Just getting started

Hello all

I'm not sure what to put here ... I need to increase my fitness.

I'm over 50 now. I used to be into aerobics and for a short while bodybuilding when I was younger (I didn't really like the muscle look on myself, and I built it quickly - I'm very short too.) Life happened and all kinds of things, I ended up being overweight but not terribly un-fit. For several years built and ran a small hobby farm and that kind of work keeps you pretty active, and the fresh air and homegrown food was good. Then we sold the farm, moved into a hotel for a few months, and I got sick and was in bed for several months. While I didn't gain weight, my strength was gone and my clothes got tighter. A few more years of life, and I got my thyroid under control, started exercising more, and was diagnosed with cancer. Surgeries, treatment, and radiation have left me pretty weak and fatigued, down about 20 pounds but still not in good shape at all. I am under regular care of a physician and apparently all the typical measures look great except a severe vitamin D deficiency, which we are working on, and the need to stay on thyroid meds, which she is tweaking and has in good range.

The guidelines I have for exercise involve heart rate. Because of fatigue and tricky knee issues (getting an x-ray in a few weeks) I use a treadmill. I started at 15 minutes, then discovered I hit my target heart rate at much lower speeds, so I'm at 20 minutes a day lower speed. I am surprised how quickly exercise affects heart rate - in just a few days it takes MORE speed to build it high enough, but it levels off quicker quicker too. Just interesting trends. Since it's all I have, and I know nothing about it, that's what I'm watching.

Within a week I hope to be up to 30 minutes a day within the target range, which is what my doctor wanted. I'm supposed to do 5 days a week, but it's not that taxing (so far) so unless there's a good reason I may shoot for more frequency.

Diet is harder to control. It's not the discipline - I'm fairly used to that. But getting the high levels of protein I still need and being hit with fatigue later in the day - I don't feel like cooking. If I don't have better options, I sometimes resort to frozen meals, yogurt and cereal, or snack foods (usually crackers and cheese or hummus, applesauce, or nuts). And if my husband suggests pizza or Chik-fil-a, I won't argue. Whatever is easy. So I think planning is going to be necessary. I'm still falling short on protein.

I'm sure y'all didn't want my life story. But basically, vitamin D and exercise are the only two factors of any importance that I can modify that might have an impact on whether the cancer comes back - so I want to do that.

And if it's possible to cut down this belly I've developed over the past few years and the flab that my arms have dissolved into in the last 6 months, I'm all for that too.