Beginning new exercise regime, help needed please!

[JoeLovesGina]

For context, I'm late 50s, BMI 26, raised cholesterol.

Earlier this year I lost 1 1/2 stone by eating well, not snacking and keeping carbs down to roughly one portion a day.

I know I need to get back on track with the diet but am looking to add some cardio and strength training.

I've done Couch to 5K before but don't really love running, and so am looking for something structured with a goal in mind. I find I need something to work towards to keep myself at it.

Does anyone have any advice for good YouTube tutorials or websites or apps please?

I have use of a treadmill, rowing machine, multi-gym and stand-up cycling thing (don't know what you call it!).

Aiming to get BMI and cholesterol to healthy levels by the end of the year.

Thanks all.

Hi OP,

I am an online nutrition and strength coach with a degree in sport and exercise science - hoping I can help!

Firstly, congratulations on your weight loss so far. Most of what you are looking to achieve in terms of BMI and cholesterol is likely to be achieved through nutrition. Basing your diet around higher protein and fibre intake would be beneficial.

In terms of cardio, my initial advice would be to do the types of training you enjoy, it is far better to be consistent than sporadic when it comes to training. As you have access to quite a bit of cardio equipment, you could put them together as a circuit, this will add a bit of variety to your training and can also be very time effective on your busier days.

With regard to strength training, although there are plenty of Youtube tutorials and workout apps, if you have limited experience with these exercises, it is well worth learning how to safely perform these exercises under the guidance of a personal trainer, even if just for a month. This will give you a lot of confidence so that you know what you are doing and that you can safely train for your goals.

Hope you found this information helpful but please feel free to message me directly if you have any further questions.

@JoeLovesGina We're about the same age. I've lost nearly 3 stones this year doing a combination of intermittent fasting and exercise.

I've been following Pahla B's videos on YouTube. She has courses of exercise designed for menopausal women. She's in her 50s too, and talks a lot about diet and nutrition as well as exercise. Her workouts are usually around 25 minutes long, so all do-able. I've been doing them for around 6 months and still haven't got the end - there's loads to choose from. I find her very motivating and encouraging.

As to the intermittent fasting - nothing extreme. I do 16:8, which means no snacking after dinner, and doing my exercise in the morning before I eat breakfast.

@CoachJG thank you for your advice. I haven't really got cash to spare on a personal trainer at the moment so will have a look at circuits as you suggest. Definitely agree that diet is key to weight loss.

@CatOnAHotShedRoof will check out those videos, thanks. I sort of do 16:8 too but have let it slide a bit of late!

It is always mentioned on here but Caroline Girvan is great for strenght training. I did her iron programme as a complete beginner with 3kg 5kg and 10kg dumbbells and saw good gains in strenght and muscle. She explains all the lifts and it is quite slow paced compared to her other programmes.

I'm look up Our Parks Couch to Fitness, same concept as C25K but instead of running it's living room workouts with just a mat needed. 3 workouts a week over a 9 week program getting progressively more intense week on week. It's completely free you can either get the workouts through their website or their YouTube playlists.

I've offered before on here but it costs/gains me nothing
If you want a 60 day free peloton app trial then PM me. You could do row classes, treadmills ones, body weight, strength, Pilates etc
There's also programmes like yoga, crush your core, strength etc
Cancel on day 59 or I think it's £12.99pm