Fitness Routine

[mray]

OK, I'm 27 years old and have recently lost 90lbs that I gained somewhere between nursing school and having my two children. I feel great since losing the weight but know that I need to get into a more strenuous fitness routine. I am 5'9" and currently weigh 220lbs. My goal weight is 150. As of now, I walk daily but only a mile or two and have forbidden the elevator at work and walk four flights of stairs three to four times per shift. But, that's all there is to it. I want to really get back into some cardio and strength training. Any suggestions?

[LanaBear]

Do you have a gym membership or is that an option? As far as cardio goes, you could start with one of their classes until you find your niche... Get a simple set of dumbbells.

I get on my treadclimber for about 30 min a day, I also take a 20 min walk in the mornings and another in the evenings.

Congratulations on your loss BTW, that is awesome!!!

[OhThereYouAre]

90 lbs. is awesome. Good for you. 70 more is nothing.

Do what you're doing now - just ramp it up.

I see you're currently walking....start walking at a fast pace. Or get on the elliptical. 35 mins a day at a high intensity just melts the calories off of me.

As far as kicking up your diet...cut out easy stuff.....candy/soda/sweets/fast food.

You've got a good base to start....now just kick it up a notch.

[mray]

I have completely cut out sodas and am not a big sweet eater. I try to eat 60-70 grams of protein a day and am trying to drink less coffee and more water! I don't eat bread and love fruit and vegetables. My diet doesn't seem to be much of a challenge at this point. My job provides a free 24-hour gym which is great, but I still have two problems 1) I work 12-hours night shifts three nights a week and have two young children so finding a good time to go to the gym on a regular basis is difficult and 2) I walk in the gym and have NO IDEA where to start!

[WildChild]

Ask them for a tour and explaination of the equipment. When I joined the gym it included a couple of sessions with a trainer which was very helpful. Does the membership include any classes or group exersizes such as yoga or pilates? Give them all a try. I assume there is child care?

Personally as a runner and walker, I don't like the eliptical because they require an unnatural stance. When running or walking with proper alighnment, the spacing between your feet (side to side) should be about the width of a traffic line painted on the street. The eliptical places your feet further apart which I find stresses my knees. The trainer told me she had the same complaint but you'll have to try different machines and see what works best for you. I like to do more weights and resistance in the gym along with yoga and then walk or run outside - weather permitting. The important thing is to have a plan you can stick with.

[stroutman81]

Some good suggestions here.

Congrats on your progress so far... great work. I'd focus on at least 2 days of circuit training with weights and as many days on top of that doing any form of cardio (walking, intervals, machines, etc).

By circuit training, I mean light weight, high rep, low rest weight training using compound exercises. Compound exercises are simply the things that require the most amount of muscle to execute. Instead of focusing on your arms, work on pushing and pulling movements such as pushups, chest press machine, bench press with dumbbells or light barbells (for chest) and row machines, dumbbell rows, cable rows, pulldowns, etc (for back).

For legs things like squat variations, deadlift variations, and single leg work are ideal.

I'd post videos to demonstrate what I mean but this forum doesn't allow that. If you'd like, feel free to message me your email address and I'll gladly show you examples of what I mean.

The movements should be done using weights that comfortably allow you to finish 15 or so reps. As fat continues to be lost and you get more comfortable with weights, you can start working in more traditional strength training using heavier weight.

On the cardio side of things, as someone noted above, simply progress from the foundation you currently have. If you continue doing the same thing at the same intensity and duration you're going to get the same results. Ramp things up gradually. Or try other forms of cardio.

It's all about experimentation.

[lorinabrown]

Yes i am also agree with you people fitness is the key for good health.

[pepetong]

I always exercise every day in the morning. health is everything else.

[gmr324]

I try and incorporate activities with my kids who are 12 and 9. So, I get to stay active while keeping them involved with sports and activities with their friends. Things like swimming, hiking, beach walks work well and gets me my workout time while they are occupied and having fun with their friends at the same time.

[starbright]

First of all, congratulations on losing 90 lbs! That's great!
Your routine sounds great, but it seems like your body is finding a homeostasis (which is good for maintaining the weight that you're at right now) but in order to lose more, you're going to have to either switch up and alternate the activities you're currently doing with new ones or bump up the amount of time/distance that you're walking and climbing on the stairs. If you're able to get into a gym, I think that would allow you to walk, maybe workout on an elliptical machine which is low impact on your legs and add some strength training using weights. Even finding other activities outside of a gym will also help you reach your goal such as swimming and hiking. Keep up the awesome work and I hope you're able to reach your goal!!