty much totally accessible. It's not loads of cardio but it lets you exert some strength which I think is a good idea.

I have a good friend who loves swimming, which is really good cardio but I just don't get on that well with it, and I think that is mainly due to not being able to see. But as I say, my buddy Lizzie is really into it and she can't see any bette rthan I can, so it's probably just me.

I don't do all this at once, I'm not super woman, but at least two or three things a week is good.

I enjoy structured workouts. Yoga palates and meditation classes. Most studios have promotional daeals right now as they fill up during winter. Best exercise I've ever had.

Swimming

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