Not Happy with Previous Results

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misstcrosby
misstcrosby Posts: 14
in Fitness and Exercise
Good Evening,

I am currently weighing at over 18st & tomorrow I go back to the gym which I am excited about whilst also dreading at the same time.

I have been an intermittent member of MFP for a while now and previously lost over a stone using this site however I was never happy with my gym progress....

This is where you guy's come in.... I am extremely unfit and never felt like my fitness was improving as much as I trained weights/cardio... Never felt I could see/feel any changes.

Can anyone advise where I should start bearing in mind my shocking fitness levels, I am determined and I want to see a change so I stick at it this time?!

Any advice would be welcomed and feel free to add me :smile:


Thanks in Advance

Teri

Replies

  • shadowofender
    shadowofender Posts: 786 Member
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    Are you looking for cardiovascular health more than muscular? Well, really you should do both.

    For cardio it's just about finding where you are currently and improving. I like to jog. I went from a 22 minute walk to a 13 minute jog. Still not the best but much better, yes?

    For strength, look into a good program that's easy to follow. Stronglifts 5X5 or Strictly Stregnth are popular and a good place for beginners.

    It's hard to not be discouraged by slow progress. I lose about a pound a week and sometimes I feel it's not fast enough. Just remember, anything that's better than your starting level is progress, and it's wonderful, and we shouldn't be so hard on ourselves.
  • misstcrosby
    misstcrosby Posts: 14
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    As you say both really - I wanna look good but I also want the cardiovascular health benefits.... I am slightly scared of running, yes sounds stupid but its something I have feared since I was young.... Fast walk on the tredmill for approx 10 mins is about all I can manage at the moment
  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
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    As a beginner it really doesn't matter what you do. Just about anything will result in massive fitness improvements. You just have to find something you enjoy, because otherwise you won't stick with it. Why is this important? Real changes in fitness and body composition take months and years. Sometimes several years. You need something that you will do long-term (basically, forever).
  • SWWIS
    SWWIS Posts: 94 Member
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    misstcrosby wrote: »
    As you say both really - I wanna look good but I also want the cardiovascular health benefits.... I am slightly scared of running, yes sounds stupid but its something I have feared since I was young.... Fast walk on the tredmill for approx 10 mins is about all I can manage at the moment

    Strength training will help you preserve lean body mass, which will help you preserve your BMR. As for training cardio, if walking is all you can manage right now then keep walking, but push yourself to walk longer and farther on the treadmill. As your stamina improves you can begin jogging if you'd like. You can also try cycling or swimming/water aerobics (if that's a possibility) for a lower impact activity.
  • misstcrosby
    misstcrosby Posts: 14
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    Its not that I don't enjoy the gym, I do.... I just want to see the results.... Defo enjoy lifting but I know I can't rely on that alone... I need to build up my cardio fitness but in the right way
  • 20yearsyounger
    20yearsyounger Posts: 1,643 Member
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    misstcrosby wrote: »
    As you say both really - I wanna look good but I also want the cardiovascular health benefits.... I am slightly scared of running, yes sounds stupid but its something I have feared since I was young.... Fast walk on the tredmill for approx 10 mins is about all I can manage at the moment

    Maybe that's where you need to start. Fast walk on treadmill for 20 mins, then 30 mins, then ...

  • engodwin
    engodwin Posts: 516 Member
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    C25K - great for beginners - Cardio (Don't have to do this on a treadmill!)
    Strong Lifts - With some education on form, also great for beginners. - Strength
  • misstcrosby
    misstcrosby Posts: 14
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    Whats C25K? The NHS thing?
  • TAsunder
    TAsunder Posts: 423 Member
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    Progress is always really slow in fitness. For me, the key has been to have specific and tangible milestones. One milestone was a blue belt in brazilian jiujitsu. Another was a half marathon. Those took a lot of time and dedication and, most importantly, patience.
  • jodescorinna
    jodescorinna Posts: 57 Member
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    C25K is an app you can download, you can do a timed programme where you start with say a 30 sec jog followed by a 30 walk, repeated a number of times then gradually build up week by week (or repeat weeks if not confident) or a distance one which is the same but you run like 200 yards walk 400 yards etc. I have started using it again to suplement my weight training and finding it really good and my HRM is showing a lower heart rate now than at the start which is encouraging.
    Its hard to stick to things when you dont have immediate results but as I only today said to my PT - even if the scales dont budge and the inches dont come down, I enjoy training now so maybe you need to find something that you will enjoy and want to continue with. Results will come in time if you continue to push yourself.
  • habit365
    habit365 Posts: 174
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    I've seen really good results in the past using fitnessblender.com. They have a ton of stuff good for beginners and as your fitness improves you can choose harder workouts.
  • llUndecidedll
    llUndecidedll Posts: 724 Member
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    I was sedentary most days of the week and extremely out of shape. I started with inclined walking, weight lifting, and low-impact calisthenics to help me begin to be active again. Walking is really the easiest thing to start with.

    It has worked well. Now, I'm jogging--at a slow pace, but jogging still. I can still only do one
  • misstcrosby
    misstcrosby Posts: 14
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    Thanks for everyone's input - feeling a lot better about things so fingers crossed for this afternoons work out :)
  • amnsetie
    amnsetie Posts: 666 Member
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    You will feel better if you increase your weights over time. Start by doing 3 sets of 10 reps of a weight you can manage without giving up. Then within a week start doing one set of the next weight up. Do 5 reps of this weight if you can't manage more. Finish with the remaining 2 sets of 10 reps of the lower weight. Keep increasing the number of reps and sets of the new weights until....
    When you get to doing 3 sets of 10 reps of the new weight, start again by increasing the weight. You will get more of a sense of acheivement

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