[allabouttheskinny]

Originally Posted by QuilterInVA

Have you ever watched the Biggest Loser - people who weigh nearly 500 pounds work through it and do all kinds of exercise. You can certainly do weight machines, toner bands, free weights and not stress your joints. Treadmill is good for cardio but weights are necessary for toning and weight loss.

We have weights in the gym in my building so I always do that after working out. I also have free weights in my apartment and do those as well.

Originally Posted by InsideMe

I was 240 when I started. So your only 20lbs more. I swear to you I couldn't even do 1 jumping jack. Seriously. I couldn't even jump, or bend down to touch my toes. I hurt, I have a heal spur and I use to have a huge bump on my left foot by my ankle cause my body was compensating for the weight on my feet! That bump is now gone. I started with the Wii fitness coach. Low impact, nothing strenuous and took my water breaks and time to catch my breath if I needed it. And back at it. Did that for about 2 months then in August I started Turbo Jam videos. By the end of Sept I joined a gym. You have to find what works for you and be kind to yourself, do what you can. Rest when you feel like it. Don't kill youself. Bit by bit you will start to feel so much better! You can do it!
Consistency is key. I started doing it every other day only 3 days a week and gave myself days to rest until I WANTED to work out more. YES, if you start off and keep at it you will WANT to do it cause it really does feel so good!

Thanks you for sharing. I'm going to see what that Wii fitness coach is. I know I just need to get going. I'm just so frustrated and tired of being overweight and I have this all or nothing mentality that I need to let go of.

[carter]

Originally Posted by allabouttheskinny

I need to drop this weight! I used to fluctuate between 160 and 180 and just walking at 4-4.5 mph would be enough for me to lose weight. But I developed PCOS so it seems like walking isn't enough. But I'm so much bigger that anything above 3.8mph and I'm so winded. So I end up do (what feels to me) not as intense of a workout on the treadmill.

What is your eating plan? Food is really more important than exercise in achieving weight loss, especially when you are first starting out and have not yet developed the endurance to do long, intense workouts.

It's great that you want to exercise, and actually walking at 3.8 mph for 30-60 minutes is a fantastic way to start - better than many people can do who are just getting moving. So don't sell yourself short - it takes time to build up endurance and strength. Follow the suggestions that others have made to mix up your exercise and add in strength training components - but bear in mind that if weight loss is your goal, food has to be a major focus. Exercise alone won't get the scale moving. You will make gains in your fitness level over time, though, if you are consistent about exercise - and once you start to get the weight off through controlling your eating, the fitness gains will be more dramatic and noticeable.

[patchworkpenguin]

I was 270 when I started to exercise to beginner aerobics DVDs, which were about 20 min max. I'm at 220ish now and I can only WALK on the treadmill at 2.7 TOPS. Anything faster for me is more of a light jog. I think you are being too hard on yourself. I do agree that you need to be more consisiant, even small bursts of exercise over the day add up.

[allabouttheskinny]

Originally Posted by carter

What is your eating plan? Food is really more important than exercise in achieving weight loss, especially when you are first starting out and have not yet developed the endurance to do long, intense workouts.

It's great that you want to exercise, and actually walking at 3.8 mph for 30-60 minutes is a fantastic way to start - better than many people can do who are just getting moving. So don't sell yourself short - it takes time to build up endurance and strength. Follow the suggestions that others have made to mix up your exercise and add in strength training components - but bear in mind that if weight loss is your goal, food has to be a major focus. Exercise alone won't get the scale moving. You will make gains in your fitness level over time, though, if you are consistent about exercise - and once you start to get the weight off through controlling your eating, the fitness gains will be more dramatic and noticeable.

I will be honest that my eating is not 100% on track but I figured if I could start with exercise, that would get the ball rolling.

Thanks for the encouragement! I will keep going.

[allabouttheskinny]

Originally Posted by patchworkpenguin

I was 270 when I started to exercise to beginner aerobics DVDs, which were about 20 min max. I'm at 220ish now and I can only WALK on the treadmill at 2.7 TOPS. Anything faster for me is more of a light jog. I think you are being too hard on yourself. I do agree that you need to be more consisiant, even small bursts of exercise over the day add up.

Thank you for the encouragement!

[allabouttheskinny]

After watching the 23.5 video on YT, I realized how beneficial moving is, even if it isn't running 3 miles a day. I can certainly walk 2 miles in 30 minutes. There's just no excuse for not getting in 30 minutes a day.