So I am half being a scared loser and half still a bit nervous about jogging due to having had lung problems since I had pneumonia about 6 months ago. I am scared to go jogging in case people stare at me...it's a bit of a stupid fear, because why should I care? Also, like I said my lungs are still not recovered from pneumonia.

Anyway, I have a dance aerobics DVD which I enjoy and I can do that for about an hour...for now, do you think this is sufficient exercise? I also go on like 40minute walks every couple of days.

I WILL be going jogging soon at some point because I love it, though.

Everyone has that self conscious fear at first. You can either get over and just do it ( you wont regret it) or you can let fear rule your life.... you can let FEAR prevent you from doing something you said above that you LOVE........ Eh... who gives a s**t what people you dont even know THINK about..... And in regards to the pneumonia thing...that s bit of an excuse if i ever heard one-- because a cardiovascular workout is a cardiovascular workout. If you get your Heart rate up and breathing hard doing an exercise DVD, it is the same as getting your heart rate up and breathing hard going for a jog....

Sorry to be so harsh..... sometimes we need someone to call us out on our BS excuses. At the end of the day, the choice is still ours....

Well I will say that jogging is harder for me personally, breathing wise. I think it is all the bouncing up and down... And especially jogging outside, because I have allergies and some asthma problems. I would suggest starting to jog on a treadmill if you have access to one, and if not, than just take it slow.

I think the best exercise for you is the one that you are willing to do. I don't think anybody is going to tell you that you won't lose weight unless you're running. And I bet if you get really into those aerobics videos you will start to have more faith in your lung function. Good luck

Yeah I know it's an excuse but it's pretty cold here and my lungs get loaded with phleghm more in the cold and I end up puking it up hence preferring the indoor dance workout than an outside jog.

I did my DVD today and went for an hour walk so I'll definitely be biting the bullet and going jogging soon because it's starting to warm up now.

I was going to suggest a good walk, then walk/run intervals like the c25k to see how it feels... If you start running very gradually your lungs will get used to it gradually too...

What does your doctor say about starting to run?

Nobody is really staring at you. I mean, they might notice you but they don't pay attention to you for more than 2 seconds. I mean how often are you outside and you see someone jog by do you sit there and stare at them the whole time? And also, for me at least, EVERY TIME I see someone outside, thin or thick, exercising I ALWAYS say outloud "That's what I should be doing" whether or not someone is with me lol.

Trust me. Nobody cares. People are too self centered.

And I know how you feel about the lung thing. I'm a former smoker, and couldn't run to save my life, pre smoking and while smoking. I was terrified of the Couch to 5K program, I tried it twice when I was a smoker and failed. But I decided to conquer my fear, and I'm chugging along with almost no problems.

So anyway, you can do it!! Don't be scared. Just make sure you start off slow and steady, and listen to your body. You'll be surprised at what you can do.

Thank you all for your replies.

Ilene I like your idea of doing intervals of walking/running so I am going to give it a go tomorrow morning!

My doctor hasn't given me any advice really, I've been more prone to chest colds since the pneumonia and he keeps saying "it takes time, your lungs got damaged, don't worry you'll be back to normal in time" so I am just going to listen to my body and trust it. It's so frustrating though because it has really affected my overall fitness. If you've had bad pneumonia or are an ex-smoker as oodlesofnoodles says, you'll understand that it's really hard!

But thank you for the replies, I really appreciate it. Time to face that fear!