hi mamas! so i am so very blessed, that at my work, they have hired a "health coach" for us for the next 12 months. YAAAAY!! and i am even luckier - i asked around (because i know treadmills have a habit of being bought and then sitting there doing nothing) and i found a really nice treadmill for super cheap. i love it! my dog even goes on it, and we are both super excited :) lol. i don't know why it's so much easier than going for a walk/run in the neighborhood, maybe because it's private, maybe because in our tiny livingroom i am literally tripping over it, so it's super-convenient. i can wear what's comfortable, it's great. anyway, i have a question....
i am very overweight, i will even swallow my pride and tell you that i am 5' 4" and 248 lbs (lost three lbs in the first two weeks of the program, tyvm!) i have never in my life been in a program or even on a diet really. i have steadily gained weight since puberty. anyway, i tell you all of this to explain just how NOT a runner i am! however!
i have been using the treadmill since Saturday, only skipped one day so far, and i find myself wanting to JOG! it's amazing lol. it is just so EASY. i don't know why i haven't done this before....but now that i am, i feel great about it. thing is, my stamina is awful. i started out doing 15 minutes, and now am up to 20. i have been walking for 2-3 minutes as a warmup, then a slow jog for as long as i can (i think this time it was about 7 or 8 minutes), then a strong power walk once my heartrate is up. i feel good about it because the power walk keeps my blood pumping and is a challenge, i am sweating really good and feel i am burning a lot of calories. is it okay to get my heartrate up at the beginning like this, when i'm not exhausted, then keep it up with a power walk until my cooldown? we're not talking olympic workouts here...but my thinking is that getting my juices flowing like that at first, i burn more calories than if i just power walked the whole time. make sense?
any other ideas for someone with limited stamina (not to mention willpower - i am doing really well, i really don't want to burn out!) my weigh in with the health coach is Friday, and i am so excited because i just know i have lost another pound or three! can't wait....thanks in advance for your advice! (i should also say that this program includes a website kind of like weight watchers or sparkpeople i have heard, where you track caloric intake and burn both. she has me lowering my caloric intake by 250 calories per day, and burninig an additional 250 clories per day, which i am not doing GREAT at, but since i am losing, i feel very encouraged. i would say if i had to rate myself, i'd give myself a B grade :)
i DID lose another 3 lbs!! woo hoo!!!
Hi, I am a runner and would suggest a program like Couch to 5K. It gradually works you into running until you are running a full 5K(3.1 miles) without stopping! Keep it up, running becomes so addictive and therapeutic :)
P.S. Here's the link for Couch to 5K: http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml
Good for you!! Let's toot our horns together!! Im very overweight too and friday will be 2 weeks that I hopped on my treadmill. I love the convienince of it too. I swart something fierce and I don't always want to get on it but im so proud of myself once I do :) I don't own a scale so I don't know if I've lost pounds but I say take it slow at your own pace. You know I can only handle a mile and it takes me 30 minutes but you know what I do it! Its gotta be better than nothing! The first couple days I had to rest every 1/4 mile but now I can power right through it. I will up the amount as soon as I think im ready but for now im taking it slow. Its so hard ti stay motivated and not eat ( im a sahm) but im learning. We can be treadmill buddies :) you go girl!!!
Walk backwards on your treadmill, just make sure you hang on till you get used to it, it uses a whole nother muscle group. I SO miss my gym style treadmill I gave up when we moved 5 years ago. Treadmills are so awesome!
Good for you and keep up the good work! I'm impressed with what you are able to do right now! I too would also recommend the Couch to 5K program mentioned below. I am doing it now (albeit very slowly) and am now in week 7 and am jogging 25 minutes at a time. In the beginning you walk for 5 minutes to warm up, then only jog for 30 seconds, then walk 90 seconds and alternate again and again until it's time to cool down. Workouts are 25-35 minutes long. It's a great way to get started and not injure yourself, and having a specific plan and goals to reach will keep you from burning out.
Interval cardio (which couch to 5K does in the beginning) has proven to be a more effective way to burn calories and lose weight than just keeping the same pace in a workout, so it is actually great to get your heart rate up, then recover a bit, then get it up again repeatedly. My beginner interval cardio workout on a treadmill used to look like this:
Warm up at 3.0 mph for 2 minutes
3.5 mph for 1 minute
4.0 mph for 1 minute
4.5 mph for 1 minute
5.0 mph for 1 minute (this is my jogging pace)
Repeat the 3.5 - 5.0 steps 3 more times (you'll be at 18 minutes), then go one more minute at 5.0 mph and then drop down to 3.0 for the last minute.
I find that training for an event is a great way to keep me focused and on track. I would highly encourage you to recruit a friend (maybe a co-worker who is also trying to get healther?) and sign up for a 5K race in early spring. A 5K is a doable goal for a beginner and in most races, there are a few people who walk part of the way so you don't have to worry about being the only beginner. I can't actually run the whole way yet (I hope to by next month because I have another race in November...just need to get 10 more minutes!) but I've done two 5Ks, a sprint triathlon and a 10K.
Again...congrats on the changes you are making and keep it up!
I do two hours a day six days a week ( training for November Suzan koman marathon 13.1 miles)
In my opinion you can not have one without the other: eating healthy and exercising. In your case it's not about being a skinny b I t c h but making sure you are healthy and you prep your body for older age. You will live longer life and healthier, you want to be there for your children. When you do exersicing less then 4 hours a week, you just maintainig. In order to loose weight you have to do more. I'm sure your coach is helping you, take advantage of that you are saving a lot of money. When I go to the gym, my eating habits and food choices are much better and smarter because I will not eat a donught if I just completed 2 hrs exercise routine. Avoid buying junk food, because if it's there you will eat it. Popcorn is a better choice, sliced apple with peanut butter, low fat yogurts. Subsitute white bread, pasta, rice to whole wheat. It tastes the same and just doing that you will loose lbs.
Good luck!! It's a great start, please keep us posted. You will feel so much better, healthier and happier. I give you A+ for making a commitment.
