Advice on starting exercise program?

[Daisybelle]

Hello there!

So..I've been searching for some good advice on the internet about starting up a serious exercise program. I am in the 'morbidly obese' category and have just been referred for a sleep study for sleep apnea. Looking at what that will cost me, I've decided to first try to aggressively lose weight. I know what I need to do food-wise, but I'm stuck on excercise. My doctor is worried about me exercising (at 245 pounds), though I am not a completely sedintary person by any means. I prefer walking, have a wii fit and Leslie Sansone dvds... I guess I'm just looking for some adivce and motivation to get me going. I'm new to this board so I apologize if this was recently covered. I hope to hear from some of you!

 

[lisah0711]

Welcome to the WISH boards! Is there any activity that your doctor advises that you can do? Maybe you can start by being more active in your daily life -- working around the house or the yard. I would be careful what you do since it sounds like you have some health concerns that your doctor is worried about. Ask him (or her) about a pedometer and adding a number of steps each week. Your doctor should be able to give you some guidance.

I hope that you will reconsider the sleep study. Yes, it is expensive and so is the CPAP machine, if that is what you need. But stopping breathing in the night multiple times a night is a serious issue. You wouldn't want something to happen to you that your child had to deal with, I'm sure. My DH just went through this -- he stopped breathing over 80% of the night. It could have killed him.

Baby steps, baby steps. Every step that you make toward a healthier lifestyle can only help you get closer to your goal.

You are welcome to join us on the Biggest Loser 9 thread. We still have about 2/3 of the challenge to go so there is lots of time to make some positive changes.

Good luck on your journey to good health!

 

[ancestry]

I do agree that baby steps help. Start slowly and choose exercise that you like (or can tolerate) as that increases your chances of being able to stick with it.

My weight is close to yours. I need to lose nearly 100 pounds. Recently I sort of had an opportunity fall into my lap. My youngest kids needed to take swimming lessons and the YMCA was the only place that offered them in my area. I discovered it was cheaper to join the Y as a family than to just pay for their swimming lesson. So I joined. The Y offers an initial exercise consultation with a personal trainer for free so I did that yesterday. The trainer showed me how to use all of the equipment and set up exercise goals specific to me. Perhaps you might be able to join a Y in your area or a gym?

If not, walking is great exercise. I recently read Dr. Oz's You on a Diet Book and he recommends that you do 30 minutes of walking every single day. Walking is usually easy on the body and is something you can accomplish without a gym membership.

Good luck!

 

[heatherlynn444]

first of all, congrats on wanting to make a change! I would say get a pedometer, and shoot for a certian number of steps a day, start slow with jut walking and lifting some lighter weights if you can. do you have a gym membership? do you have hand weights? definately don't do anything crazy like try and run for an hour on the treadmill, but I definately think walking even with the dvd's is a good start to get you going and motivated. do you have access to a set of stairs you could walk up and down a few times? that's a good exercise you can do at your own pace. good luck!

 

[Daisybelle]

Thank you everyone! You all gave me some good things to think about.
Lisah, my sister is urging me to get the sleep study done as well. I will have to give that some serious consideration. I HATE the thought of spending so much money on it when the underlying reason is I allowed myself to get so out of shape. But I have to be reasonable.

I've strapped on my pedometer today and have set a goal for the day to get me started. Day 1 goal= 6000 steps!

Thanks again. You each had valuable information for me to consider. I think the WISH boards are going to be an excellent tool for me in the coming months.

 

[VernRDH]

First Daisybelle, welcome to WISH. Second good for you on making healthy positive changes in your life. It is not always easy, and the road will have bumps and U-turns. It is a journey, and not one that goes quickly or as planned as we would hope.

Walking is cheap and easy, don't need any fancy equipment. Check out DVD's at your library too. Leslie Sansone is popular, hate to say this but even Richard Simmons is good too if you are just starting out with exercise.

The Y is an excellent idea if you can join. Water aerobics is great, non impact exercise and you will find the Y to be a very accepting place, since it is families and folks of all ages, shapes and sizes.

I was at the Y last night taking a class, and they are offering a class on how to be an exercise instructor. I would love to do it, but I am still 48 lbs overweight, so I don't feel right learning to teach classes when I am not in the best of shape! But I would like to take the class once I reach goal weight, and I would love to teach a class for folks who are new to the whole exercise thing. People who are really overweight and need something to get them going on their path. It can be hard when you go to a class and you know NOTHING about what they are doing, trying to figure out the moves and not kill yourself at the same time

Good luck to you and feel free to post any questions-we are all here to help each other!

 

[momof2minnies]

Hey Daisybelle- congrats on getting moving.Deciding to get going is step one.This is a great place to stay motivated.Use the wish journal board as well to keep track of your progress and get encouragement from all the rest of us trying to do the same thing.

Keep it up!!!

Linda

 

[Daisybelle]

Thank you! I really apprecite it. I see in your sig that you've done several half marathons. That is my current goal My short term goal is a 5k this June at my daughter's school. I'm currently building up to that and I'm finding a lot of helpful tips on the WISH boards.

Thank you for your comments Vern and Momof2minnies!

 

[crewmatt]

Congrats good luck. Start slow, listen to your body. An exercise bike might be the best thing because its very low impact. Rowing machines are also likewise low impact (and offer more of a full body workout) but can take a little getting used to (also in general harder to read/watch tv - but it can be done).

 

[APrunner]

Great to hear you are making a positive change.

My advice is to find something that you enjoy, something that you will stick with. It probably wont do you any good to start a routine that you have to force yourself to maintain. It is easy to continue, if you enjoy it. Whether it be walking, running, biking, swimming, lifting some weights, or a little of everything.

Can you find a work out partner? That may help with motivation. Hard to skip out on something if someone else is counting on you to be there.

Good luck!

 

[jujuberry]

Really try to find someone to do it with you. =]
It's a lot easier to be motivated to get up and work out!

 

[crewmatt]

Agree - workout buddies are the best