OUT OF SHAPE...WHERE DO I START?

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  • plantgrrl
    plantgrrl Posts: 436 Member
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    Start by tracking everything you eat--measure all your food--it's annoying but will help you in the long run. You don't even have to change anything at first. Just to be aware of how much a "serving" is and how much you're eating.

    You can start fairly easy if you want. Try to take the stairs instead of the elevator. Park further away in the parking lot.

    My husband is very low in muscle tone and we've been quite happen so fair doing DDP Yoga. I never quite got into Zumba, I do have the DVDs though, so I should give it another chance. Whatever works for you really. When I was doing weight watchers the advice they give you at the beginning is to "add steps" to your day--walk a little more. Get a good pedometer to see your average steps in a day and try to add a few hundred until you can get up to 10,000 per day.

    If you do the Zumba, you might consider a heart rate monitor, if you're worried about over doing it. It's a good way to gauge how your body is reacting to higher impact exercises. I was able to find a Polar FT7 for about $40 online.

    Anyways, stick to it!
  • minizebu
    minizebu Posts: 2,716 Member
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    My suggestion would be to start slow and simple. Walking is something that you can do any time of day, and any place. You don't need any memberships, or special equipment (other than a sturdy pair of shoes, preferably an athletic shoe meant for walking that provides good arch and ankle support) to succeed with a walking program. You only need to be consistent and persistent.

    A pedometer is definitely a nice plus because it provides instant feedback as to how much you are moving and acts as a wonderful proxy for NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis) even in the absence of a formal walk or run.

    Walking is best in the beginning (vs. running) in order to help you build your cardiovascular endurance and to make sure that you do not stress your knees or other joints.

    Start slow and keep on going! Good luck!
  • 7opoundsin16weeks
    7opoundsin16weeks Posts: 211 Member
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    start by getting rid of the fattening foods in your kitchen
  • AliciaStaton
    AliciaStaton Posts: 328 Member
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    Hi agree with some of the comments about walking. My husband started walking about 3 months ago and he has lost nearly 2 stones since doing that. He started walking 30 minutes each day doing different routes so he would not get bored and then built it up week after week. He now walks 3 hours a day. For me I go to the gym and do some dance classes. However, for you I would recommend doing the walking, its free just need some sturdy shoes. Good luck with what ever you choose.
  • Cannon_G
    Cannon_G Posts: 77 Member
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    I suggest walking for 20 minutes a day for the first week. Increase to 30 minutes in the second week. Third week I would start the Galloway Easy 5K app. The app uses a run-walk-run technique where you alternate running and walking for short intervals. The program has 3 exercise days a week with two short runs and one long run. When I started the app I was morbidly obese in terrible health. His app helped me slowly start exercise and stay injury free. When I started I had fears of having a medical emergency on the run/walk so I would do laps around our local fire dept. That way if I needed help I wouldn't be far. The program is designed to get you from couch to your first 5k in 8 weeks. If you don't have a smartphone or don't want to pay the few dollars that the app costs you can download the program for free and just use a stopwatch to time out the running and walking intervals. It's a terrific program that helped me lose 115 pounds.
  • Ninkyou
    Ninkyou Posts: 6,666 Member
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    I also recommend walking! That's what I've been doing. I started out walking 2 miles, but that's me. I'd say start with 1 mile. If you have a park or trail nearby with mile markers, it's a HUGE help. Walk to the 1/2 marker and then back. Slowly increase your distance from there. I'm now up to 3 miles a day and I love it.
  • dennymau
    dennymau Posts: 118 Member
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    Walking is a great place to start!!!
  • AmberleyAngel
    AmberleyAngel Posts: 160 Member
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    Start by doing as much as you can of any chosen exercise activity. Don't worry about how little you can do. You've just got to start. Work on increasing it slightly - an extra minute, one lamp post further etc.

    With walking I started only being able to walk as far as my front gate. I worked at extending that by the width of one property every day until I could do the whole street, then around the corner and down that street. It took me months, but now I can walk to the local shops and back.

    Zumba is great and I hope you love it as much as I do. I started off at 8-9 minutes and now can complete an hour and still have energy to do other things like exercycle or kettlebells.

    Both of these things I've worked on since about the beginning of February this year. It is surprising how quickly you build up endurance, fitness, and strength.

    Do it consistently, build up slowly and be proud of every little step you take.

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