To those who had/have 100 lbs to lose

I've lost a total of 106 pounds so far. I started off with water aerobics, walking, and recumbent bike. Did Zumba Gold for a little while, and started lifting on the weight machines. Finally moved on to Zumba (love it), and working with a trainer, and free weights. Start where you can, you'll work your way up!

I started at 326 and I started excercise with walking. Just getting out and walking was a great place to start

I am 45 now and have 103 left to lose - - I started off with 168 pounds to lose.

Because I was monstrously, morbidly obese I started off with what I could do ... in my case, 7 minutes on a recumbent bike, 5 days a week. After a while I was able to step that up to 10 minutes, then 15, etc. I took it in easy stages, though. Now, almost 9 months later, I have lost 65.5 pounds, and I am up to 40 minutes on an elliptical trainer x 6 days a week + free weights x 3 days a week.

After watching the Biggest Loser this year, I realised one thing. Getting stuck in is not going to kill us. Those contestants were morbidly obese, and were pushed and pushed and pushed, all the while being told 'NO EXCUSE!'. And they didn't die. They didn't keel over. They could do a lot more than they truly believed they could do. And they got fit, healthy and happy.

So, with around 110lb to lose, I joined the gym straight away. And I worked my fat *kitten* off. Literally. I saw a lot of other overweight people walking around, mucking around, wasting time. Not me. I did an hour 3 times a week, and I worked every minute of it. In fact, the PT eventually got me and explained the need to rest between 'sets'. I didn't even know what a set was! She also told me to slow down on the weight machines as I was using cardio instead of strength. I found when I first started that it was almost addictive. I wanted to go back later again in the same day, and sometimes I did!

I've dropped almost 30 kilos so far (66lbs). I log my foods every day, I have really relaxed into it now, and even when I don't go to the gym I'm losing weight because I'm eating healthy, but I have to say I'm getting VERY flabby LOL. I haven't been to the gym in weeks now because of illness and some personal stuff, and although the kilos are still coming off, the flabby skin isn't!

Keeping motivated IS hard. The only suggestion I can do is to mix it up. And also, don't give up on any one thing that you consider just too hard. As you gain strength and fitness, go back to those things, you will be pleasantly surprised

I know there are a lot of facts on different ways of doing this, and I too have to get stuck in and re-read up on it all. I know having a day off is essential to your strength/muscle building workouts. Don't rely just on the gym. My son and I 'play tennis'. By that I mean we whack the balls around the tennis courts until I wee my pants laughing and we have to come home. We laugh hysterically and have a fantastic time. We are constantly active, we don't slack off, but it's also heaps of fun!

I'm dying for our local pool to reopen so I can include swimming in my exercise. (Summer is almost here in Australia.)

Hiking and walking is fun. Cycling? I don't own a bike, I'd probably fall off.

I also can NOT run/job. I just can't. I'm not sure what's wrong with me, but I literally go backwards when I try, and I'm still carrying too much weight to risk the damage I might do. But that's ok. We are not all meant to be runners

Walk the dog. If you don't have one, volunteer at your local animal refuge and walk THEIR dogs

Join the council walks in your area, take a refuge dog, he will love you forever!

Dig. Get out and dig a new garden bed.

Do you have a cause close to your heart? Start a petition and walk around town for signatures. Fundraise for a local charity, go out selling raffle tickets.

Park extra blocks away from work and walk there, same with shopping. Can you walk to the supermarket and have them home deliver and walk home?

I think for us bigger, middle aged woman...it's just important to 'start', and not expect too much of ourselves, but never give up! Just moving more can help, but always log every single thing you eat, because you can go over so easily and no amount of moving is going to work if you're then eating too much.

When I first started at the gym, I pushed myself and took note of what I did. I did that for a few days. Then next week, I did what I did, plus just one more. One more rep, or just one more minute. And then I continued doing that. Do what I could already do, then just one more. Also, always eat protein before you go. Not only does it help build muscle which you need to burn fat, but it keeps you fuller for longer. Don't be afraid of gaining muscle!!! I was terrified of this. In the end, I found out how misguided I was. It's essential, and no you don't bulk up even further

Sorry for the massive post. I hope some of these ideas help someone...

I started my journey with 110 lbs to lose and I am down 51 so far. I started by simply walking. I mapped a route in my neighborhood and would walked 2 laps ( a mile) and then each week I would add on more laps. It was hard at first but it got to the point where it was the highlight of my day. I have added in going to the gym occasionally doing Tae Bo and I try to at least every other day lift light weights to tone my arms and do ab work. I started the 30 day shred and loved it but ended up hurting my knee and was out of commission for a week. I am back on walking again...it is least impact and is actually very good for. I do also love to go swimming on the weekends. Good luck on your journey and know that you can do it, you just have to lace up your shoes and get moving. The hardest part is getting started, but once you do...it is easy from there.

I started in May so out of shape that I could hardly do 2 minutes on an elliptical. I always made excuses that I was too busy to add exercise to my schedule. Other people have busy schedules and make fitness a priority and if they can do it so can I. The number of physical problems I was having were starting to really concern me and the common theme was diet and exercise. I decided if I was going to be successful then exercise had to be part of my daily routine. Exercise is how I start my day. I don't get a shower unless I have done my exercise. Starting my day with showering and brushing my teeth etc. was part of my daily routine so i added the exercise to the beginning of my day, no excuses. I have artificial hips so walking was out. I am now up to level 12 on the elliptical for 30 minutes and I rotate my strength training so I am doing something every day without overworking an area. It takes 6 months to form a habit. I am almost there.

the best exercise you can do is heavy weight lifting. just search the forums for weightlifting and women and there will be plenty of thread with great advice.

not only will the weight lifting melt the pounds off but when you lose the weight you will look a lot better than if you just did cardio or counted calories.

I'm 49 and started at 47. I started walking and biking. Also have access to a fitness center at work.

I've lost the first 100 and have about 75 more to go. Feel free to add me as a friend if you want.

It's all up to you, but having friends with the same goals helps.

I started out at 237 two years ago and am down to 166.5. I decided that I was tired of being tired and needed to lose weight. I set a goal of around 100 pounds and started using the elliptical at the Y. The first week I lost 2 pounds. I was so exited that I started doing the elliptical 5x a week for an hour at a time. I lost around 35 pounds the first six months or so and then I would plateau for months on end and then lose a few more. When I finally joined MFP in April and have lost 21 pounds since then. I am taking a hiatus from gym workouts right now and am planning to start working out at home very soon. I just bought the book You are Your Own Gym by Mark Lauren and I plan to start his program. It is all bodyweight exercises that you do about 4x a week for 20-30 minutes at a time.

I tried walking, but it bothered my knees and feet too much. So I swam at the Y once in a while and did the low-impact version of Turbo Jam (she has two separate instructors you can follow - they do the modified version).

Once I was under 330, I started doing Wii Fit (the games that got my heart rate up) and started walking again. It's much easier now that I'm 40 pounds lighter. I also had an athletic store fit me with the proper shoes.

Mostly, just do whatever gets your heart rate up and doesn't put a lot of wear and tear on your joints. And remember, it's 80% diet. You can get away with walking at a reasonable pace 30 minutes every day if you're consistently within your calorie goal. I didn't exercise AT ALL this summer because it was 103 and humid for days on end, and I still lost 22 pounds in 2-3 months.

I am 48 yrs old andI have lost over 90 pounds through eating healthy and using our recumbent bike. This has been my only formal exercise. I started out doing less than 5 minutes a night on level 0 biking to music. I gradually worked up my intensity and time. Here I am, less than 11 months later..now biking over 50 minutes a night on levels 4,5,and 6. Our bike has over 3000 miles on it and I've biked 85% of those miles or about 2500 miles. I shake my head in disbelief every night Always good to check with your doc and ask if you should be concerned, but if you work at stuff gradually, you will know what a comfortable level of exertion is. Common sense in all things is always a good rule. All the very best..congratulations on making a great decision to work your way to a healthier you!

I weigh 350 and just started today pretty much. I did the first day of couch to 5k and I was surprisingly able to handle it well without major huffing and puffing. My wife who is half my size couldn't keep up with me. My feet are killing me though so I don't know if i will be able to continue with it. I might have to limit myself to walking for a while.

I can't do the elliptical. I need a knee to lock in order hold up my weight and the constant movement without locking just hurts my legs too much. Perhaps I need to work on my legs on the strength training first.

I can do the stationary bikes that have wider seats, but my butt is hurting by the end.

A big challenge for me is going to be eating better. I do not like most vegetables. I cannot eat a salad and I don't understand how anyone can.

I guess this resonates with me because you are the same age as my boyfriend (who was significantly overweight) when he passed away. If you are significantly overweight and out of shape, go to your doctor first to make sure that you can exercise safely.

Personally, I do mostly shallow water aerobics although I prefer deep water but I have scheduling issues until next year. I also do a little bit of walking but not much because of knee problems.

Walking worked really well for me for 120 pounds. Lots and lots of walking. Lots.

I've just recently started some Jillian Michaels dvds and they are good but hard. I don't think I could have done them at my highest weight, or even 50 pounds ago. And that would have really discouraged me.

So my suggestion is just start walking and keep doing that until you feel you're ready for more.

Exercise - Where did you start?

I would appreciate it if those who have lost or are in the middle of their journey would share what they started with.

I am an out of shape, 47 year old female. I don't want to die in the process of trying to get healthy. Where did you start, what kept you motivated to keep up with the exercise? What got you to push through and not give up until you decided that you loved to exercise? Or did you lose first then add exercise?

Thanks

I did no exercise until I had lost over 100 pounds. I knew me well enough to know that I needed/need accountability, so, I found a wonderful trainer who gets paid to kick my butt into shape 3 times a week! I started with a lot of elliptical though...now, I'm actually jogging-YES, JOGGING-on a treadmill. I still have about 60/70 pounds to go, but, the exercise does more than motivate the body, it also motivates your mind.

I say, know what you can commit to, and GO FOR IT! Push yourself and revel in the results! Congrats on your journey thus far!