Is it supposed to be this hard?

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  • babygurl48
    babygurl48 Posts: 1,236 Member
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    Baby steps! Add 2 minutes every day, it does get easier. As u lose weight, u will find it 's easier and u can go for longer. Keep at it! Quitting is not an option!!! :flowerforyou:
  • pinkpandangel105
    pinkpandangel105 Posts: 38 Member
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    You probably aren't going to burn that many calories in 30 minutes unless you're doing hardcore cardio. Take it easy because you don't want to hurt yourself and that hinder your work outs. Slow and steady win the race.
  • healthyliving_girl
    healthyliving_girl Posts: 290 Member
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    IT's super hard....in the beginning.

    I used to work out like a crazy person when I was in college (years and years ago)....but when I re-started last July, I knew I would not be able to do it. At the time, I thought it was sooo little, but it made it manage-able. For the first few weeks, I opted to do "just" 15 minutes....

    and when those 15 minutes became easier, I bumped it to 30.

    Break it down. You can do it. DO WHAT YOU KNOW YOU WILL SUSTAIN. If you get too overwhelmed, you may not stick with it.

    So...my opinion is to try 15 minutes for a week...and see how that goes.

    And for now, don't worry about the calorie totals.
  • cloud2011
    cloud2011 Posts: 898 Member
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    Just want to say, do what works. Try the gym for a while. Some people walk. Whatever keeps you going and will help you lose is what works, whether it's with a trainer, or on your own, walking, or doing exercise DVDs at home.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,701 Member
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    I've been sendentary all my life. And I began training monday. My trainer says I should do 30 mins of cardio twice a week, for now. That I should burn 300-400 cals in 30mins. But I can't make it! It's too hard for me, at this time. I only made it to 276 cals and I'm at work (gym at workplace) and I don't know if i'll have the energy to walk home and get milk and bread or just sleep here under my desk.

    Is it normal that it's soooo hard and that I can't reach the target set by my trainer?
    Yep. You're out of shape. If training was easy and comfortable, then no one would have problems doing it. You're now out of your comfort zone and that's what's needed to boost your metabolism and burn the calories you need to to lose the excess fat.
    You'll adapt. The body is smart like that.


    A.C.E. Certified Personal Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,701 Member
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    Wow that seems crazy. I do Zumba, kickboxing and a spin class for an hour each class and according to my heart monitor I only burn 450 calories in the hour of each class. That seems a bit extreme in my opinion.
    It depends on weight of the individual. A lighter person burns less calories in an half hour of exercise than a heavier one doing the same.


    A.C.E. Certified Personal Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
  • roachtg
    roachtg Posts: 56 Member
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    It WILL get easier. You just have to keep at it. 276 calories is pretty close to your goal, don't give up! You have to want it and go after it. Push yourself a little and you will get there, you are already heading in the right direction. Keep it up. One thing that really helps me when I am feeling down is looking at all the success stories.
    You are welcome to add me as a friend it you like.
    Good luck on your journey, you can do this.
  • chicpeach
    chicpeach Posts: 302 Member
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    Keep at it, it does get easier. When I first started doing cardio, it took me 25 minutes to walk a mile and I did it in 2 installments of 12 1/2 mins each. With diligence and patience, I got to do 1 mile in 20 minutes in one continuous effort. Now I can do 4 miles in an hour in a continuous effort. It's taken literally 2 years to get here, but am and you can too. Just keep at it.
  • amberjean30
    amberjean30 Posts: 24 Member
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    girl I don't want to diss your trainer, but you know your body best. start out a little slower. try 10min then add time to that the following week, so on and so forth. Just remember not to doubt yourself. There's a difference in feeling the burn and feeling the pain ya dig. Your body will get used to it and soon enough that 30mins will seem like nothing. When you feel like you can't go anymore push just a little more then rest it out. It sure ain't easy
  • pauljsolie
    pauljsolie Posts: 1,024 Member
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    Keep at it. It will get easier, I guarantee it!!!
  • jodimw
    jodimw Posts: 20 Member
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    I'm proud of you for getting started. But when you're ready... YOU'RE READY! So let's BRING IT ON! I'm right with ya. Been living a sedentary lifestyle for years now. I'm 7 weeks into eating healthy and exercising regularly and the energy is amazing! I never would have guessed that I woul dhave this much energy! Someone mentioned that your muscles are waking up... so help them to wake up slowly. And try to be gentle on yourself. It took us a long while to get here and took me gallons of chocolate peanut butter Hagen Daaz to get to this weight so I have to remember that it takes time to come off as well. It get's easier. Now go reward yourself with the hot tub after a good workout, introduce yourself and make some new friends and workout buddies :)
  • SwimTheButterfly
    SwimTheButterfly Posts: 265 Member
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    I know how you feel. It is hard to be over weight and move. I have to lose 165 pounds. Make sure to calculate your resting heart rate and your max work out heart rate. Keep yourself working at 70-80% to maximize fat burning. I learned this being an athlete in high school and college. Keep moving through the panting and out of breath experience,push through the wall of discomfort,it does get easier and every pounds is many pounds of pressure off of our joints. It is the breathing hard that strengthens our heart and spirit.
  • funkycamper
    funkycamper Posts: 998 Member
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    Oh, for years I had only done walking the dog, then hurt my back and was virtually immobolized for months. So, when I decided to go back to the gym I was super out of shape. I told myself I just needed to do 20 minutes and then I can go home. I only lasted 5 minutes on the elliptical. Just 5 minutes!! I was gob-smacked at how out of shape I was. I did make my 20 minutes but I had to take little breaks and do part of it on the exercise bike, part on the rower, part on the treadmill and part on the elliptical as my muscles were too weak to do the full time on one machine. It was horrible.

    That was last August. Now I'm doing 20 mile bike rides outside on nice days, doing 1-hour spin classes where I'm old enough to be the mother of most of the folks in the class, also doing kickboxing, running, lifting heavy weights, doing some fairly intensive HIIT training sessions, yada yada. I used to groan at the idea of working out and now I live for it. It's the best part of my day. It's a sad day when I haven't broken out in a good, hard sweat, LOL.

    Hang in there. Not only will it get better, you might actually start enjoying it. :laugh:

    Oh, and I work with a personal trainer once a week who pushes me to my limit and then makes me go past it. I call her The Sadist and I love her.

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