Just starting out (well starting over) and have a question?

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Truegoddess22
Truegoddess22 Posts: 94 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
So I've been trying to lose weight for about the past 5yrs or so. I am 5'2 and I weigh 180. I've bounced up and down with the same 10-12 lbs over the years. My goal weight is 125-130. My question is if you are just starting out and have been sedentary forever, how do you get over the soreness from exercising?? Do you just keep pushing through, do you rest for a day or 2 and then get back at it?

I get motivated to workout and then I stick with it for maybe 2, 3 days at the max and then once I get sore and it hurts to move I just forget about it. Like yesterday I walked a mile and then I also did 15mins of Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred. The squats have my thigh muscles hurting so bad.

Also, I'm using an app called WorkOut Trainer to workout from home, no equipment being used. I plan on getting a jump rope, kettlebells and weights from Walmart once I save up the money.

Thanks

Replies

  • BikerChickAlice
    BikerChickAlice Posts: 36 Member
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    Kettlebells are great! It's never as bad as the first few workouts if you keep it up. Magnesium melate supplements really help! I have a lot of muscle soreness relating to fybromyalgia and they are helpful. If your in good health, just think yourself really lucky and grab the bull by the horns!
  • owieprone
    owieprone Posts: 217 Member
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    if you're not used to it and you're sore already, you're pushing too hard. YOu should feel tight and stiff then next day or two, but not actually sore.

    Try to ease back into it, and make sure you rest a day in between, do say 2 days of moderate exercise and 1 of intense and 1 of easy (the day after your intense to stretch you out and ease your muscles off, gentle yoga/pilates etc).

    Once you're used to exercising again you can introduce harder, longer or more sessions, and cut down your rest days. Your body needs to rest so you shouldn't not have a rest day, you should have AT LEAST one rest day a week, but as you're starting out again, i'd say 3. apart from anything else, it also gives you time to do other things before you get totally committed and don't care about missing out on things like going to the pub for a swift bevvy.

    You already know that pushing too hard makes you quit quickly. So write out an exercise programme for yourself and make sure what you're eating follows what you're going to be doing so you are properly fuelled. for example

    monday, moderate swimming for an hour, eat normally
    tuesday rest
    weds, intense exercise, eat more than usual
    thurs, easy exercise, eat less than usual
    fri, rest
    sat, moderate exercise, eat normally
    sun rest.

    every 3 months or so change your routine, days, intensities, timings etc that you're doing to stop you getting bored, and make your body work, you think you're fit after 3 months until you change regime and it's like starting all over again! I love a regime change! you can always throw in a gym class every now and then.

    It's also worth considering joining a club. I joined a triathlon club cos it does my 3 fav sports, i had no intention of doing tri's (i've now signed up for one, a year after i joined). It's cheaper than a gym by a long shot! and most clubs have qualified coaches. It's also a good way to make new mates and have a large group to have a mental social with once a month or whatever, they spur you on in training, make you push yourself harder than you would if you were training alone and make you do mad things (like sign up for tri's).

    Hope that was helpful! good luck :D
  • DanIsACyclingFool
    DanIsACyclingFool Posts: 417 Member
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    I don't know, I kind of like being sore!

    It means I done good.
  • ChrisLindsay9
    ChrisLindsay9 Posts: 837 Member
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    Soreness (or tightness/stiffness) is inevitable unfortunately. But one of the temporary ways you can relieve it is more exercise (or activity), ironically. So when I was starting out, after a day of weight training, I typically would do some easy cardio the next day (walk/slow jog on a treadmill, for example). I noticed that once the body "warms up" then the soreness/stiffness diminishes a bit.

    The good thing as that the more you exercise, the more your body gets better at recovery. It doesn't happen overnight, but once it starts getting to the point where you can tell the soreness/stiffness is less, then you're close to the point of where it will be minimal. And then, the only time you may experience soreness is if you change up your routine a bit.

    Whenever you feel sore or unmotivated, just remember that good feeling you get during and right after a workout. Imprint that sensation in your mind when you work out, so you can draw upon that when you need. When you start up again, take some pictures. Keep them on your computer or phone, and then take progress pictures every 2-3 weeks. Observing the changes can be motivational. And the good thing is that if you falter, you can delete the pictures and start again.

    Good luck to you! Don't be afraid of the soreness. Persevere through it, and you will be on the path to improved fitness and health. I'm rooting for ya, Truegoddess22!

    edit:
    Starting out with working out every day may make you give up. You could work out one day, rest the next. Sometimes I've been sore in my legs and I know that was no excuse not to get any exercise in. Walking helps the soreness. ;-) Just do a little bit at a time and eat because you're hungry and not because the food is there.
    Very good point. When I started out, I worked out 3-4 times a week. Allowed the body to rest/recover. It's not just the muscles, but the joints/ligaments/etc. that need to recover from sudden stress and weightloads.
  • flumi_f
    flumi_f Posts: 1,888 Member
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    Starting out with working out every day may make you give up. You could work out one day, rest the next. Sometimes I've been sore in my legs and I know that was no excuse not to get any exercise in. Walking helps the soreness. ;-) Just do a little bit at a time and eat because you're hungry and not because the food is there.

    ^^This

    Start slow and ease into it. I find the best thing against soreness is light activity - like a nice walk outside.
  • Truegoddess22
    Truegoddess22 Posts: 94 Member
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    Yea I'm working on not eating my emotions. I'm an emotional eater and have been for years and that also contributed to my weight gain (I also have PCOS) Thanks for the suggestions. :D
    Starting out with working out every day may make you give up. You could work out one day, rest the next. Sometimes I've been sore in my legs and I know that was no excuse not to get any exercise in. Walking helps the soreness. ;-) Just do a little bit at a time and eat because you're hungry and not because the food is there.
  • Truegoddess22
    Truegoddess22 Posts: 94 Member
    Options
    Thanks for the tips and the motivation! I appreciate it :D

    Soreness (or tightness/stiffness) is inevitable unfortunately. But one of the temporary ways you can relieve it is more exercise (or activity), ironically. So when I was starting out, after a day of weight training, I typically would do some easy cardio the next day (walk/slow jog on a treadmill, for example). I noticed that once the body "warms up" then the soreness/stiffness diminishes a bit.

    The good thing as that the more you exercise, the more your body gets better at recovery. It doesn't happen overnight, but once it starts getting to the point where you can tell the soreness/stiffness is less, then you're close to the point of where it will be minimal. And then, the only time you may experience soreness is if you change up your routine a bit.

    Whenever you feel sore or unmotivated, just remember that good feeling you get during and right after a workout. Imprint that sensation in your mind when you work out, so you can draw upon that when you need. When you start up again, take some pictures. Keep them on your computer or phone, and then take progress pictures every 2-3 weeks. Observing the changes can be motivational. And the good thing is that if you falter, you can delete the pictures and start again.

    Good luck to you! Don't be afraid of the soreness. Persevere through it, and you will be on the path to improved fitness and health. I'm rooting for ya, Truegoddess22!

    edit:
    Starting out with working out every day may make you give up. You could work out one day, rest the next. Sometimes I've been sore in my legs and I know that was no excuse not to get any exercise in. Walking helps the soreness. ;-) Just do a little bit at a time and eat because you're hungry and not because the food is there.
    Very good point. When I started out, I worked out 3-4 times a week. Allowed the body to rest/recover. It's not just the muscles, but the joints/ligaments/etc. that need to recover from sudden stress and weightloads.
  • Truegoddess22
    Truegoddess22 Posts: 94 Member
    Options
    I was going to a gym but it got too expensive when I had to cut back and budget so that's why I downloaded the Workout Trainer app. I think I'll stick with this for a while and see how it goes and then once I have the money I'll go back to the gym. Thanks for the exercise program example. I think I'll make one now. :D
    if you're not used to it and you're sore already, you're pushing too hard. YOu should feel tight and stiff then next day or two, but not actually sore.

    Try to ease back into it, and make sure you rest a day in between, do say 2 days of moderate exercise and 1 of intense and 1 of easy (the day after your intense to stretch you out and ease your muscles off, gentle yoga/pilates etc).

    Once you're used to exercising again you can introduce harder, longer or more sessions, and cut down your rest days. Your body needs to rest so you shouldn't not have a rest day, you should have AT LEAST one rest day a week, but as you're starting out again, i'd say 3. apart from anything else, it also gives you time to do other things before you get totally committed and don't care about missing out on things like going to the pub for a swift bevvy.

    You already know that pushing too hard makes you quit quickly. So write out an exercise programme for yourself and make sure what you're eating follows what you're going to be doing so you are properly fuelled. for example

    monday, moderate swimming for an hour, eat normally
    tuesday rest
    weds, intense exercise, eat more than usual
    thurs, easy exercise, eat less than usual
    fri, rest
    sat, moderate exercise, eat normally
    sun rest.

    every 3 months or so change your routine, days, intensities, timings etc that you're doing to stop you getting bored, and make your body work, you think you're fit after 3 months until you change regime and it's like starting all over again! I love a regime change! you can always throw in a gym class every now and then.

    It's also worth considering joining a club. I joined a triathlon club cos it does my 3 fav sports, i had no intention of doing tri's (i've now signed up for one, a year after i joined). It's cheaper than a gym by a long shot! and most clubs have qualified coaches. It's also a good way to make new mates and have a large group to have a mental social with once a month or whatever, they spur you on in training, make you push yourself harder than you would if you were training alone and make you do mad things (like sign up for tri's).

    Hope that was helpful! good luck :D
  • MrsBingley
    MrsBingley Posts: 145
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    If you work out really hard, and you get sore, it is perfectly fine to take a "rest" day, or even a few rest days until you get used to it. That said, I would still aim for *some* kind of movement on your rest days, even if it is just a long leisurely walk in the lovely fall weather or a good game of Dance Dance Revolution with the kids (this is my favorite).

    Exercising does not have to make your miserable. The trick is to incorporate stuff you actually enjoy on a regular basis and then push yourself on occasion.

    Edit as per typos on phone
  • diadia1
    diadia1 Posts: 223 Member
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    1-going slowly in the beginning.
    2-getting a WARM-UP before starting to do any strength traing, body weights or lifting (aka: push-ups, lunges, squats, biceps curls, lat.pull-down, etc....)
    3- having a day rest in between workouts when you perform a full body.
    or no rest day but make sure you perform alternating body parts. (ex: Monday-legs day, Tuesday arms-day, Wednesday Abs
    day, then go Thursdsay go back to legs-day, etc)
    4- But most important of all: proper Fueling for your body and I mean
    eating a PRE-snack and a POST snack. Doesn't have to be a lot, but your body needs it.
    Ex. Pre---> Carbs +++ (especially if you plan on cardio) and Post (emphasis on Proteines and a bit of Carbs)
    Pre: -more than 2 hours before exercise--> a complete meal is ok
    - 30min-1hour: fruits, 1 slice of bread with sompe proteines (cheese, nuts...)
    -15-30min : Carbs only --> orange juice, banana, grapes, any fruits or rapid absorption sugar (aka simple sugar)

    Post (within an hour after exercise): milk chocolate does wonders as it as the perfect ratio carbs/proteins. And It tastes SO GOOD! A protein bar can be an option if you have earn a lot of calories. But most of thetime i have my supper for my post snack!!!

    5-STRETCHING after. also very important.

    P.S. Those are my guidelines for exercises because i am runner. I have started doing this for the last 2 months and i am amazed how quickly i recover from the run (especially in my legs)
  • wilsoje74
    wilsoje74 Posts: 1,720 Member
    Options
    So I've been trying to lose weight for about the past 5yrs or so. I am 5'2 and I weigh 180. I've bounced up and down with the same 10-12 lbs over the years. My goal weight is 125-130. My question is if you are just starting out and have been sedentary forever, how do you get over the soreness from exercising?? Do you just keep pushing through, do you rest for a day or 2 and then get back at it?

    I get motivated to workout and then I stick with it for maybe 2, 3 days at the max and then once I get sore and it hurts to move I just forget about it. Like yesterday I walked a mile and then I also did 15mins of Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred. The squats have my thigh muscles hurting so bad.

    Also, I'm using an app called WorkOut Trainer to workout from home, no equipment being used. I plan on getting a jump rope, kettlebells and weights from Walmart once I save up the money.

    Thanks

    Don't start out going from no exercise to walking plus DVDs plus weights plus kettle bells etc.... Start out walking every other day. Increase your mileage. Rest every other day. Don't add more exercise until you can walk pretty briskly (15 min miles) for about 3 miles. Then maybe add one DVD a week to the three days of waking. Or start the couch to 5k program. Don't start weights until you get your fitness level up. It all takes time. If you rush in you will expect too much and quit as you have before.

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