Is working out for 30 mins. daily "enough"?

Lisa1971
Lisa1971 Posts: 3,069 Member
edited September 26 in Health and Weight Loss
I usually try and do 45-60 mins but lately I just can't seem to work out for this long! My son is 17 months and has had some bad nights with ear infections and now has reactive airway disease so we've had some trips to the doctors and sleepless nights. Last night I wasn't able to sleep because my husband wouldn't stop snoring! lol!

So to make a long story short is 30 mins this week going to be enough cardio if I do it at least 5 days a week? Ugh. I just am racked with guilt! :( Will I still get benefits even if it's only 30 mins? Thanks!!!!!

Replies

  • Frappuzzino
    Frappuzzino Posts: 342 Member
    30 is better than nothing. :)
  • polar5554
    polar5554 Posts: 576 Member
    Take a positive spin on it...At least you're working out for 30 minutes!!!
  • alliecore
    alliecore Posts: 446 Member
    At least 30 minutes, at least 5 days a week, is the recommended minimum. While more def wouldn't hurt, you are doing great! :)
  • wecmom
    wecmom Posts: 11
    A little is better than none UNLESS you are so sleep deprived you can't function. If you allow yourself to get too fatigued, your body will start retaining weight - at least mine does. Get well rested and workout as much as you can and know that life - especially with kids - happens, but it doesn't have to be the end all of your physical goals.
  • BamBam1113
    BamBam1113 Posts: 542 Member
    You will get benefits to EVERYTHING active you do. Don't base them on what the scale says though. If that's all you can do this week and no numbers change...be proud of yourself for not getting lazy and not doing anything.
  • Amandac6772
    Amandac6772 Posts: 1,311 Member
    Don't be racked with guilt. You need to do what you can and when things improve up the time you are able to commit. Make that 30 minutes very intense and it will definitely have some benefits.
  • bisky
    bisky Posts: 1,090 Member
    Maybe you can increase your intensity during that 30 minutes. I know I push myself harder on the spin bike for 30 min vs. just 60 min.
  • genshi800
    genshi800 Posts: 3 Member
    This forum is so full of bad information.

    Intensity > Duration.
  • Crystal_Rudolph
    Crystal_Rudolph Posts: 632 Member
    I work out strenously for 30 minutes everyday and thats it! i have lost 15 pounds so far and see no reason to change my exercise habits yet. :)
  • kylakesgal
    kylakesgal Posts: 952 Member
    Yes absolutely! On most days 30 mins is all I have time for but would prefer to do more. Start with that and maybe you can increase it by a few mins every now and then. Sounds like you are doing great:) Good luck to you!
  • dailyorange
    dailyorange Posts: 128
    Make those 30 minutes count! I usually don't like going past 30 minutes, therefore I incorporate intervals. I go fast for a minute and then slow down for two minutes and then repeat, then cool down. Gets your heart rate up and essentially you burn more calories in the long run than steady state cardio.
  • ruhimaach
    ruhimaach Posts: 171
    Not sure if you've tried JM's videos, but those 30 minutes doing JM's videos are such a killer and equal to an hour's worth of moderate exercise at the gym.
  • barefootbeautiful
    barefootbeautiful Posts: 144
    30 minutes is NOT bad! Have you tried breaking it up into small little 15 minute chunks? You can do a few minutes of pushups and running in place while you're sorting baby laundry, a few minutes of dancing while you're prepping dinner..... Are there any mommy'n'me classes where you are? There's a lot of working out you can do WITH your baby - might be worth looking into. Good luck mama!
  • drog2323
    drog2323 Posts: 1,343 Member
    a person could slack *kitten* it for a workout for 2 hours. or one could bust *kitten* for 30 minutes. I'm taking the latter would burn more cals and have better gains from the workout.
  • ubabe1
    ubabe1 Posts: 144 Member
    I usually only have time for a 30 minute workout during the week. I do other things to burn calories that are not necessarily a "workout". In the evening I might get some Wii time in as well. On the weekends I like to walk or run. Some time is better than no time!!!
  • manda1028
    manda1028 Posts: 148
    my uncle is a fitness bootcamp instructor .. we live a few states away so i asked him to design a workout for me and a sample menu. he said all one really has to do is eat under 1725 cals and work out .. the cals are the amt. ur body burns daily so if you eat that many, you wont gain/lose. so any exercise you do will burn off the extra calories so its really up to how many calories you are eating. he also said to remember losing weight is 80% food and 20% working out. and what is wrong with your sons airway? i have something wrong with mine too..
  • Lisa1971
    Lisa1971 Posts: 3,069 Member
    Thanks so much!!!!!!!!!!! And yes, I've been pretty sleep deprived and noticed that I've even gained some weight in the last 2 weeks. That explains it. Thanks again!
  • bean6344
    bean6344 Posts: 26 Member
    Don't be racked with guilt. You need to do what you can and when things improve up the time you are able to commit. Make that 30 minutes very intense and it will definitely have some benefits.
    Me too. I have had very good results in just 3-1/2 weeks. The majority of my workouts are 30 minutes of medium to high intensity on a stionary bike. I try and get one or two longer sessions in a week but they are not as high intensity. The pounds are still comeing off.
  • DKing33
    DKing33 Posts: 78 Member
    Every second counts!!! I have a 10 min cardio burn that I do on busy days and it has been working great for me. As long as you are watching your calories and drinking plenty of water. I have small kids too and when they are sick it is all but impossible to find even 30 minutes to yourself. I say what ever you can do is GREAT!!!
  • bethany41h
    bethany41h Posts: 218
    Thirty minutes is great... you just need to push youself. Someone reading there book and working out for one hour at a leisurely pace doesn't reap near the benefits of doing 30 hard minutes of work out. You can burn a good amount of calories in 30 minutes!
  • Lisa1971
    Lisa1971 Posts: 3,069 Member
    my uncle is a fitness bootcamp instructor .. we live a few states away so i asked him to design a workout for me and a sample menu. he said all one really has to do is eat under 1725 cals and work out .. the cals are the amt. ur body burns daily so if you eat that many, you wont gain/lose. so any exercise you do will burn off the extra calories so its really up to how many calories you are eating. he also said to remember losing weight is 80% food and 20% working out. and what is wrong with your sons airway? i have something wrong with mine too..

    Thanks for the info. My son had something called bronchiolitis a few months ago and now since he had a cold he went into respiratory distress and was having problems breathing. I have to give him a breathing treatment with a nebulizer and albuterol a few times a day and before bed but it's getting better! I'm a worrywart by nature so I was constantly checking on him and not sleeping. Ugh. The doctor says it's just something he will outgrow. In the meantime mommy is a mess! :)
  • shreddingit
    shreddingit Posts: 1,133 Member
    for cardio is enough but do try to do it with intensity so you can burn after your done too!

    totally try 30 day shred only 27min long!!
  • manda1028
    manda1028 Posts: 148
    oh, well i hope he gets better quickly! i bet it does make you a nervous wreck. if it doesnt go away, you may want to get his actual trachea looked at. i have something called tracheal stenosis - narrowing of my trachea. they used to say i needed breathing treatments and had me on albuterol and sterioids and nothing helped 100% til the ENT looked down my throat and had me get a CT scan. they do laser surgery and dialations to keep it opened. had 2 of those surgeries and doing well. sometimes its for life and sometimes it takes a few procedures to correct it.
  • Lisa1971
    Lisa1971 Posts: 3,069 Member
    oh, well i hope he gets better quickly! i bet it does make you a nervous wreck. if it doesnt go away, you may want to get his actual trachea looked at. i have something called tracheal stenosis - narrowing of my trachea. they used to say i needed breathing treatments and had me on albuterol and sterioids and nothing helped 100% til the ENT looked down my throat and had me get a CT scan. they do laser surgery and dialations to keep it opened. had 2 of those surgeries and doing well. sometimes its for life and sometimes it takes a few procedures to correct it.

    He is getting better but I will definitely keep that in mind! Glad to hear the surgeries worked for you!
  • manda1028
    manda1028 Posts: 148
    thanks, same here. glad he is getting better. i just had never heard of TS and doctors never really check for it. it concerns me when i hear of breathing problems. very scary. especially for a child to have to go through and may not know how to explain it. great job on the 6 lbs you lost btw :)
  • mkennedym
    mkennedym Posts: 253 Member
    30 minutes is a pretty good amount of time. you can try to increase the intensity if you feel like you can't increase the amount of time.
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