I'm either really out of shape, or I'm not tryinghard enough.

Anyone watch The Biggest Loser? I couldn't believe how good they exercised and how much they could do. I'm not as heavy as they are and I can't exercise like they were.

I'm just dissapointed in myself. This morning I got up to go for a walk and about 15 minutes into it my legs were burning really bad. I didn't know how much UI could do.
I WAS JUST WALKING!
Well I ended up walking briskly for 30 minutes and felt that was all I could do. Maybe I'm not pushing myself hard enough.
I also don't like exercising in front of people so walking around outside makes me uncomfortable.
Maybe I should get that walk away the pounds dvd.

Don't forget that the biggest loser contestants have enormous pressure to lose: the potential to be shamed in front of millions, the risk of being chewed out by their trainers, the money...

30 minutes is nothing to be ashamed of. Hey, that's 30 minutes more than the average American, and probably 30 minutes more than you were doing last year at this time.

Just keep plugging away; you'll get there!
Kim

Thanks Kim, I know I just need to keep at it and I will improve.

Yep, the more you do it, the more you will improve. Stick with it!

I am feeling the same way with you. I hate working out when there are people around. I feel like everyone is staring at the fat girl. They probably aren't but I feel like that. I am going to try to exercise in the privacy of my living room!!! I hope I can do it.

Amy- I have been doing most of my exercise in my living room, maybe they're staring maybe not, the point is I feel more comfortable in my home.
The problem is that I don't have the $ right now for a tread mill, elliptical etc. and the same dvd's get VERY boring after you've been doing them so long.
That can also get expensive having to buy dvd after dvd just to keep your work outs exciting.

have you thought about trying NetFlix? You can get a plan for unlimited movies a month for as low as 8.99 a month and they have plenty of workout DVDs

Is there any way you could overcome your anxiety about walking outside? That would be a nice, free way to shake up your daily routine. I used to be incredibly embarrassed to walk outside too, thinking that "everybody's watching me". Trust me, they don't pay near as much attention as I once thought. I'm not sure what happened, but I basically got to the point where I didn't care if anyone saw me anyway.

OMG ValentineBride, that's such an excellent idea - I didn't know netflix had exercise DVDs.

I guess I am getting over it slowly, I walked once outside last week, this morning and plan on doing it tomorrow morning.

The Netflix is a great idea, thank you valentinebride for sharing.

I battled internally for the longest time as to whether I really COULDN'T go any further or if it was just me being a wuss. I'd often talk myself into going further. Sometimes, I really COULDN'T and ended up with callouses, blisters, shin splints, etc. and had to lay off exercise to let them heal. And not always doing THAT as I should have.

As you go along, you learn to listen to your body and learn what you can and can't do. You learn when you're just tired of exercise or when you've really done enough or are overdoing it.

its my calves that bother me so much, I warm up walking kinda slow then I pick up speed to a brisk walk ans before I know it my calves are SO TIGHT, I can barely stand it. They get really tight then really sore, that's when I ive up.
I know that if I didn't have that problem I could go alot further because I really don't even get out of breath or get my heart rate up a high as it should be during those 30 mins.

I lost 50 pounds exercising daily before I actually joined a gym. I had a stability ball, and small step (you can make one or find them cheap at garage sales), and dumbbells from 5-15 pounds. I also had an old boom box. Put on some music, and make yourself a routine of squats, lunges, presses, ab exercises, dancing, jumping rope, pushups, dips, curls, rows and keep at it. You don't need a lot of equipment or space. You really don't need the dvd's. Just keep moving! As you get stronger, change the workout.

Have you tried stretching after your walk to relieve the tightness in your calves? Do calf raises standing with the balls of your feet on a step. Slowly go up on your toes, then slowly let your heels sink down below the level of your toes. repeat. Each time you do it you will hopefully be able to bring your heels a little further down.

Keep trying!

Mel

you sound like you really need to strech. i highly recommend do a brisk 5 min walk then stretching and then continuing on with your work out..then after a walk do some really long deep stretches for your claves..also a banana may help if you get calf cramps. as for how hard to work out..i've always been taught this rule of thumb..you want to work out hard enough that you are slightly out of breath, but could carry on a brief conversation.

here's a few good links with stretches..you should always strech to prevent injury. turst me it will help ward off heel spurs and shin splints...very important
http://www.womensheartfoundation.org...g_exercise.asp
http://walking.about.com/cs/stretching/a/howstretch.htm

hope that helped...keep up the good work...in no time you'll start realizing you are getting in shape!!!!

Another thing you can do is go super early or late. That way there aren't alot of people there. Maybe you can get over the anxiety easier that way.

I do netflix too. I actually started this week using it. I wanted to try the workouts before I went out and bought it. Also, I don't know if you have cable but there are exercising channels. It shows different workouts throughout the day. That way it wouldn't get boring.

On the not wanting to walk in public thing - you have a youngish baby? (based on your avatar). If you take him out for walks in the stroller, no-one will think you're "exercising", just taking baby out. I did LOTS of walking with my boys when they were little, just to get them out of the house, and me some exercise, but other than a good pair of shoes (or snowboots in winter) I didn't look like I was exercising. It wasn't designed that way on purpose, but for you it may help with the anxiety?

And as others have said - stretch those calves after walking, and maybe if they start to get sore, slow down the pace a little for the rest of that walk. It will improve. Well done for starting, it's the hardest part of any fitness program.

Jax