Getting started with Exercise

Walking is the easiest way to start. It requires no equipment other than a pair of quality shoes. Being outdoors can equate to mood lifts, there’s things to see and smell, and the sun can provide a nice boost of Vitamin D.

But, really, the best exercise is the one you enjoy the most.

Power yoga was my starting point. I had no upper body strength, wanted to achieve arm balances, so took up weight lifting, and found I loved it as an exercise by itself.

Broke a toe before Christmas, took up lap swimming since I figured it wouldn’t bother the toe. Now do it regularly.

Walk my dog several miles per day. We have conversations about everything under the sun and have a great time. He sniffs every bush, and I yack his silky black ears off.

Running, I did it long enough to prove to myself I could do 5k without stopping. But I had several bad falls because I simply trip over my toes like a clown, so ultimately it wasn’t worth it for me.

Tried spin. Would rather claw my eyes out. Hate it. But…. I enjoy riding my cruising bike outdoors, and love my stationary recumbent bike.

If I were in a position where it had to be running, spin or nothing, I’d still be obese and sofabound.

Do what you find to be fun. Fun will get you off the sofa. “Chore” exercise will not.

Good advice up there from Spring, as always. I'm especially a booster of that "do something you think is fun" idea.

If you're a true beginner, I'd also suggest phasing in your exercise load, i.e., start slowly with moderate intensity and duration, maybe 3 days a week with a recovery day between. Shoot for just a manageable challenge, not exhaustion.

As that gets routine easier, increase frequency, duration, intensity or add new types of exercise to keep the manageable challenge always challenging. The overall routine should ideally be energizing (beyond maybe just a few minutes minutes of "whew" right after a workout). It shouldn't be exhausting, making you drag through the rest of your day(s).

"Manageable" avoids injury and the fatigue that can reduce our daily life (non-exercise) calorie burn (which is counter-productive). "Challenging", and keeping a mild challenge always, is what creates fitness progress.

Program in recovery. Recovery is where the magic (rebuilding better) happens. At first, that would probably be best managed by that "3 separated days a week" kind of schedule. As your overall fitness improves, you can move to a daily schedule if that suits you, and do different things (that challenge different body systems) on alternate days, so one set of body systems is recovering while another works harder.

In the long run, the mainstream recommendation is 150 minutes of moderate cardiovascular (CV) exercise per week, ideally spread over 5 or more days (or 75 minutes of more intense CV exercise, or a proportionate combination of moderate and intense exercise); plus at least two days per week of strength exercise. More is fine, within reason.

IMO, in the long run, it's also a good plan to include some flexibility or mobility work (like stretching or yoga), and there are other types you can add if you want to move beyond the basics. No need to worry about that now, though.

My personal routine is somewhat sub-optimal. In summer, I usually row (boats) 4 days a week for around an hour, and bike 2 other days for up to a couple of hours. I always have one full rest day per week, though I'm OK with a casual walk or some stretching/yoga on the rest day. In Winter, I usually alternate half an hour to an hour of machine rowing or stationary biking 6 days a week, and add some strength training. (I don't enjoy strength training, and have recovery problems if I do much of it in on-water season. Rowing is my priority.) This year, I'm having some health issues, so I'm doing more stationary biking. (As an aside for context, I'm 68, in weight maintenance for about 8 years now, have been athletically active only since my late 40s, before which I was an overstressed sedentary blob, basically. I was overweight/obese until 2015-16. Now, I'm comfortable saying I'm fitter than the average 68 y/o woman.)

On the CV exercise front, speaking as someone focused on a short-endurance CV sport, I'm an advocate of spending the most of one's CV exercise time budget on lower-intensity work, and shorter amounts of time on high-intensity work. Elite athletes do something more like that: They don't do all high intensity all the time, rather treating it as more of a condiment or side dish on the exercise menu, not the main dish. They have the best professional advice that money can buy, so I don't know why us regular duffers would want to schedule our workouts as all high intensity, though some people like to do that.

Best wishes!

cats2222 wrote: »

I go to planet fitness. Basic membership is only $10 -11 a month. Any type of equipment you need, plus most employ a trainer that can help you set up a personalized routine. Classes are also offered. There are people of all sizes, shapes, and fitness levels there. Plus I like getting out of the house and going there to exercise . Good luck!

I don’t know your age, but some health insurance plans provide free membership to Planet Fitness or similar under Silver Sneakers.