Try myfitnesspal.com for logging in your calories.

Wanna, typically I use either the seated elliptical machine or the recumbent bike. Those are the 2 machines for cardio my gym has that I can do on my replaced knees. I haven't been keeping track of what level I do or how far I go but I will start doing that tomorrow so I can gradually bump it up and see how far I have come later on. I do read the machine instructions and it says I should be shooting for a heart rate in the 130s given my age. (30 something). Right now I just exercise hard enough to get there and stay there as long as I can, but I recognize that I need clearer numbers to help me make progress.

Walking would be a great addition to your regime. Just walking 10 mins here and 10 mins there. Try and get about 50 mins in a day and slowly increase it and increase the intervals. Get to a stage where you're able to wake up and go for a 50min walk before showering, changing and getting off to work. You'll be surprised at how good low impact cardio can be for you :)

rosesandholly: You should probably look into getting a certified trainer - if you are in the US, a trainer who is certified with the American Council on Exercise (acefitness.org). They have 50,000 certified professionals you could call on - find one in your area and contact them. They should be able to do an interview assessment to learn your situation and goals before you sign up with them.

As the other posters have said... don't give up - 30 minutes in 10 minute increments will work into your day AND improve your fitness. I am also a certified fitness professional and I also say "Start here, start now for as long as you can manage, keep at it and you will gain strength in your muscles and your CVsystem."

If you feel OK with getting into a swimsuit or shorts & a sturdy bra under a T shirt I recommend exercise in the water - you get the resistance training without the negative effects of gravity on your joints due to weight. Athletes use it for training as well. You don't have to swim or get your head wet or even go over chest deep water.

Good luck - I'm sure you'll be progressing past this sticking point fairly soon.

Liana

Thanks Liana, that was really helpful and hopeful to hear. Usually I do my weight lifting (30 reps on each machine, 4 machines, a leg press machine and bicep curls with dumbells. Right now my dumbells are just 5 lbs each, but they'll get heavier.) 3x a week, followed by as much cardio as I can---which right now is just 10 minutes, but I'll do more tomorrow.

2-3 times a week I spend an hour or so in the pool. I take Sundays off. I look horrible in a swimsuit, but I can't worry about that now.

Originally Posted by Sum38:
Try myfitnesspal.com for logging in your calories.

Yes! I love using it for logging calories and workouts. Be careful if you go to the forums though. They can be brutal. :) I don't do the forums there, just here.

In what way, "brutal"?

As I see it I am competing against myself, no one else. (Though it is easy to start comparing, I know myself. That's dangerous territory for me.)

I fought it for a while, but I signed up for Myfitnesspal yesterday and am using it now.

Also, I got 24 minutes of cardio in at the gym today, plus my usual weight lifting! Yay me!:carrot:

Originally Posted by Wannabeskinny:
What is your cardio routine now? You sound like you're feeling hopeless but you're not doing yourself any favors. You say the trainer told you how many calories to shoot for buy you have no clue how many you're eating anyway. The trainer said 30 min of cardio but you set yourself up by going on the harder machines. You can't succeed if you deliberately set yourself up to fail. You only lost 1lb last week and you've labeled that a failure. Your post is very glass-half-empty. It's ok, we've all been there and it's ok to indulge in a little self pity. But that's over now and it's time to talk about what you CAN do.

Your trainer made some suggestions and they're not bad. She said 30 min of cardio which is doable as long as you do what you can or work towards it. But you shot that down. She suggests a caloric amount which is also far from drastic but you didn't like that either. She invited you into her class and encouraged you by saying she believed you could do it and that brought you down too. . . .You're not obligated to honor anyone's advice but anything you do consistently will work eventually. Just keep doing and working and it will work out.

Self pity is a real drag. Whenever I feel a shred of it I get my a$$ to the track in the mornings and watch the old ladies run circles around me and that gets my butt in gear. Even more so the old lady who walks completely hunched over with a cane doing her daily laps. If she can do it then I can do. Perspective is everything.

ITA (I just left out the part about the OP's previous posts because I don't know enough about that).

OP, as far as I can tell from your post, I see no reason to blame the trainer----unless there is something I am missing?? Sounds like she is giving you some moderate goals to shoot for; nothing wrong with that. That doesn't mean you have to achieve those goals right now. As others have said, work up to them.

We all get discouraged. For years, I would read posts by longterm maintainers and wonder what the "secret" to their success was. I finally realized that one big difference between the people who maintain longterm and those who can't seem to is how they handle disappointment: I notice that many longterm maintainers don't let discouragement overwhelm them into giving up. In fact, they don't give up. They keep plugging along through partial regains, stressful life situations, etc. They don't give up. I've learned something from that, and I think if it whenever I get discouraged and just want to give up, buy a cheesecake, and take out my fork. It helps me to avoid that mindset. OP, don't give up. Perseverance, not perfection, will get you to your goal.

I started out at 310lbs and even at that weight I could do the C25K program, so far atleast! I have to push myself but I CAN DO IT. the last jog part im repeating I can do this. I will do this. in my head over and over but then when its done I can say I DID IT.

The Couch to 5K program starts off by walk/jogging for 30 minutes 3 days a week. if you have the app you can plug in your headphones and it tells you when to walk and when to jog. Im on week 2 and on this week I start by warming up for 5 minutes, then jog for a minute and half, then walk for two minutes then jog for a minute and half (week one is easier less jogging)

I can't do the jogging part (docs have specifically told me never to run,or even do a light run, on my replaced knees. If the zombie apocalypse comes, I am so doomed. :D) That said, I'm glad you've found something that works for you!

Keep it up. :)

I do the same talking-to-myself mid work out thing.

Originally Posted by rosesandholly:
In what way, "brutal"?

As I see it I am competing against myself, no one else. (Though it is easy to start comparing, I know myself. That's dangerous territory for me.)

I fought it for a while, but I signed up for Myfitnesspal yesterday and am using it now.

Also, I got 24 minutes of cardio in at the gym today, plus my usual weight lifting! Yay me!:carrot:

That's awesome! You'll be up to 30 in no time :)