I have to start of by saying that I am a physical therapist.....an expert in physical activity, fixing movement disorders and using exercise to improve physical dysfunction. It's my job to motivate and instruct people to make changes in their own lives....

Over the past two months plus I have lost over 20 lbs now through mostly diet alone. I do exercise about 3 times a week through mostly walking. (I do have a basic gym membership also with aerobic machines and weights) My doctor wants me to exercise for 60 min, 5 times per week. ...but it is so hard to do. ...and it isn't because I don't have enough time. Since July 13th I have stopped working overtime at another location. I don't have children yet or many other responsibilities these days. I thought that after decreasing my work hours from 7am-7pm to 8:30am-5pm I would have more motivation....but I don't.

Does anyone have any advice for this sorry case on how to increase exercise into my life?

Thank you everyone!

Baby, a 24 lb loss in 2 months is totally awesome! You are doing great. My only suggestion is maybe you could try to break up your exercise sessions over the course of the day. I am a working mom so I know that there is no way that I could consistently do a 60 minute workout 5x a week. I do 30 minutes stationary biking or running in the morning 5x a week, do weight training over my lunch hour 3x a week, and sometimes add another 30 minute workout 2-3x a week of running, brisk walking or water aerobics (60 minute class) a week. Now I certainly did not start out at this level of exercise--I slowly started adding in new forms of exercise over time. This spring, DH & I started the c25k program and I dropped the water aerobics classes until the fall. DH usually runs more often during the week than I do, but I try to join him at least 3x a week.

hi!

just start off small. don't overwhelm yourself. my goal was to try to walk at least 30 minutes at least 5 days a week. I used to always burn out or lose motivation before when I would try to commit to intense one hour workouts at the gym. I think starting off small and being consistent is the key. you sound like you are doing great! you can do this!

I say what you are doing so far is great- go at your own pace- 3x a week seems to be working for you- when the loss slows then I'd increase your workouts

what motivates me to exercise is when I have a goal that I'm working toward, and a plan to get there. Like having a goal to walk 3 miles in 45 minutes, and walking three times a week gradually increasing the distance/time.
Another thing that gets me moving is doing the 30 day shred dvd. It's only 20 minutes long. How can I NOT do 20 minutes just three times a week???

Sometimes when I try to do 60 min cardio in the gym, I get bored. If that's a problem you're having, switch machines. Start with the hardest thing first, do it for 20 min, do the next hardest thing for another 20 min, then the last, easiest thing for 20 min. You can start out on relatively "easy" difficulty, and then build up.

Another option is to check out the classes at your gym--at my gym, the classes are either 45 or 60 min long. If there are clsses included in your membership, you can do a little cardio before or after and you'll be at 60 min in no time. Classes are also good because since someone else is motivating you, you'll work harder and do different things than you otherwise would.

Also, I find it really, really easy to do weights/resistance for 60 minutes. there a bazillion variations on ab/core work you can do, and just as many kinds of exercises for arms and legs. Find 15 or 20 exercises you can do, write a list, and do it twice. Add in 5 minutes warm up and cool down and a bit of stretching and you will find yourself going over an hour before you even know it. (If you have trouble finding exercises, give me a shout and I can post some links.) Good luck!

My advice would be to hire a good personal trainer who will make you accountable, who you could meet right after work or early morning, if you're more of a morning person.

Also find an activity, that you can do on alternate days, that you like a lot and do it, hiking, swimming, fitness classes, kayaking, belly dancing, yoga, gosh the sky's the limit! But do something you like that is key I think...

Good luck and keep us posted

You guys all sound so confident! I have full access to the hosptal gym where I work and a library of exercise tapes and perfect three and six mile running loops where I live. My problem (besides time and energy of course) is that I can not bring myself to exercise in front of anyone, especially my family, I know I should just say forget what they think but they make horrible comments and make me feel like going out and pigging out on something! Of course this is all under the guise of being "helpful" Summer is the worst because my daughter is out of school and it gets even worse when my husband is home (three weeks home, three weeks in Alaska) Its like I find time but I cant find consistant privacy! any tips? Jolene

You're doing great! Exercise three times a week is excellent. 60 min, five times a week is a lot for someone that has only been at it for two months. It took me six months to a year to work up to that level of exercise. And, I'm not convinced it's necessary, either. I think doctors say stuff like that without really expecting that patients will do what they say. They expect that you'll do less than whatever they say, so they tell you to do more, maybe even double, what they really want.

And, that's such a vague instruction. 60 minutes at what intensity? Doing what kind of exercise? That makes a big difference. If you are walking on no incline, you do have to exercise for longer than you would if you were doing something more intense to get the same benefit. One solution to not wanting to spend an hour exercising is to do shorter but more intense workouts. Try walking on an incline, or alternating running with walking, or using the elliptical or other cardio machines.

I also second Ilene's suggestion of hiring a trainer. That's how I got started and it made a huge difference in terms of my motivation. A couple of other things that helped were:

• Buying an iPod so I can listen to my own music when I work out. I have a special playlist of favorite music that I only listen to when I work out. It's something to look forward to about my workouts.
• Finding exercise that I enjoy doing. It did take a while to build up my physical stamina, but once I reached a certain level of fitness, I have found that there are forms of exercise that I do enjoy.
• I also think of my workouts as "me" time. It's my time to focus on me only, when no one can bother me with any demands. Allowing myself little treats, like sitting in the sauna after my workout or walking to the gym when it's sunny also help me look forward to my workouts.

Also, don't feel like you have to go from three times a week to 60 min, five times a week overnight. Try to work up to it. Maybe strive to add a fourth day for the next month and promise yourself some sort of reward if you do it (a new workout outfit, a pedicure, a book or CD that you want, etc.) Then once you've integrated that into your life, you can look towards the next goal. I started out a three days a week, then added another day a couple of months later. Then added another day a few months after that. Then eventually added one day on the weekend. Then started increasing some of my cardio workouts from 30 min to 45 min. Changing your life is a gradual process.

Maybe have a serious conversation with your husband about how important this is to you and how hurtful his comments are. Those sorts of comments are inappropriate and show a real lack of support. I wonder if there aren't deeper issues involved here. Is your husband overweight? Does he feel guilty himself about not exercising? Is he threatened by you exercising? Maybe even seeing a marriage counselor for a couple of sessions might be beneficial.

I suspect that your daughter is taking cues from your husband and if he were to start being more supportive, she would too. But I also know that if I had ever said anything hurtful about either of my parents, I would have been punished severely. The next time she says something hurtful, maybe some sort of punishment is in order. I'm assuming she's still young enough that you are able to disclipline her. If she is an adult, then I think maybe you should have the same conversation with her that you have with your husband.

Also, I know that the gym can be intimidating, but after you go a few times, it is a lot less so. People at the gym are more self-absorbed than just about anywhere else in the world. After you've worked out there a few times, you realize that no one is paying any attention to you. I fell in a class last week, sat on the floor in such horrible pain that I could not speak for probably five minutes, and then hobbled around for several more minutes, and no one, not even the person working out less than five feet away, even noticed or asked if I was okay. Everyone is in their own little world.

This is another situation where hiring a personal trainer can be really helpful. Having a trainer made a big difference for me in terms of getting over my fears of working out in front of other people. You don't feel quite so stupid or self-conscious when you're just doing what someone is telling you to do. And if you are working out at the gym, then your husband and daughter won't be around to make comments. If you worked out at the gym at work, just before or after your work day, they might not even realize you are doing it.

I have also been told to exercise more than three times a week. For fat loss, 60 minutes, 5 times a week is the recommendation. But I also had a tough time motivating myself to doing so. I hate doing the same thing over and over again. I hate going to a gym, unless a good trainer is involved.

I love watching TV. I know, I know...but I would rather do that than exercise, and I watch TV every night. So I exercise while I watch TV. I have an elliptical cross trainer in the living room. I also bounce on my Fitball and burn about 500 calories/hour doing so. Three times a week, I add weights for upper body work. And I make sure to do abdominal exercises every time. My lower back is now stronger, as are my quads and glutes. And my abdominal core. I also do some Pilates while I watch TV.

Georgia

All these sugestions are so great!!!! I feel so motivated! I think I'm going to start building up slowly in time (using sugestions above). To increase my number of days I decided to go ahead have personal training session 1 time a week for three months.

P.S. I saw my doctor today and he was very pleased with my progress so far. I think now that he has seen proof that I am making big changes and putting in the work, he isn't pushing so hard.

Starting slowly and gradually is the way to go, baby steps, baby steps...

I just wanted to add... if I relied on motivation to make me exercise, I'd never do it! It's something I just have to schedule into my day, and make it a habit, a part of my normal routine. It's just "something I do" now, like brushing my teeth every day or putting out the recycling every other week. And if I miss it, that doesn't mean I'm a bad person or I've fallen off the wagon - I once missed brushing my teeth when I spent a night out of town without a toothbrush, but I didn't quit and give up on dental health forever.

That's not to say I don't enjoy my exercise while I'm doing it sometimes, at least some aspects. I always feel great after, and once in a while I even look forward to it. But getting myself off my butt to do it is hard almost all of the time.

Congrats on your success so far, you've obviously got the healthy eating thing under control, that's awesome!