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Health & Exercise
harleykay
member
Starting to exercise... and a question.
harleykay
member
Well I went to the doc today for my annual visit. and apparently since I gained 10 lbs in the last YEAR it now puts me at overweight. While I am comfortable in my body I want to start working out and slim down just a little so I don't have that overweight "title"
I am 5'4" and 151lbs. I believe some of the extra weight is muscle due to my physical job ( I work at a nursing home and I am always on my feet). But I will not deny that I have put on a few pounds.
The challenging part will be finding the motivation and time to workout. After working long hours and sometimes not getting breaks I just want to go home and relax.
Do you have any tips to keep me going? I don't even know where to start. Thanks.
This discussion has been closed.
Re: Starting to exercise... and a question.
write it down. Sit down and figure out when you think youd have time to work out- might be harder if your schedule changes. But it really helped me to say every mon-wed-fri I will work out. I actually kept that up for yrs! also if you can ask for help- either by keeping an online blog and telling everyone you know to read it, or asking a friend to work out with you- or even asking family or a friend to get on the ban wagon and work out with you in spirit. Knowing someone else is out there working out too really helps.
Also, they say diet is half of it. For me I can't just eat healthy foods or do certain diets- I found once I started working out (I found running to be my thing) that I ate better.
Ok, so I have never posted on this board so here it goes.
Basically, in order to lose a pound a week you need to have a deficit of 3500 calories a week. That is either cutting 500 calories/day out of your diet or having a combination of exercise and eating less calories that will equal 500.
You want to make sure that you don't cut too many calories and send your body into starvation mode. If that happens your body will hang onto pounds. I have no idea what your diet is like, but you will want to have lots of veggies, fruits, lean proteins, and slow carbs. You will want to stay away from refined sugars and processed carbs.
In the excercise area, find something you like to do and change up your routine every few weeks so you don't get burned out. Make sure you are doing a mixture of cardio and weights (the more muscle you have, the more body fat you will burn, at least I think that's what happens).
Sorry this was so long, but I hope it was helpful!
I have never posted on this board either, but here I go... After having been in a major lack of exercise rut, I finally changed that a year and a half ago. For me, I got an exercise bike at a yard sale and put it in front of the tv every day for an hour. I order in girly movies on netflix that my husband would hate and never want to watch, and I try to view it as a "treat" to watch chick flicks and sex and the city, instead of a long boring workout. Also, on the weekends, me and the hubs try to go on at least 1 long walk in our downtown park (about 6 miles). Just try to do something that you can handle, or you'll never do it. I hate running and always have, and that is why I was never able to keep up with it for very long.
That said, I am pretty sure, as mentioned in some of the posts above, that diet is even more important than exercise for actual weight loss. I was working out like this for a year and not really losing weight until I started watching what I ate. Then I lost like 15 pounds fairly quickly. Weight lifting helps too!
The hardest part of stating a work out routine are the first few weeks. It's hard when you feel tired at the end of the day, but eventually the exercise is going to help you have more energy. It will start to be a part of the day that helps you relax.
1st - pick a time of day that works for you. Morning, lunch hour, right after work, or after dinner.
2 - feel free to start small 30-45 minute work outs.
3 - variety will help keep you interested. Ie. if you are joining a gym, I like gyms that offer fitness classes, so that I can try different things out. I used to do a fitness class 1-2 times a week, like spinning or yoga and the other days I would use the treadmill and weight room.
4 - you don't have to work out every day. It's good to give your muscles a break. Pick a couple weekdays that you do just go home and relax.
FWIW, I was in the same boat as you a few years ago...also 5'4", and went from 146lbs to 156lbs between my annual visits. I felt the same, tired from working and didnt know where to start. shortly afterward, we got a dog. since DH and i both work long hours, we thought it would be important to walk him twice a day, morning and night, about 2 miles, 30-40 min each walk. I was put on morning routine, and then somehow also evening routine. slowly but surely the pounds starting coming off.
i've been able to keep it off with typically only 1 walk per day, hovering around 140lbs, yay!
something else that i discovered to keep me motivated was i got a heart rate monitor that counts calories burned. i'm sure it's not super accurate, but i love watching the numbers. i burn around 300 calories per walk, so it makes me feel good.
anyway, hope this helps and GL!