Routine help

Without knowing your goals any advice is likely to be personal anecdotes or so generalised as not really going to guide you.

Also knowing something about your exercise history would help.

Lastly - what kind of exercise do you enjoy? That's a huge factor in long term adherence - relatively few people will knuckle down to train when they have to endure rather than enjoy.

This is the link people are talking about, for good lifting programs:

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10332083/which-lifting-program-is-the-best-for-you

From the standpoint of your overall schedule, if you're a beginner, start slowly and increase gradually. Keep it fun and manageable!

Find a weight training program in the link above, and follow it. Beginner programs usually will be full body, 3 days a week. If you find it too fatiguing at first, it's OK to cut back sets/reps/weight and work your way up to the actual program more gradually. You'll get there!

For cardio, maybe just start with some extra walking or something mild that you enjoy, a couple of days a week. Lots of things are options, not just official "cardio machines": Walking, cycling, playing outdoors with kids, skating, canoeing/kayaking/rowing, martial arts, dancing, games like tennis or basketball, swimming, and hundreds of other possibilities.

As your start-out easy cardio gets comfortably integrated into your daily routine, you can add any other cardio activities you find fun (or more of the same one), starting at an intensity/frequency/duration that is a little bit challenging, but leaves you feeling energized and happy for the rest of your day (after maybe a few minutes of "whew!" right after the workout ).

Rest days are part of the process, more often at first, but some (maybe a day a week) even in the long run. At first, a rest day may literally be rest (other than daily life) or a little stretching or something like that. As you get fitter, the definition of rest changes, too, and can include yoga, easy walk/bike/swim, or that sort of thing.

Over the long haul, as time passes, you can add more cardio volume, intensity or duration, or try new activities in pursuit of the fun, trying to keep it just a bit challenging, but not fatiguing/exhausting. (Overdoing tends to make us rest more and do less during the rest of our day, which wipes out some of the exercise calorie benefit. That zone where it stays fun, a bit challenging, and energizing . . . that's the sweet spot.)

One side comment: When new to exercising, it's kind of normal to feel kind of overwhelmed and awkward at first, and (especially in gyms or group classes) to look around and feel like everyone else is just doing so darned well and looking way less stressed about it.

Don't worry: Appearances are deceptive. Everyone was new once, and they're all focused on their own workouts. It's normal for any complicated new activity to feel awkward at first, but you'll get the hang of it, as long as you're persistent and patient. Things that are super easy at first can get boring fast, so give a new activity a fair chance before deciding it's not something you can/want to do.

Find the fun. Start easy/less frequent, work your way up. It's a long term investment. With patience and persistence, you'll get the payoff.

Best wishes!

Join a fitness class at your gym. Not only do you learn how to exercise properly and with good form, but, for me anyway, it helps to have someone tell me what to do. I know that my workouts in my classes are way harder than what I would put on myself.