DizzyGus: I have three personal trainers that put me through the wringer in my workouts five days a week so I thought I would share some of their words of wisdom to me with you.
First things first...as everyone else said go to the doctor's office first and let him/her look you over. Be sure to tell him/her that you're about to start working out and what your goals are.
Set a goal. Be as specific as you can be. Not just I want to look better. Make it I want to lose 25 pounds in 3 months and be down 4 to 6 inches in my waist. It's much more effective if you are specific.
You have GOT to eat right. This doesn't mean that you can't have cheesecake and pizza ever again it just means you can't have it at every meal. And instead of 2 or 3 big meals a day try eating 4 or 5 meals with smaller portions. It makes your metabolism speed up and you burn it off faster. Avoid greasy fried food like you would avoid an angry rottweiler. You can have some sugar just not too much or your body will turn it into fat. Eat lots of vegetables and fruits and if you are a carnivore (like me!
) eat white meat only and make sure that it is baked, grilled, or barbecued.
Drink lots of water. The more water you drink the less water weight you retain. It doesn't seem to make sense but it really works that way. Plus it makes you feel less sluggish.
To lose weight do cardio at a moderate pace for an extended length of time. The best cardio exercises for beginners are walking on a treadmill or riding a recumbent bike. And be sure you go at a MODERATE PACE. The longer you perform the exercise at a moderate pace the more fat you will burn. You can tell that you are at a moderate pace if you can perform the exercise WHILE having a conversation without getting out of breath. If you are out of breath slow down. If it seems TOO easy intensify the exercise. And you need to go for between 30 minutes to an hour 4 to 6 times a week to see benefits in a reasonable time frame. My Mom lost FIFTY FIVE POUNDS in SIX MONTHS by simply walking on a treadmill for an hour a day this way.
Weight training will give you a great body but only if you do it correctly. Don't worry about how much weight you can lift initially...just pay attention to your FORM. Get the form of doing the exercise down and concentrate mentally on the muscles that are doing the exercise. Don't over work yourself in the beginning or you will not be motivated to continue lifting weights. The amount of weight to use for each exercise should EXERT you during the workout but not EXHAUST you once it's over.
A personal trainer is WELL WORTH the money if you are a beginner. They can show you exactly what the form should be when you are doing leg lifts, bench presses, lat pulldowns and everything else. Once you get the basic form down and determine how much weight you should start with you should be fine by yourself. But ask any and every question that you think of when talking to your trainer. It's better to have too much information than not enough.
You can get a good weight lifting workout done in 30 to 45 minutes once you get your routine down. I lift weights 3 or 4 times a week and I am never in there for more than 45 minutes. (Unless I am talking to a hottie!!! ;D)
If you JUST eat right, you'll feel better. If you eat right AND do cardio, you'll feel better and lose weight. If you eat right AND do cardio AND lift weights, you'll feel better AND lose weight AND you'll look a hell of a lot better in no time.
A friend of mine started doing all this on New Years Day of 2002. He's 31 years old and he was not obese but he had a big ol' beer gut and had never worked out before in his whole life. He had also NEVER GOTTEN LAID in his life either. He's a nice guy but he had no real self esteem because he thought he looked like a slob. (And he told me so!)
Now it's the middle of October and his family doesn't recognize him anymore. He's lost NINETY POUNDS OF FAT and he's gained about 20-25 pounds of good solid muscle. He looks great and yes....HE HAS EVEN GOTTEN LAID!!!! ;D I bought him a beer to celebrate!!!
It's not hard to get in shape. It just takes education and effort. And once you start to see results it becomes very addictive. You start seeing muscles in places that you didn't know you had them in! I am proud of my body and I like showing it off when it is appropriate to do so like at the pool or at a baseball game or in the locker room after playing hockey. (my favorite thing in the world!!!) It gives you greater self esteem and greater confidence and that's a huge advantage for you in life.
Good luck to you! 8)
