Working out didn't work out
 

Recently, I went from sedentary to active.

Saturday: 1 hour on the treadmill, alternating between walking 1.5 minutes, then jogging 1 minute.

Sunday: 50 minutes on the elliptical at level 1 resistance, traveling like 4.5 miles.

Monday: Same as Saturday...

And today? I tried doing Sunday's thing again, but I had to quit at the 25 minute mark. My pace was slightly slower than on Sunday, but I was sweating like a pig the whole time. At 25 minutes I stopped for a brief break, and my heart felt like it was pounding out of my chest. I got back on after my heart slowed down, but I could only bear another 5 minutes. The Sunday work out was hard, but not unbearable like today's!

These past few days, I've felt sooooooo sore. SO sore. Like, going down stairs in the morning is a killer. I wonder if today's work out was too hard because my body is trying to recover? I've been eating healthy and plenty, so I don't think food was my problem. Though I did take a flaxseed oil tablet today for the first time... but I doubt that would prohibit me.

Do you think my body is just tired from pushing it so hard? Was it good that I stopped, or should I have sat down for a few minutes and then pushed through this? Can I continue this routine tomorrow, or should I give my body a rest? (I plan on resting on Sunday--is that too far away?)

Admittedly, I was slightly less sore today than I was the other two days... but not by much. I still hate standing up. :)

I'd take a rest day or two.
Take it easy, maybe doing only 30 minutes or so and build back up to an hour if you want to-over several days or weeks.
I personally don't do over 30 minutes of any cardio activity.

Best wishes and get some rest ! :)

It sounds to me like you're doing to much to fast. Try working out for 45 minutes every other day and then slowly increasing it when you feel better. Your body shouldn't be so sore, some aches and pains are ok but you shouldn't be describing it as "killer". Yikes!

I used to be very active and then over time became sedentary. Then I decided to be active again and well I kind of did what you were doing. I ended up pulling a tendon (which I never had before) and was not able to work out for 2 weeks. When you begin exercising again you are supposed to make sure you give your body a days rest, that is why they recommend working out every other day at first. If you feel the need to work out every day then you should be alternating muscle workouts. For example if you worked you upper body (arms, back, core) today, you should work your lower body (legs, buttock) tomorrow and vise-versa. I would give my body about two days rest if I was you. Take some time to listen to your body or you will end up hurting yourself and be forced to start paying attention, like me. Good luck, hope you feel better soon!

Yep, it definitely sounds like you are doing too much, too fast... We all have to start somewhere and it's usually not at the top, unfortunately :(... So give yourself a couple days rest and then start gradually exercising your way up to the first workout that kicked your butt:kickbutt: ...

I agree, take a rest day. I take two rest days per week. I recommend avoiding taking them back to back (as I'm often inclined to do) as you don't really reap the benefits of the second rest day that way and it's harder to get started again. As one of the above posters mentioned, you want to alternate muscle groups, don't do the same workout back to back. Also, it's good to alternate hard and easy workouts. If you go hard every time (especially in the beginning) it's easy to run yourself into the ground.

But there is an extent of just pushing through it (within reason, if it hurts, STOP). Day 2 of each week on C25K is always hardest for me. I think my body is just tired from day 1 but has adjusted better by day 3.

And of course make sure you take the time to stretch! I stretch for minimum 10 min (usually 20-25min)