NO IDEA WHERE TO START- HELP

Jamaica113
Jamaica113 Posts: 73 Member
in Getting Started
Ok. I have been down this road (so many times) but due to some health issues, I am serious this time. I've lost almost 7 lbs. so far but I know to boost the weight loss, exercise is important. I have done MyFitnessPal before with some results but never even clicked on the exercise tab. I need some help getting started. I have always heard that to lose weight, cardio is most important but is that really true? Do I need to add some weight training? How often? What exercises? How much to start with? Just stick to the cardio routine? What is a cardio routine? :) I need something that isn't brutal to begin with because I know me and if its awful, I wont stick to it. Just being honest here. Please help me! I need to make this work.

Thanks in advance

Replies

  • Megan_smartiepants1970
    Megan_smartiepants1970 Posts: 43,290 Member
    I would start off slow .... Maybe a few walks a few days a week .... if your goal is to tone up then yes I would incorporate weight training ... I was doing a split where I walked 3 days a week and used my home gym 3 days a week until I got injured/sick ...honestly you really do not need to workout if you don't want too... as long as you are in a calorie deficient you will lost weight ... best of luck to you
  • Jamaica113
    Jamaica113 Posts: 73 Member
    Thank you! I just don't know how to begin weight training.
  • goal06082021
    goal06082021 Posts: 2,130 Member
    Exercise is important for fitness, less so for weight loss. Regular cardiovascular exercise can contribute to weight loss indirectly, by increasing your calorie burn (the CO side of the CICO equation) and thereby increasing your calorie deficit if you don't eat those calories back. It's a lot harder to burn an extra 100 calories than it is to just not eat those 100 calories to begin with, though, which is why diet is more important than exercise if your goal is weight loss. You'll hear it a lot in weight-loss-centric spaces, "you can't out-exercise a poor diet."

    The American Heart Association recommends about 20-30 minutes of moderate cardiovascular exercise per day for adults to maintain heart health; that's a brisk one-mile walk for most folks. Strength/resistance training is also important to maintain physical fitness, especially for women - it helps keep our bones strong and healthy, protects against the development of osteoporosis in menopause. I don't know about you, but I want to keep piloting this meat suit as long as I can, so I'm taking measures to keep it strong and mobile as long as possible - and if you want to keep moving, you have to keep moving.

    To get started with strength training, any gym in your area probably offers at least an introductory session with a trainer to show you how to use the equipment. All of the machines are also labeled with their name and diagrams showing you what to do; Youtube has hundreds of thousands of videos of people performing various exercises, so you can see what the motion looks like if the diagram isn't clear. As for programming (figuring out what exactly to DO, once you know what the machines are for and how to use them), you probably want to start with a "full-body split," meaning you work your entire body in the same workout, however many days a week you do it.

    If there's a Planet Fitness near you, that's a decent way to get started with resistance training if you've never done it before; they have a "30-Minute Circuit" section which is a full-body workout that you can complete in about half an hour.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,267 Member
    Answered on your other thread:

    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10846716/no-idea-where-to-begin-help#latest
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    Jamaica113 wrote: »
    Thank you so much! How do I begin with strength/resistance? The company I work for has a gym I can go to anytime, but at this point, I would be one of those people that gets posted on tictok for doing something stupid with the weights :)

    There is a list here of strength programs recommended by other MFP-ers:

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10332083/which-lifting-program-is-the-best-for-you/p1

    (Even though the title says "lifting", it does include some bodyweight programs.)

    Some/many of those programs come in a format (like a book, or website with videos) that has instructions for proper form. With freeweight programs, a generic useful thing can be to practice the form with very light weight at first, then strive to hold onto that form as you add weight gradually. Some beginner programs are explicitly structured that way.

    There are also many YouTube videos illustrating proper form for common exercises. You'd want to look for videos by long-experienced trainers, degreed physical therapists, or people with similar kinds of credentials (vs. the trendy but less educated "wannabe influencer" types).

    You can also videotape your own practice, and compare to video examples - sometimes it's easier to see form issues that way, vs. just in a mirror. There's also a form check thread here (started by an experienced trainer) where you can ask for feedback:

    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10756076/barbell-form-check-e-g-squats-deadlift-benching-presses/p1

    If you can afford a few sessions with a well-credentialed, experienced personal trainer, that would be another way to learn form, but that is expensive. In some places, at some times, there have also been group classes that focused on teaching form for basic strength exercises. (I took one, taught by a knowledgeable, experienced, successful power lifter). Most group strength classes, though, are not this - way too many of them are large groups doing fast-paced exercises with weights, with limited supervision/leadership from a teacher who may not be all that well-credentialed in the first place. Buyer beware!

    Truly, don't let this type of exercise intimidate you: There are ways to get into it that are manageable.

  • Jamaica113
    Jamaica113 Posts: 73 Member
    Xellercin wrote: »
    You will read a lot of nonsense about exercise, very little of it based in any kind of rigorous science, so take that for what it is.

    Cardio exercise will increase you heart and lung health as well as better condition your muscles for longer, light use. Weight bearing exercise will strengthen your muscles and more importantly your bones, and may or may not add much actual size to those muscles, it depends a lot on your genetics. My sister is much stronger than I am, but her muscles are much smaller because I build muscle mass easily for a woman. Women generally don't add muscle bulk very easily, some are exceptions, but don't expect weight bearing exercise to add pounds of muscle to you unless you are dedicated to it.

    "Toning" isn't really a thing, it's just a matter of having enough muscle under little enough fat for your contours of your muscle to be visible. Even people with small muscles can look "toned" if they have little body fat, but those who do build muscle, either through diligent weight bearing exercise or through genetics will be able to look "toned" with a bit more body fat on them, but not a lot. As I said, I have good muscle mass, but if I carry too much fat, the muscles stop being visible, I stop looking "toned". Even just an extra 5-10lbs on me can hide a lot of muscle.

    Okay, on to weight bearing exercise. This does not need to be lifting weights. If you want to lift weights, the simplest way is to pay for a session or two with a personal trainer who can show you exactly what to do and how to do it properly. They'll try to sell you ongoing training, but really, you just need to be set up with a routine and shown how to do it so that you don't hurt yourself.

    You can easily do weight bearing without lifting weights. Your body is heavy, so yoga, pilates, climbing stairs, plank, HIIT, etc, are all ways to use your own body's weight to strengthen your muscles and bones. These are by far the easiest way to get into weight bearing fitness, because they can often be done from home on a mat. There are countless free body-weight programs out there.

    I personally like pilates because it's excellent for core strength, which is the key to all other strength, and gives you *excellent* posture, which will help to make you look leaner and stronger, because good posture engages more muscles than poor posture.

    Now, will any of this speed up your weight loss? Maybe, maybe not. It depends on how healthy your rate of loss is to begin with, if you are losing too fast and you add exercise, your body will kick your *kitten* if you don't eat more to sustain your energy levels. But I can guarantee that doing regular exercise and eating appropriately will rapidly produce a body that feels and looks better, from your body composition, to your posture, to your skin, to your general mood. It may or may not speed up your weight loss, but it will likely radically speed up how comfortable you feel in your own body.

    The key is to find something you enjoy that you find easy to introduce to your lifestyle in a sustainable way, not to go as hard as possible for the quickest results, hence why you really don't need to start with lifting heavy weights if you don't want to, nor do you need to do any kind of extreme cardio.

    So start experimenting, see what you like most, see what's difficult and what's easy. The best exercise is the exercise you look forward to doing every day.


    Thank you so very much for the insight!
  • Jamaica113
    Jamaica113 Posts: 73 Member
    goal06082021 wrote: »
    Exercise is important for fitness, less so for weight loss. Regular cardiovascular exercise can contribute to weight loss indirectly, by increasing your calorie burn (the CO side of the CICO equation) and thereby increasing your calorie deficit if you don't eat those calories back. It's a lot harder to burn an extra 100 calories than it is to just not eat those 100 calories to begin with, though, which is why diet is more important than exercise if your goal is weight loss. You'll hear it a lot in weight-loss-centric spaces, "you can't out-exercise a poor diet."

    The American Heart Association recommends about 20-30 minutes of moderate cardiovascular exercise per day for adults to maintain heart health; that's a brisk one-mile walk for most folks. Strength/resistance training is also important to maintain physical fitness, especially for women - it helps keep our bones strong and healthy, protects against the development of osteoporosis in menopause. I don't know about you, but I want to keep piloting this meat suit as long as I can, so I'm taking measures to keep it strong and mobile as long as possible - and if you want to keep moving, you have to keep moving.

    To get started with strength training, any gym in your area probably offers at least an introductory session with a trainer to show you how to use the equipment. All of the machines are also labeled with their name and diagrams showing you what to do; Youtube has hundreds of thousands of videos of people performing various exercises, so you can see what the motion looks like if the diagram isn't clear. As for programming (figuring out what exactly to DO, once you know what the machines are for and how to use them), you probably want to start with a "full-body split," meaning you work your entire body in the same workout, however many days a week you do it.

    If there's a Planet Fitness near you, that's a decent way to get started with resistance training if you've never done it before; they have a "30-Minute Circuit" section which is a full-body workout that you can complete in about half an hour.

    I love your quotes! This helps me a lot. Thank you!
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Regular exercise has numerous benefits that go beyond additional energy expenditure. In reality, unless you're training like an athlete, energy expenditure from deliberate exercise is a relatively nominal component of your overall caloric needs. Diet is the far more important component of weight loss.

    Most public health bodies suggest 150 minutes of light to moderate cardiovascular exercise per week and 2x full body resistance training for maintaining good health and overall well-being. More specific and/or more advanced fitness goals would guide you beyond the basics. Regular exercise also doesn't have to be all crazy hard and strenuous. In fact, many people do too much strenuous work and neglect recovery and the benefits of working at a variety of different stress levels.

    Going for regular walks is a good place to start for cardiovascular fitness and health for most people who haven't done much exercise. It is low impact and a low stress activity and helps get the body accustomed to just moving more. Outside of more specific goals, resistance training doesn't have to be any kind of crazy bodybuilding or powerlifting routine either...what is important is that you're providing your body resistance which helps preserve muscle mass and bone density that otherwise deteriorate with age. This can come in many forms...free weights, machines, bodyweight, and things like yoga. And again, more advanced goals like building mass or maximizing strength would direct you to programs more specific to those goals than just the basics of resistance training.

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