Work out suggestions for a larger man?

I was over 315 lbs when I joined the Y. They have classes for all fitness levels. My first class was adaptive yoga where they taught yoga basics from a chair. yep, over half the class were sitting in a chair and the other half were leaning on the chair. There are also machines he could do like recumbent bike, recumbent crosstrainer, and rowing that are also seated. When he's ready there is low impact machines like ellipticals that he can start at doing for 5-10 mins like I did. And strength training. Instead of free weights he might feel more comfortable sitting at the weight machines like the chest press, abductors, shoulder press, etc and work specific muscle groups. Strength training will not only help with weightloss and strength, but it also decreases the amount of excess skin he'll have. I also like walking around the track at the Y. The Y has great facilities, programs, classes, support, knowledgeable and compassionate staff, but it's for people of all fitness levels and ages. He might feel out of place going to a gym full of hard bodies but at the Y he'll fit right in. Also, I really recommend water aerobics.
When I first started working out i couldn't work out a whole hour. Now I work out 4 hrs a day/6 days a week! It can definitely be done. I'm still 285 lbs but my fitness level is so much higher in just a few months time. Good luck! You guys can friend me on here if you want.

Depends on over all condition and if there injuries or any other factors.

Certainly walking, some stretching and simple floor exercise is a start. if you can easily do that then go for more...

good luck !

When I decided to change my lifestyle, approx 4 years ago, I was 326lbs, I am 6'4". I did P90X. I have an athletic background, but at that point I couldn't walk a flight of stairs without breathing heavy.
I just worked my way into it slowly. I did it in my basement with a pull up bar and one 20lb dumbbell. I also changed my eating habits. I lost 60 lbs the first time through, then another 45 the second.
It worked for me, and changed my life.

I see a lot of suggestions for walking but I'm going to plug the elliptical if you go the gym route. At my heaviest, before I even started logging, I came in at 6' tall 365lbs. The first time I got on the elliptical it was for a whopping 2 minutes before I was tired but after adding a minute or 2 each gym visit it got much better pretty quick. Just hit the treadmill after too. Also don't forget strength training. I didn't start lifting until 6ish months ago when I was 290lbs and I still kick myself I didn't start earlier. The weight has come off faster since then.

Yeah he needs to start waling or biking to get the body moving into a direction of working out, then find a good cross training gym or mma fitness program..

Start slow and continue to increase the intensity. I was 5 10 250lbs. I walked 30 mins a day for a week, then did 30 mins 2 times a day (morning and evening). After a few weeks I joined the YMCA and started 30 mins of cardio on their machines, and kept the 2 walks in daily as well. After that I added weight lifting to the cardio.

Start slow, listen to his body as he feels stronger he should increase the intensity overtime. His body will adapt and after a number of months, he won't believe with how much better he feels.

Feel free to have him friend me, I've been there.

I will throw a slightly different pitch.. if hes 300lbs and has not worked out, I would advise seeing a GOOD personal trainer and a visit to his Dr.. get clearance from the doc to make sure there are no health issues to consider. seeing a qualified personal trainer that can perform an analysis specific to your husband (such as an FMS screen - http://www.functionalmovement.com/fms). In other words, ensure no health issues, then evaluate if he has any functional issues to be addressed. the workout program would start from there.. If this is not an option, look into Cosgrove's "New rules of lifting" or rippletoes book "starting strength"

the generic advice of "just walk" MAY be ok.. if he has good knees, etc. but cardio alone is not the answer to everyone. strength training will get him stronger and more able to move around his body mass as well as reduce the chances of injuries (if executed properly). if done as noted in cosgroves book, it will also have a big impact on cardiovascular fitness and burn more fat than cardio alone.

^^ This.
I am 6'4" as well. Although I like the idea of taking it slow by "walking" it can also lead to a lack of motivation because you may not feel the burn. As others have suggested here, cardio is important, but so is strength training. Nothing like feeling pumped up biceps to motivate someone.

I agree with most of the others that mentioned walking. When I started I was 327, and 6'5" and doing anything more than walking was not realistic. After a month of walking 5-6 days a week as briskly as I could manage, I moved on to more intense cardio activities.