Getting fit

[flibbertigibbert]

After a year of sitting on my backside eating family sized bars of chocolate I'm horribly unfit. I've joined a gym, but the half mile walk there leaves me huffing, never mind the workout itself.

I'm looking for advice about the best way to get fitter. I can't afford a personal trainer since the gym itself is v expensive.

Also, can anyone reassure me that it will get easier? Does anyone have any exercise success stories?

Hiya

I am also a relative late comer to exercise. The way that I got fit was through running. It is a good workout for the legs, bum, and upper body and, although you need to invest in a good pair of shoes, it is free. If you have already joined a gym then you could use the treadmill there.

Doing some weights is also helpful in building your strength and combined with cardio, like running, you will start to feel fitter pretty quickly.

You say the half mile walk to the gym leaves you huffing, but keep at it and after a few weeks am sure you'll find it easier.

At most gyms you should be able to get a free program drawn up for you. In that way you could get a plan to keep you motivated without the expense of a personal trainer.

Good luck!

If you've joined a gym then you should get a plan written up for you - they usually discuss this when showing you how to use the machines. It will usually include some cardio work - like cycling, treadmill or cross trainer - to get your heart rate up and then some basics weights to help tone your muscles.

Don't try to do too much too soon - you'll be put off of going and end up going less and less. You are much better to start quite low intensity and build it up. Expect to build it up over a few months and not a few weeks.

Keep it up and you'll soon find that you are actually enjoying it

I also 2nd the running (though I am still a beginner at it myself).

You can download podcasts for your ipod that take you through a programme designed for beginners. Google 'couch to 5k' and you'll find an assortment. I like Nicole Blum as her music is more up to date. Each week the runs (jogs in my case ) get slightly longer - they are only 1 minute at a time in the 1st week. But if you feel it is too much you can just repeat weeks - so maybe do 2 weeks of week 1 and 2 weeks of week 2 etc.

Alternatively, get on the treadmill and, after a walm up walk, jog for a few minutes and increase it by a minute each time you go on there.

Thanks for the advice. My gym don't offer a profile unless you pay for it.

At the moment I use the cross trainer for cardio, but my heart rate goes above the recommended max after a couple of minutes on level 1!

The reassurance that it will get better is helpful. I feel awful - I'm only 24, I shouldn't be struggling to walk a short distance.

Maybe have a look online for a gym program in that case. I found when I first joined a gym that I spent a fair amount of time wandering about between machines and after being there for an hour, hadn't really done much.

If you take it slowly you will definitely see improvements but you have to give it time.

When you say your heart rate goes above the recommended max are you referring to the reading taken from the cross trainer? If so, ignore it as I've been told these are rarely accurate, so don't be put off!

When you do your cardio the most effective way to train is to do 'intervals' so if you are on the cross trainer, try doing 3 minutes on level 1 at a steady pace and then try putting it up to level 3, even if it's just for 30 seconds, then drop it back down to level 1 to recover for three minutes, then back up. You can do the same on the bikes, or alternate between walking and jogging on the treadmill. Try and aim for 15 minutes of this to start with.

When you do your weights, the mistake lots of people seem to make is to rest for long between sets, so your heart rate drops. Try to alternate between an upper body exercise and a lower body exercise so then one muscle group gets a rest whilst you work the other. For example you could do ten squats alternated with ten push ups and repeat 2 or 3 times.
Make sure you are using heavy enough weights, if you can lift it comfortably more than 13 times then you should increase the weight.

Make sure you have a good stretch at the end.

I know you were looking for reassurance that it will get easier, but to be honest it SHOULDN'T get easier as you should always be working as hard as you can. Hopefully though, you will gain in confidence and will begin to enjoy it

It can be a good idea to keep a training log, just take a notebook with you so you can write down what weight you used on each exercise and how many reps you manage, this makes it easier to make sure you are lifting the right weights on each exercise and is also really motivating as you will be able to look back in a month and see just how far you have come.

Make sure you ask the gym instructors if you have any questions, especially if you are unsure of how to do certain exercises etc as you don't want to injure yourself with poor form.

Good luck, I hope you start to enjoy the challenge.

The cross trainer is actually quite hard work - certainly gets my heart rate up and quickly too! Rather than do 5 minutes or so at a hard pace and then stop, take it gently and do it for 10-15 mins. You'll soon find that you can keep going for longer.

OP - well done, you've taken the first step to getting fit. Keep up with the walking to the gym - you'll notice that gets easier as you get fitter and you'll notice all of a sudden you're not out of breath.

Your gym should draw up a programme for you and an instructor should take you through how to use the machines. You could also look online for exercise programmes - like the running made easy book (which introduces you to running through a walk/run combination - v good for beginners and you challenge yourself more as your fitness improves - or the bodydoctor's weights and cardio workouts (again, good all round work out). I think the best thing to do is start to improve your fitness and technique in an enjoyable way and then when you feel fitter you can look at different ways of pushing yourself by doing different classes or pursuing certain goals.

Lostgirl - that's really helpful. I go by the heart rate on the machines. My resting pulse rate is quite high at the moment. I may consider buying a heart rate monitor when I get more into it.

A lot of people in the gym seem to take ages between sets of weights and I thought my breaks of just under a minute were too short.

I did the first Couch to 5k workout today on the treadmill. I found it really hard going, but I'm going to stick with it.

I'm another one trying running, have lost 23lb now. I do classes rather than gym, because they make you work hard. I'm also 6 weeks into the couch potato to 5km running programme from The Guardian - I just get up and do it on the 3 days a week it says. To begin with I struggled to run for one minute, but I'm up to 8 mins run one min walk now and it is strenuous but achievable, so very much looking forward to 5km without stopping in 2 weeks time. At the end of the day exercise has to do some good because you can't eat at the same time, and the endorphins you get from it do stop any binge/comfort eating. I'm going to carry on running on my own for the summer and then join the Womens Running Network in the autumn for some company when the going gets tough on the cold dark evenings.

Classes suited me the best because I am not self-motivated and it pushed me. Legs, tums & bums are great classes and fun. Mind you I havent been for years!!!!

I strongly believe that too many people excercise wrongly, breath wrong, and can either cause damage or notice that their muscles are not changing. Going into a gym should be supervised really.

They do say to do two forms of excercise ie mix with swimming so that you maximise all your muscles and get plenty of cardio.

I'm having a nightmare with two pre-school children and a workaholic husband I cant get out. Cant justify paying a babysitter two hours (drive there and back, change and class) £13.

can I just suggest 30 day shred DVD (Jillian Micheals)

Hi, I started going to the gym about 3 months ago and have lost 2 stone so far (have another 11 pounds to lose).

I started off doing LBT and body conditioning classes and spinning. I went about 5-6 times a week and sometimes did 2 classes back to back. They were tough at first but got easier and now I do circuits and zumba which I love.

I also dieted - cut out all sweets, choccie, biccies etc and ate healthy and smaller portion sizes. It was both the exercise and dieting that helped me lose the weight because they were a couple of weeks when I couldn't get to the gym and weight just stayed the same.

I would recommend classes as it's like having a personal trainer without paying 40 quid an hour. I lose motivation very quickly in the gym working on my own and find running very boring but do wish I was better at it as great for losing weight. Best of luck.