The situation is this: I live at home, and exercise is a four letter word in my household. I come from a fat family, and any hint that my parents have that I'm trying to improve myself is going to be seen as, essentially, an attack on how they raised me ("You think there's something wrong with you? You're perfect! You don't have to change! We raised you well!") At this point, it's a battle I'm not willing to fight. I know I need to get healthy, and although they did raise me well, they also raised me fat. But it's not something I'm really up for discussing with my parents, all the same.
I was doing the WAtP DVDs for awhile, but only when my parents were out. However, a situation has come up where one of them is now always home. We don't have a huge house, and if I do it upstairs, they can hear me, and there's no privacy downstairs. I was thinking of maybe just starting an outdoor walking regimen, now that the weather is nicer. Walking doesn't really get my heart rate up, though, no matter how fast I go. I'm too ashamed to be seen outside jogging (I know, I know, I need to get over that, but still). I know there's a lot of walkers here... is that all you do for exercise? I also do strength training, but I'm wondering if walking five days a week + strenght training three times a week would be an adequate workout. If so, how many miles a day is a good place to start out, and how many a day is a good goal?
But my question essentially boils down to this: Which is better, brisk walking outdoors done longer and more often, or intense cardio that gets my heartrate way up? Am I sacrificing weight loss progress if I can't do the latter?