What changes can I expect with a new routine? Do I need to add or reconsider anything?

CitrusMaiden

Hello!
Short background: I'm 26 years old, female, I've never been fit but my BMI has always been on the lower side of the "good BMI range". I get out of breath after 10 seconds of running (I can run for a minute, but then I am quite knocked out afterwards). I'm also weak, I can do a few pushups and I can carry things around, I can walk for hours, but I'm rather frail. The last few years I haven't moved around that much, I usually just sit by my computer.

I've decided to "get healthy", not that I am sick now, but it's basically an attempt to be nice to my body and prevent future issues. I've been doing tai chi and yoga for about a month (not sure how much those do body-wise, but I really enjoy them), and now I will start with some body weight exercises. I've picked the "beginner body weight circuit workout" by nerd fitness to go by, it was linked in a thread in the gaining weight/body building section of the forum. It sounds like the right level to start at for me and I know how to do all the steps.
I'm guessing one session will take me around 20 minutes, I will warm up before and stretch afterwards.

I have counted on a smoothie covering the extra calories on the days I work out. I would like to do the body weight exercises maybe 5-6 days a week, but if I have to rest every other day it would probably be 3 days a week.


Now to the questions:
How fast can I expect change to happen? I know it takes a long time for muscle to build, but what is realistic? When would a weakling like me "feel" change?
I should only eat enough calories to cover the exercise, right?
When I do such a "light" lifting routine, do I still need to have every other day off to let the muscles rest?
Would it be beneficial for me to start running? I will start taking walks every day and try to do more productive things than watching youtube videos, but would actually running be beneficial?

Thanks for any answers!

middlehaitch

Do the Nerdfitness routine every other day, three days a week. Walking is fine on your off days, as is the yoga you are enjoying.

(I do yoga as well as lifting and find it very complementary as it increases my flexibility and balance)

Don’t jump into to much too soon, wait and start running, if you wish, once you have your other programme established.

Even though you are not ‘lifting heavy’ you are still challenging and strengthening your muscles. Eat back the exercise calories you burn, it helps with avoiding lethargy, and getting the best out of your work out.

It can take weeks or months to feel and see a difference. Be consistent and the improvements will come.

Cheers, h.

CitrusMaiden

Thank you for your reply! 3 days it is then I guess I could aim at starting to run in the spring, by then I should be quite comfortable with this new routine, and any snow (more likely slush) would be gone.

I will do my best to try to make this work.

lorrpb

Good for you for getting started! I think how fast you feel a change depends on your expectations as to what constitutes noticeable change. When I started I couldn't walk up my steep driveway and walking up 3 steps to my porch was a challenge. I strength trained 2x and walked other days.
I noticed changes within a couple weeks, in terms of things like getting into our pickup truck getting easier. It probably took about 6 months until I could easily walk up those steps without thinking about it. I went from barely walking 1/4 mile to 3 miles within a few months. These were huge improvements for me but might not be noticeable to you. I also lost a lot of weight during this time. After 4 years I still notice that I can increase weight or reps every couple of weeks, it's a constant process.. But I'm far from ripped or having arrived. I'm 63 and started at 59. Get started now and make it part if your lifestyle so you don't have to go through what I did!

CitrusMaiden

Thank you for your reply, lorrpb! You've had amazing progress!

I hope I will notice some type of progress after a few weeks, I don't care what it is, maybe just feeling a little better in general? I'm more than alright with it taking longer than that, but I almost wish that I had problem areas that I could judge improvement on ... I suppose I should be happy that I start now, before I have those.
I suppose I could count the number of pushups I can do, or something else like that.

Barfly57

Did you download the Nerd Fitness spreadsheet? Keeping track of your workouts will let you see your progress.

CitrusMaiden

Barfly57 wrote: »

Did you download the Nerd Fitness spreadsheet? Keeping track of your workouts will let you see your progress.

I don't think I did, no. I bookmarked the video and read what they had on the page the link lead to. Is it the one they call "beginner bodyweight routine worksheet"? I didn't pay much attention to those before since they looked a bit like ads.

Barfly57

That's the one.
Nerd Fitness is pretty good about ads; they'll try to get you to sign up for their premium content, but that's about all.
The best way - in my opinion - to make progress is to find a structured program that you like and stick with it for at least 6 months, then reevaluate.

CitrusMaiden

Alright, thank you for the tip