People who have achieved any Kind of success

Xpecta

When working out, did you focus on time or calories burned?

If time: How long did you shoot to work out a day?

If calories: How many calories did you shoot to burn a day?

thereshegoesagain

I shoot for at least 500 calories most days. But I walk and swim, so when walking, I shoot for 6-7 miles and when swimming I aim for a minimum of a mile. Often I'll walk 3-4 miles in the morning and swim in the afternoon.

Nikion901

My working-out success it getting to it at all.

KiyaK

I'm doing a lifting program, so completing that. I also do yoga 2-3 times a week, so I try to do a video that's at least 30 minutes long or a home practice for the same time. Lately I've been trying to get at least 6k steps a day too.

I'm more about moving my body because it feels good & helps me mentally than burning a certain amount of calories. I eat to fuel my workout, not workout to give me more to eat.

NancyYale

For the first 80 pounds I did no extra exercise at all. Eventually I started going to s gym 2x a week and walking more. I've lost 107

becca_rup23

I generally do at least half an hour of whatever I'm doing, and I like to switch it up a lot. Sometimes I swim, sometimes run or bike, and/or weight lifting. When I was losing the most I got in an hour of high intensity cardio/circuit training at least once a week

caslpierce

I do 20 minutes of "hard" cardio (run elliptical), 30 minutes of strength, and then finish with 20 minutes of high resistance but slow cardio (stationary cycle).

In doing this, i easily burn 500-600 calories. Because i am loosely following a clean eating model I actually have trouble meeting my daily calorie goals, so for me it is more about the time. The weight has been coming off quicker than expected and i dont want to lose muscle mass.

Eta: 1500 cals a day, 4-5 workouts a week

kprimaverab

I generally do 45-70 minutes of cardio (relatively high intensity like the elliptical trainer level 15+)
I do this 3x per week at least and healthy eating (1400 calories per day) i have lost 8lbs in 2 weeks

lorrpb

I focus on accomplishing a bit more in each session, whether it be more weight, more reps, faster speed, longer, etc. It's all about strength, endurance, and overall fitness for me. The burn is my bonus!
Results: down 145 lbs & 80 inches in 2 years.

chudson195

I started the Beachbody program, 21 day fix and shakeology to be exact, and in the 21 days, i lost 6.5 lbs and several (i'd have to look at my sheet for exact) inches...i weigh myself everyday and sometimes twice per day and it just keeps coming off! i am now on my 4th week

hoyalawya2003

I find I am much more successful when I have a goal and a program. So I did Couch25K, then 10K, then did a 15K. Got bored with running, so now I am doing Stronglifts. So I guess time and distance increases for running, and weight increases now. Oh, and for riding, frequency and height increases in jumping.

rachelr1116

I'm so busy most days that I just aim to get at least 30 minutes of some type of purposeful exercise each weekday. Usually that means 30 minutes on the elliptical. The ones at my gym track distance so I've been trying to slowly increase the distance I go in that 30 minutes.

cwolfman13

Xpecta wrote: »

When working out, did you focus on time or calories burned?

If time: How long did you shoot to work out a day?

If calories: How many calories did you shoot to burn a day?

I don't focus on time or calories burned...I train to support my fitness and achieve my fitness goals...additional energy expenditure is a nice bi-product, but not the purpose...time is dependent on the particular workout for that particular day as per what I'm trying to achieve in my training.

The time I spend training depends on what I'm training for and what my programming calls for. Generally my lifting workouts are about an hour...my cycling can be anywhere from a 30 minute all out effort to 2-3-4 hours out on the bike.

I don't shoot for any particular calorie burn...it's not the purpose of my fitness.

As far as success goes...I lost 40 Lbs pretty easily and I've been maintaining for over three years without logging anything...I just do good livin'

chocolate_owl

Neither. I lift according to my program, and it takes whatever time it takes. I do runs for mileage, and it takes whatever time it takes. Calories burned are nice for getting to eat more, but they're not the main goal.

Calorie deficit for weight loss. Exercise for health and body composition.

ccrdragon

I plan all of my workouts ahead of time... for cardio days, I lay out a plan for warm-up/sprints/cool down/steady and for lifting days I decide what body parts I'm working and how I am going to work them. For me, a successful workout is completing the plan. I usually plan for an hour (give or take) but I really don't care about the calorie burn - I'm looking for the end result and so far, this plan is helping me get there (and increasing my endurance/strength at the same time). Any calorie burn I get thru the process is just icing on the cake.

rainbow198

My focus has always been to improve my fitness. Getting stronger, walking/jogging faster, stretching further, jumping higher, ice skating longer etc.

As my endurance and stamina grows I keep doing more to challenge myself or find new workout programs.

Although I do aim to power walk a certain number of miles each day, my calorie burns are not a factor.

Over 4.5 years later since I started losing weight (80 pounds gone) and 3 years of maintenance I'm thrilled with my overall progress and fitness level and I will continue to push!

mamadon

Nikion901 wrote: »

My working-out success it getting to it at all.

Me too!

Bedg

Two days in a row of no night time over indulging!

nordlead2005

Neither. My workouts weren't about burning calories, but that was a nice side affect. I try to get out into the garage 3x/week and my only goal is to hit my lifts for the day. I just did 5x200lb bench presses and 23 pull ups last night. Next time I'm in the garage for those I'll aim for 5x202.5lb and 24 pull ups.

I was successful at losing 50lb not because I exercised X amount, but because I managed my food intake appropriately.

NorthCascades

Xpecta wrote: »

When working out, did you focus on time or calories burned?

Neither is the target of any workout I do, but time winds up being a factor (and calories are whatever they come out to). For example, I get an hour for lunch, so I walk for an hour, and then eat at my desk. In the evenings, I fit a bike ride into the time constraints I have. Weekends are a lot more wide open.

JenHuedy

Neither.

For running, my goal is a certain distance and/or pace. Like 6 miles in under an hour or 10 miles at whatever pace feels good or when I did a heart rate program it might be five 6 minute intervals in zone 4 alternating with 2 minutes at zone 2.

For lifting I just follow my program and increase weight as indicated. It takes as long as it takes.

For steps, whatever it takes to get 15,000 a day.

Calories burned has NEVER been a goal for me regarding fitness. Only milestones like distance or steps or weight lifted have been a goal.

ereck44

The whole calories burned is tricky...due to how it is measured....if you use the numbers on a piece of equipment like a treadmill or ellyptical...the numbers on the machine are a lot higher than the numbers that you actually burn.
I started with going to the gym, using a personal trainer 7 x per month, lost 12 pounds, then plateaued. Then changed gyms, was recommended mfp, stepped up the weight lifting to 4 x per week (1/2 hr) with personal trainer....reduced my calories to 1700 per day with 95% accurate logging and purchased a heart rate monitor. Now I am running a lot, working on my 5th half marathon. I am at maintenance weight now. I may lose another 10 but happy with the weight that I am now. In answer to your question, focus on time and intensity of workout...get a good sweat going (unless you are swimming) and change it up....find an exercise that is fun for you and that you look forward to doing. All change is a little uncomfortable so expect some soreness and appreciate it....that means you are working hard.