How to Begin a Walking/ Weight Loss Program for the Very Unfit Person
Make goals for yourself that you can meet and make sure they matter to you., Your long-term goal may be to do 20 push-ups or to run a mile in less than 10 minutes., Your short term goals will start off as daily goals, based on what you can do now...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Make goals for yourself that you can meet and make sure they matter to you.
Or it may be to give your child a piggyback ride.
Make sure it's something YOU want. , One example would be to walk 10 minutes a day.
Another would be to bend forward at the waist to stretch your back
- if you can touch your toes now, great, if not, that's a longer-term goal. ,, You will be building muscle, which weighs more than fat, which also means you may put on weight.
Focus on being stronger and able to move more first. , For your snack, try cereal, fruit, or yogurt. , Most people are slightly dehydrated all the time.
It'll help you to exercise more and to feel better. , You may find the act of writing down (paper or on the web) that you've done it is reward enough.
Or you can buy a box of gold stars and make a calendar.
Each day you go for a walk and try to touch your toes, put a star on the calendar. , Walk to the mailbox, around your house, mow your lawn, walk around a mall while window shopping.
If you can take the bus instead of driving you'll find you do a lot more walking to and from bus stops. ,, Picking up clutter is good stretching and lifting.
Take out the garbage.
Get out the mop and vacuum.
As you get stronger, move the furniture and vacuum underneath. , If you haven't been fit, you want to focus on building your "core" muscles to support yourself in other activities. , Lie down and see how much of your body you can lift off the floor.
Shoulders? Cool.
Tomorrow do it again.
Over time you will lift more of yourself off and you will be able to do more crunches. , You lie on your back and lift up one leg 3 or 5 times, until your muscles are fatigued.
Then do the other leg.
Roll on your side and lift up, then on your front and lift the legs "back".
Finish on the other side. , As you sit at the computer, try lifting your legs off the floor.
See how long you can keep from touching the floor.
After a short time you will feel your stomach and leg muscles working.
You are burning calories and building muscle! , It's great for building leg muscle.
Walking down can also build muscle if you use your muscles to lower yourself to each step
- don't just drop from step to step.
If your joints complain about going down, take the elevator down.
Walk up. , Treat them to warm baths and stretching to make them happy and keep yourself limber. , Can you stand on one foot? For how long? This is another way to improve those core supportive muscles! , Whether you are a skinny high school kid who wants to gain or a middle-aged person who wants to lose, A good short-term goal is to record what you eat each day.
Realize that the act of writing it down will change how you eat at first, but over time the novelty will wear off and you'll be eating whatever is normal for you.
This can help you spot habits you didn't know you had.
You can also use websites to track your eating; http://www.sparkpeople.com is great for this. -
Step 2: Your long-term goal may be to do 20 push-ups or to run a mile in less than 10 minutes.
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Step 3: Your short term goals will start off as daily goals
-
Step 4: based on what you can do now.
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Step 5: You can have multiple short term goals.
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Step 6: If you are REALLY out of shape
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Step 7: don't worry about the scale at first.
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Step 8: Eat breakfast
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Step 9: lunch and dinner including a snack or two.
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Step 10: Drink lots of water.
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Step 11: Track your progress on meeting your daily goals.
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Step 12: Build up your exercise to 1/2 to 1 hour a day.
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Step 13: Turn on your favorite music and dance (sing
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Step 14: if you want).
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Step 15: Cleaning your house is great exercise.
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Step 16: Strength training is important.
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Step 17: Stomach crunches are good for this.
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Step 18: Leg lifts are also good leg lifts.
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Step 19: Every little bit helps.
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Step 20: Can you walk up stairs?
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Step 21: Your muscles may feel sore as you start to use them more.
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Step 22: Also think about your balance.
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Step 23: The other part of improving fitness is to look at what you eat.
Detailed Guide
Or it may be to give your child a piggyback ride.
Make sure it's something YOU want. , One example would be to walk 10 minutes a day.
Another would be to bend forward at the waist to stretch your back
- if you can touch your toes now, great, if not, that's a longer-term goal. ,, You will be building muscle, which weighs more than fat, which also means you may put on weight.
Focus on being stronger and able to move more first. , For your snack, try cereal, fruit, or yogurt. , Most people are slightly dehydrated all the time.
It'll help you to exercise more and to feel better. , You may find the act of writing down (paper or on the web) that you've done it is reward enough.
Or you can buy a box of gold stars and make a calendar.
Each day you go for a walk and try to touch your toes, put a star on the calendar. , Walk to the mailbox, around your house, mow your lawn, walk around a mall while window shopping.
If you can take the bus instead of driving you'll find you do a lot more walking to and from bus stops. ,, Picking up clutter is good stretching and lifting.
Take out the garbage.
Get out the mop and vacuum.
As you get stronger, move the furniture and vacuum underneath. , If you haven't been fit, you want to focus on building your "core" muscles to support yourself in other activities. , Lie down and see how much of your body you can lift off the floor.
Shoulders? Cool.
Tomorrow do it again.
Over time you will lift more of yourself off and you will be able to do more crunches. , You lie on your back and lift up one leg 3 or 5 times, until your muscles are fatigued.
Then do the other leg.
Roll on your side and lift up, then on your front and lift the legs "back".
Finish on the other side. , As you sit at the computer, try lifting your legs off the floor.
See how long you can keep from touching the floor.
After a short time you will feel your stomach and leg muscles working.
You are burning calories and building muscle! , It's great for building leg muscle.
Walking down can also build muscle if you use your muscles to lower yourself to each step
- don't just drop from step to step.
If your joints complain about going down, take the elevator down.
Walk up. , Treat them to warm baths and stretching to make them happy and keep yourself limber. , Can you stand on one foot? For how long? This is another way to improve those core supportive muscles! , Whether you are a skinny high school kid who wants to gain or a middle-aged person who wants to lose, A good short-term goal is to record what you eat each day.
Realize that the act of writing it down will change how you eat at first, but over time the novelty will wear off and you'll be eating whatever is normal for you.
This can help you spot habits you didn't know you had.
You can also use websites to track your eating; http://www.sparkpeople.com is great for this.
About the Author
Judith Harris
Specializes in breaking down complex lifestyle topics into simple steps.
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