sachicko-hope your back feels better!
debbie-i started out at between a 2.4 and 2.7 in August. you'll be amazed how fast your body will get used to that and you'll be walking faster in no time!
thisyear- congrats on fighting your inertia and getting in your workout anyways! this is something i am working on. i know after i work out i feel so great but sometimes it really is hard to bring myself to do it. lol

today was a work day and i work really long hours so i just did 15 mins on the elliptical. I'll do my walk/jog day tomorrow. (provided they dont guilt trip me into work like they've been trying)

Mini goals
 

Ok, so I decided that I needed to actually write my goals and action plan out instead of flying by the seat of my pants. I've come up with 3 goals that I want to accomplish by Valentine's day. Ironically, none have to do directly with weight loss, but I hope that each will help me lose weight in its own way.

They are:
1. Drink a minimum of 80 oz of water each day. (I'm going to increase this next month, but this is a good start i think)

2. Kick the caffeine habit - I have a hundred reasons to do this. I won't go into detail here (unless someone is curious) but I have a plan to slowly wean myself off.

3. Make exercise a habit again. I've written a plan for this as well, but the point is for me to make it a permanent part of my day.

Kelli- That mud run sounds like fun. LOL! Please take pictures. You're goals look great. You can totally do it, especially because you have a plan!

I took today off from all exercise, for the first time in 10 days. I did over an hour total on Wii Just Dance yesterday and wanted to give my muscles a rest. I am actually looking forward to the treadmill tomorrow. Exercising is getting easier each time. I'm very happy about it. :dancer:
How is everybody else today?

Those of you who already working on this, do you start out with slow walking to warm up then stretch then do the number of minutes of walking? (So, really walking those first sessions takes more than 10 minutes?)

Because I'm starting out walking so slow for a short period of time, no I don't slow walk before walking. I do take my time stretching and breathing both before and after. It makes a big difference for me. Here is the chart I printed out and use: capeannweb.com/stretch.jpg

sskar - i only start with a warm up on the days i do more than just walking. generally i stop and do a quick stretch every few minutes for about the first 10 minutes that i'm walking, or until i feel loose.

thanks for the encouragement kathy. i know, the wii stuff gets addictive! i'm kind of in a yucky mood right now. i'm going to work out in a few minutes, so hopefully that will help me snap out of it! lol

keep up the good work everyone!

sskar, I start out slow and then work up to my 2.5mph, do the 10 minutes and then back down the mph for a few minutes.

Thisyear, you're plan sounds great and doable. Good luck to you. I know the caffine part would be hard.

Today I start my second time in week one. Not hard at all to do so I might have to bump up the mph or the time spent on the treadmill. It just feels good to be up and moving again. I have to get Just Dance though, I hear everyone raving about it.

I can already feel the difference. Walking is easier and I am going faster for longer. I'm a little sore and it feels great! :tread:

Week 2
Tues - 12/10
Thurs - 15/15
Sat - 0/10
Sun - 0/15

yay! glad things are getting easier for you. i love love love how i feel once i have been going for a while. i feel accomplished. i only got in about 10 minutes today, which was under what i had planned, but i figured 10 minutes was better than 0.

i'm thinking about taking before pictures, but i don't know if i really want to face it. have any of you taken pictures?

Kelli- Yes, 10 minutes is MUCH better than 0. I go to a Monday night TOPS group and they did pictures last week. I was worried that I didn't have any makeup on and was feeling very camera shy and then one of the ladies said "You want to look your worst so your after pictures look that much better." So, as you can imagine, I'm not happy with my before picture but I'm really looking forward to my after.

I was into my music and just kept going today. I thought I was supposed to do 15 and pushed it to 20. Turns out I only needed to do 10. LOL It's amazing how quickly I'm able to do more and more. In the past I always over did it too much too fast and burnt out in major pain. I had all but given up that I would ever be able to walk at this weight. I'm so glad Kelli started this thread and that I accepted.

How is everybody else doing?

Week 2
Tues - 12/10
Thurs - 15/15
Sat - 20/10
Sun - 0/15

it really IS a case of the more you do the more you CAN do, isnt it? it's so ironic. When I find that I am totally tired and unmotivated to work out, working out is EXACTLY what i'm realizing I need to do because it GIVES me energy!
Anyways, I've been trying to do 25/5 3 days a week and then just 15 minutes of whatever type of cardio i feel up to on the other days. I worked today and it was such a crazy day I forfeited my workout though...(and went home and drank 2 glasses of hard cider lol :o )
The days i do the 25/5, it is so hard but I feel great afterwards. I do 5 different minute long jogs. the first 3 are hard but doable....the 4th one is so hard to keep going halfway through, the last one is torture!!!! but I know I will get stronger and stronger and plan on staying at this level until it gets pretty easy and I know that wont take long if I just keep at it!

Is it too late to join in? I planned on starting the program on Monday anyway, but it would be great to have people to be accountable to/celebrate with.

lol, that's a good way to look at before pictures.

i'm also finding that getting up and exercising makes a world of difference in my energy levels. some days i don't feel like moving off of the couch, but when i make myself just go workout, i'm full of energy to get things done around the house.

Great to have you, lavieboheme. We have all more or less tailored the program to meet our own needs and abilities, so its never too late to join in!
Good luck to you!

Kat- Keep up the great work! Already at 25/5. Very cool!

Welcome, lavieboheme! As Kelli said, we have each tailored our own program to fit where we are. I had to start out at walking 5 min at 1.2 and I'm now at 15/20 at 1.6-2.0 on the treadmill. So, just jump on in!

"when i make myself just go workout, i'm full of energy to get things done around the house" Same here, Kelli.

Week 2
Tues - 12/10
Thurs - 15/15
Sat - 20/10
Sun - 15/15

I've already made my exercise goal for January. It's the first exercise goal I've ever made and completed. A personal victory!!! :dancer:

:carrot::carrot:ALL RIGHT!!:carrot::carrot: (I just love that little carrot guy! He's so cute!)

Thanks for the warm welcome! I'm excited about getting started, and I already have my sights set on a couple of 5Ks. :)

So tomorrow's my start day. I already walk more often and for longer stretches of time than the first month plan calls for, so on the suggestion of one of my co-workers, I'm going to follow the chart to the letter, but I'm just going to tack it on to my usual schedule, so I'll be adding the 10 minutes the first week calls for to my daily totals, BONUS for the exercise forum!! :cool:

I've got my bright red Kansas City Chiefs sweatshirt for warmth, my sweat pants, and my cross-trainers ready to go. Wish me luck!!!