I'm completely out of shape and bigger than I've ever been. How do I start slow...I can't handle the workout tapes I used to do, not to mention tapes can get extremely boring. It's too cold outside to walk and I have no exercise equipment. Is joining a gym probably my best option?

A member on here turned me on to Leslie Sansone's Walk Away the Pounds. You can do it in your front room. It's fun and doesn't take much time. It's just walking, no fancy dance moves to learn. You can find the DVDS on amazon or do a quick search on youtube.

Or you can try Sit and Be fit. It's for older people, people with injuries, or severely obese people, or whoever I guess. It's pretty low impact, but it's something.

Other than that...joining a gym might be a good idea for you, if you want, or think it will help make you accountable. I personally don't want to spend the money, so I exercise at home.

I joined a gym when I first began, as it was winter and I wanted to have a comfortable place to walk. I went about 5 times per week and just walked on the treadmill at first, nothing fancy. About a month in I decided to get a few sessions with a trainer so that I could learn how to use the weight machines - strength training is important during weight loss so that you don't lose muscle while you lose fat.

BUT, a gym isn't necessary. You can get some cardio in at home just by marching in place in front of the TV for 30 minutes or so. Over time you'll be able to march faster and for longer, and when the weather gets nice you can get outside for walks. When you're ready, incorporate some strength training by doing body weight exercises. The straight-forward exercises you already know about are actually great - crunches, squats, lunges, pushups, etc. Do whatever modifications you need to with these when you get started, e.g. do the pushups against a wall or on the arm of a sofa, squat while holding onto the edge of a sturdy table or doorknob, etc.

ANY exercise you incorporate is going to reap benefits, and you'll be surprised how quickly you progress. Good luck!

Dancing is good! if you have wii fit that works to. I played the your shpe fitness evolved on the kinect for the xbox 360 and its REALLY fun!

I belong to a gym even though I also work out outside on my biking or running. I like that it has different equipment I can use, and has the weight machines for better weight training than my 10 pound weights at home. It also has classes.
I found a local gym that is low key and not too expensive. I run on the treadmill when it's bad weather, and sometimes meet my friends and we all do weight circuits.

Slap on a pedometer and challenge yourself to walk 2,000 steps a day. Then in two weeks, increase it to 2,500. Keep adding from there. By that, I mean your totals for the entire day. If it is already over 2,000, then make it consistent for the week and add another 500 the next week.

Right now you can focus on just trying to get in more activity in general

I know it sounds corny, but you try: parking further away, getting up more during the day, purposely going on a roundabout walk where you work/live, etc.

For example I will quite frequently use the bathroom further away from me at work. It's a little bit more of a walk and I have to go to the basement to use it and thus walk back up the stairs to get to my classroom

I totally second this. Those dance games are quite fun!

I don't like the commitment of a gym. I mainly exercise at home to a variety of dvds and youtube. I also take advantage of groupons, dealfind, living social deals for exercise programs. For instance a studio that only focuses on a rowing interval workouts costs $20 a class, but the groupon I just bought had 5 classes for $35. I also bought a boxing groupon of 10 classes for $35. A bootcamp class through living social. All of this for less than $100 bucks and I plan to mix it up with at home stuff. So it may be beneficial to look into these types of services for deals in your area.

Shellsy, it is whatever will work best for you. I bought exercise dvds and did not use them. I bought a gym membership and I do use it. I use the elliptical and treadmill at the gym. When the weather is good I walk outside. Walking is a good start.

I didn't start with a gym. I was so out of shape, that I couldn't even wash the dishes without taking a break. Just getting dressed and undressed winded me.

I started with a step-counting pedometer (under $5) and clipped it to my shoe (I'd lost too many pedometers to the wash machine forgetting to unclip it from my waist). Every day I just tried to "beat" the previous days record.

I also bought one of those large exercise balls (reading the package to make sure it held my weight). Literally just sitting on it while I watched tv helped strengthen my legs and improve my balance (although I made the mistake the first day of sitting on it for more than an hour because it didn't "feel like" exercise and the next day my thighs were unbelievably sore).

Then I found a warm-water arthritis program in a local physical therapy pool. At first the most difficult part of the "workout" was getting dressed and undressed in the locker rooms. I couldn't do much but tread water at first.

When it got warm, and I was getting stronger, I signed up for dog-walking at the humane society (but I had to be careful to choose only small dogs that couldn't pull very hard).

I finally did join the YMCA, but not until I could exercise for 20 minutes at a stretch and was exercising at least three times a week on my own (I chose that standard, because I knew my own personality enough to know that otherwise I would find too many excuses not to go).

My gym instructor told me (on one of my coming back trips to the gym), that since I am so overweight (technically Obesity Grade II for a couple kilos), I should avoid doing aerobics and exercises that imply bouncing around until I don't lose several kilos, as the weight would be impacting on my knees, hurting them. She advised me to do lots of bike for an aerobic exercise, as well as working on the machines to get muscle tone. I don't know exactly which is your situation, but maybe it would also work for you

@kaplods: Have you noticed benefits for your back with the ball? I have heard it's really good, but I haven't been able to use one for long enough to confirm it.

Any exercise that requires me to bear my body weight primarily on my feet is out so I am starting with riding a bike. I can only go down the block and back but in a week I will add another block and so on.

When I was first starting on all this years ago I went with pool -- swim or water aerobics. As much for not liking to feel sweaty as being supported and cushioned joint wise in the pool. Then I went to bike, then treadmill at a gym.

I regained over many years and though I go at it again still from the obese category, I'm fitter than THAT OBESE level before. I went with Wii Fit Plus and Kim Lyons DVDs. Also just walking. I change the sneakers out every 6 mos. I can tell the inner cushioning is getting shot when I start to feel the knee complain. I can bike, swim, etc.

A.

It's hard to say for sure, because the ball has never been my only exercise (so the other exercises may have been responsible as much or more than the ball), but I think it really has helped my back, especially my lower back.

I think it's definitely done more for my balance, because that started improving dramatically only after I started using the ball.

Another piece of gym equipment that made an even more dramatic improvement on my balance was the upright eliptical. I really can't do very long on the machine, but this is the first winter I haven't slipped and fallen on the ice (knock on wood, since winter isn't over yet).

Try this I'm going to. It was on Dr. Oz today. The 5 minute workout. http://www.drozfans.com/dr-oz-exerci...press-workout/