Start Walking!

[Moonglo]

Yeah, I just finished a three mile "brisk" walk (Leslie Sansone's Start Walking 3-mile that's on demand right now on exercise tv). Can I just say, that there is very little walking to this... I feel like I spent 45 minutes doing more strength training than anything, between the kicks, knee lifts, and other such moves (yeah, I must've sweated off about 50 pounds, but still ;) )

Anyone else try these? Even the 2-mile gives me a pretty good workout... I only did 3 today because I felt bad because my workouts have been suffering while I've been sick and stressed. And according to an activity calculator I found online, I burned about 500 calories :D I don't know how accurate that is, but it makes me feel better lol. :)

[slwood321]

I used to do her workouts and have even recommended them to others. I found I did tone up and lose some weight while doing it. It definitely gets easy quick and you have to make yourself work harder. Good Luck with the weight loss. I am currently on a kick with the elliptical machine and did 20 miles last week. But I don't think I lost an ounce. I keep forgetting about the dieting AND exercising. My personal feeling are that after going four miles I should be able to eat whatever I want!!!!

[Moonglo]

Thanks :) good luck to you too! I hear you about wanting to eat more lol... for me, though, the metformin is really helping me to stay in check on that front; especially since it makes me sick when I eat something I shouldn't. Although, I have to admit that now that I've been eating fewer carbs (not low carb, but fewer), I haven't been enjoying the few splurges I've had anyway- it's like fries just don't taste good anymore.

Actually, because I'm still way past morbidly obese (5ft2 and 260 pounds) I'm using her programs to get my body better aclimated for exercise, so I can do more later on. So far it seems to be working. I never could have done 45 minutes of anything a month ago. But we'll see...

[DCaplinger]

Walking is a great way to do slow fat burns. Remember, losing the fat around our midsections is what takes the most amount of work. I didn't "see" any evidence of the weight loss I've had, because I can't see what's going on internally. The fat deposits around our organs are the first to start going, which is a great thing.

A word of advice, try to get in a good walk before you start your day. Doing exercise when we first wake up helps to jump start the metabolism, and turns our body into fat burning machines. :)

Regards,

D

[kmac]

Moonglo:

I googled her workouts and found a short one on Youtube. Looks like a great way to get started. Not intimidating at all for those of us who are out of shape.

Good luck on your program of walking/exercise. I am also a teacher and go back to work soon. I know that will make the day jam packed and exhausing. You are an inspiration when you just keep on going and doing what you need to do to get healthy.

Kathi

[foxl]

I have heard VERY good things about the Leslie Sansone workouts from MOMS on another forum. Ie, it is a very good workout to do if you are limited in your flexibility to get out to work out!

I might look into this for an alternative to my cycling!

[Moonglo]

Yeah... they are very non intimidating, which is what got me started doing them! No jumping around, putting tons of stress on my knees, nothing I can't make myself do- just good o' moving around :)

So far it seems to be working. I did that 45 minute one yesterday, and my fbg was lowest it has been yet :)

[foxl]

Yeah... they are very non intimidating, which is what got me started doing them! No jumping around, putting tons of stress on my knees, nothing I can't make myself do- just good o' moving around :)

So far it seems to be working. I did that 45 minute one yesterday, and my fbg was lowest it has been yet :)

No knee strain sure sounds promising!

[Vicki NC]

I just started Sansone's 1/2 mile walk this week. It's the first 'set' exercise program I've done in a long time. I think it's been making my Dawn Phenomenon disappear! I thought it was the R-ALA I've started, but know I don't think so--got a feeling it's more the walking workout.

[Moonglo]

That's great Vicki!

I'm getting to where I try to use her walks 3 or 4 times a week and supplement with cardio dance type workouts. Kendel Hogan has become another one of my favorites. :)

Darian, you're not kidding about the midsection being the last thing to change. The rest of my body now looks great in jeans that are 2 sizes smaller, but my belly creates that famous muffin top with them. They zip just fine, and don't feel tight, but still have a bit of shape issue. Grr. maybe soon. :)

[Joeprep4820]

I don't count the 1-3 miles of walking I typically do every day as exercise, but simply as a mode of transportation. Exercise in my opinion gets your heart pumping. I try to do a 60-90 minute workout 4-5 times a week that includes 30 minutes of intense cardio on the rowing machine. During the summer especially and sometimes during the winter when available I will swim for my cardio.

[Moonglo]

I don't count the 1-3 miles of walking I typically do every day as exercise, but simply as a mode of transportation. Exercise in my opinion gets your heart pumping. I try to do a 60-90 minute workout 4-5 times a week that includes 30 minutes of intense cardio on the rowing machine. During the summer especially and sometimes during the winter when available I will swim for my cardio.

So, you exercise for 60-90 minutes, but only 30 is cardio? Or 30 is intense cardio? Is the rest of it strength training?

I only ask because I'm trying to tweak my workouts more now that I'm getting used to exercising, and need suggestions.

[Abra]

I used to do her WATP sessions. After a while I did the 3 mile plus half of the 2 mile. I didn't lose any weight at all, but boy, I really improved on the cardio front. My resting heart rate was about 54 when I was doing it regularly.

[Joeprep4820]

So, you exercise for 60-90 minutes, but only 30 is cardio? Or 30 is intense cardio? Is the rest of it strength training?

I only ask because I'm trying to tweak my workouts more now that I'm getting used to exercising, and need suggestions.
30 minutes of intense cardio, usually on a rowing machine or swimming. I prefer those because they exercise every muscle in the body compared to other cardio exercises. From there I do my strength training, targeting different muscle groups each workout. My walking comes from my walk every day from my apartment to the subway, then the subway to work, and the walk I take on my lunch hour, and when on business, which is often, walking around and exploring new cities.

[Moonglo]

Absolutely, Mr T... any kind of walking can be great exercise! In fact, the American Heart Association reccomends a 30-minute brisk walk daily. I was just trying to get a good idea what others do with their exercise time. :)

[Joeprep4820]

I think a 3-mile walk can be a cardio exercise, its just about intensity. I live on a hill, so if I walk to the bottom, then briskly walk back to the top, I feel like I've gotten a pretty good workout.

I still don't feel it should be relied upon as primary exercise. Compare that walk up and down a hill to an hour long lap session in a pool or on a rowing machine or on a bike or running and you'll see the difference.

[Moonglo]

I still don't feel it should be relied upon as primary exercise. Compare that walk up and down a hill to an hour long lap session in a pool or on a rowing machine or on a bike or running and you'll see the difference.

Joe,

I think it's awesome that you have the stamina and time to be able to do so much extra exercise on top of walking as much as your earlier post says you do. And I agree that swimming laps for an hour, rowing, and running are more intense workouts. But I'm not convinced that walking cannot be a sufficient primary exercise as well. I've never met a doctor that didn't like for their patients to go walking. Plus, like I said, the American Heart Association even recommends a 30-minute brisk walk every day (they even signed on Leslie Sansone to create the Sart Walking! program to give more people a venue in which to get that walking in).

Also, it sounds like you are in pretty good shape if you can exercise as much as you do on a regular basis. Try to remember that not everyone is at the same fitness level as you, and some of us are actually so obese that even just walking for 30 minutes a day is a huge improvement and a huge challenge. I lost 13 pounds in my first month with D by doing 30 minutes of cardio 3-4 times a week (a lot of which was walking) and cutting back my carbs.

Like I said before, I appreciate your tips. But the last thing I wanted in a positive thread where I was trying to offer suggestions about what has worked for me in my workouts is for this to turn into a negative thing because people are getting the message that they are not doing enough if they cannot swim laps for an hour.

[Joeprep4820]

The time concern is the one thing I always hate to hear as an excuse why people don't exercise. Everybody has an extra hour or so to exercise a day. That is the one thing I love about living in a large city is that walking a few miles is quite easy due to there always being something to see. Great way to clear the mind as well.

[Moonglo]

The time concern is the one thing I always hate to hear as an excuse why people don't exercise. Everybody has an extra hour or so to exercise a day. That is the one thing I love about living in a large city is that walking a few miles is quite easy due to there always being something to see. Great way to clear the mind as well.

Okay... now you're just plain pushing my buttons.

Some of us work 50-60 hours a week. Some of us have large families to take care of.

Just because YOU are able to always find time to exercise does not give you the right to say that everyone else has that kind of time too. I, for one, definitely do not. I teach high school literature. I have seven classes a day. Any time that I am not actually teaching students, I still have lesson plans to write, paperwork to complete, parents to call, essays to grade (which can be pretty ugly- remember, seven classes equals about 200 papers to grade, and we are required to update our grades no less than once a week. Oh, and I'm not allowed to just slap a grade on there- I have to fill out a rubric and write meaningful comments on each and every essay I grade). Plus I tutor after school. In case you haven't figured it out yet, that goes well beyond a 40-hr work week.

Sure, that might not equal 24 hours a day, seven days a week, but one must eat and sleep and have some sort of time when they actually enjoy life too. And I don't even have kids yet. And I know there are people out there who have to work harder than I do for more time to make a living. And you have the nerve to make such a broad and judgmental statement as that "everyone" has time to exercise? To imply that this is just an excuse?

I am glad, however, that you are not just discounting walking as worthless, as your other post kinda implied. But here again, to someone who is out of shape, walking up that hill might be more of a challenge than it would be for you.

[Moonglo]

And my last post was not meant to imply that we shouldn't find time to exercise... only that it is unfair to judge people who have extremely busy schedules and write them off as being lazy somehow.

[patitodehule]

Walking is GREAT exercise, Moonglo. I suggest you do things that are fun and that you use it for basic transportation. (I've used only a quarter tank of gasoline so far in September).

I don't know your age, weight, or how fit you are, so some of my suggestions may not be right for you. I completed some 37 marathon races in the years before and 2 years after I was dx'ed. Now I have arthritis in my knees. But some of the things I do are:

Walked to the park (0.5 mi) with my grandson and did 40 minutes brisk walking while he played. Played tag with him until he wore out.

Rode my bike to the lake towing my grandson in a trailer (7 mi each way with lots of hills). I let him play for 3 hours and towed him back home.

Put on a back pack and walked to the grocery store (1.2 mi). Walked home with a 40 lb. back pack.

Walked to church; walked home (1 mi. each way).

You see. You can get a lot of variety, have fun, and get a good fat burn for an hour every day, and stay fit.

And then there are special occasions. This summer I back-packed across the Grand Canyon with my daughter followed by two days of hiking every trail in Arches National Park. I took my grandson to Yellowstone, Yosemite, and Lassen Volcanic National Parks and got in a lot of hiking. (The kid is only five and can wear me out!) Go for it!