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Most gyms have a trainer who will show you how to do everything as a courtesy one time. I'd ask them the next time you are there.

Don't try to do too much getting started. You have to build up your strength. When I first started, doing 10 minutes on my treadmill could have killed me. Now I can walk miles and miles.

Hi ghostgirl811! If you are able to afford it, your money would be well spent hiring a personal trainer at the gym to help you design a workout. Otherwise, why not start by taking a class at the gym? I also completed the New Rules of Weight Lifting for Women a few years ago and thought it was great. It told me exactly what to do and structured things for me. Good luck!

Check out YouTube. Its where I learned a few of my crawls for swimming, I'm sure someone somewhere has shown a routine. Trainers are expensive, but even if you just got one session, they could really show you how to use the machines and what to do! Just commit it tobmeneory! My husband got a personal trainer for a bit, but only to start off.

What type of activities do you prefer? For a start it's crucial to do something you love, then gradually integrating other types of workouts.
Good luck!

I swear the treadmill could bore me to death. I have to listen to music while I'm on it or I will die of boredom.

You can go to youtube and watch tutorials on the gym equipment. Do you have cable? My ondemand has some instructor led classes you can do.

Try some workout videos. They have many on youtube that are short and sweet. Easy peasy. And by workout videos I mean like Jillian Michaels or P90x...something easier..Richard Simmons..Billy Blanks..etc. Nothing with machines. Things you can do in your living room.

There are a lot of "lol"s in your posts but if you are serious about working out, stop laughing and make a plan however small. None of us are motivated to do research and diet all the time but these pounds aren't going away by themselves.

I was pushing 350 when I started and the only exercise I did was walking to the fridge. Now I walk 3+ miles a day and weight train 3x a week. I'm motivated to get back to the 190s as having a 1 on my weight is an amazing feeling.

I don't mean to be harsh. I just think your "lol" and excuses are hiding how sad you are about your weight.

Well screw them if they laugh. If you are that worried about it go into your bedroom, you can do most things probably in that space...or wait till they are gone or in their rooms. Baby steps, start doing 10 mins...15 just before you shower.

Try looking at Fitocracy (website and an app). There are premade workouts as well as individual exercises with tutorial videos. It really helped me with weight training. For running/cardio, c25k program is great. good luck.

It's overwhelming, I get it. If I were you, I'd ditch the gym for right now and just go for a walk. Like 15 minutes a day. Increase it over the next month until you're walking 45 minutes or so a day. Then go twice a day once in the morning and once in the afternoon. This would serve you better than working on sit down machines at the gym and/or spending a ton of cash on a personal trainer. Just get moving for now.
Weight loss isn't about the gym. It's about the food. Exercise will get you feeling better and your heart functioning better etc. etc. etc. but it won't make a hill of beans difference if you don't get your food under control.
Get outside, walk. Once this is a habit, add the gym if you like.

misspixie's suggestion is a good one.

If you don't like walking (I never did until I started walking with someone), then maybe try the elliptical again. Go read an article about using an elliptical and take it slowly. If you can do only do 5 minutes then do 5 minutes. Work your way up. Or do the treadmill (listen to music maybe while doing it). Is there any exercise bike? You could try that. But, start really slowly.

If you haven't exercised before, you might want to check with your doctor to see what suggestions the doctor would have based upon your physical condition. (For example, I can't run due to a knee problem and so on)

Google is your friend here. Look up "beginner gym workout"...you'll find lots of suggestions. It seems like you really need guidance, so maybe a pre-defined plan would work well for you. Luckily, lots of those are available for free. Here's one: http://exercise.about.com/od/exercis...artweekone.htm

There are lots of others, though. Just Google "Beginning Exercise Plan".

Personally, I like a mix of strength training (the weight machines you used) and cardio (like an elliptical, treadmill, or even just walking).

ghostgirl, good for you for working out at the gym for 2 hrs. I work out to leslie sansone walking dvds.

What I would suggest is start simple. I first started in 2010 at 312 pounds. I started at home doing crunches, leg lifts and squats. I love dancing so I found some dance videos on YouTube. When I built up some stamina I bought a Jillian Michaels 30 day shred video...also on YouTube now. It took me about two weeks to get to where I could keep up with her but that's ok. Your body will adapt faster than you think. I stayed with level one more than thirty days and saw improvements in my body relatively quick. Especially in inches lost. I had a series of unfortunate events happen in my life and gained about 60 of the 100 back that I lost. I have decided to ge back at it and I started slowly at home. Coming up on week two and all I have done is toning exercises and walking. Walking at the mall is my thing. I do squats, crunches, leg lifts, wall push ups and 10 second planks. I also walked a mile two days last week. There have been some noticeable differences. I don't weigh myself because that was one of the things that derailed me. I measure my body weekly and a quarter of an inch off my hips from week to week keeps me going. If I can measure my body in the trouble spots and come up with at least an inch total..it's a win to me. Progress in small bits all add to the bottom line in your journey.

Roll up your sleeves and do what works for you. There is something that will work. Just don't give up or quit.