ThatDamnedPanda
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Joined: 1/26/2009
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The most important thing is to start where you are, wherever that may be. If your fitness level is poor, start slowly and don't blow a disc or sprain a knee trying to lose 10 pounds the first day. Especially at our age; tissue tears or breaks a lot more easily and heals a hell of a lot more slowly than it did 20 years ago.
Start by walking. Get comfortable shoes and go for a 2 or 3 mile walk. If you've got a GPS unit, you can use that to keep track of the miles, and if you don't have one just figure that at a brisk pace a mile takes about 17 minutes to walk. Give or take a couple of minutes, depending upon the terrain and your stride. It'll probably seem easy, but don't try to do more than that until you're used to it. Most people suggest buying a basic running shoe, but for walking I prefer light hiking boots. Running shoes are better suited for a different stride and a different heelstrike than hiking boots, which are designed to give maximum arch, lower back, and ankle support for a walking stride. If you have high arches, invest in a pair of Superfeet insoles. You'll notice the difference at the end of the hike, and especially when you get up the next morning. Do this for a week or two to get your cardiovascular system back in gear, and to build strength and stamina in your legs. Almost every aerobic exercise that you'll be doing down the road will involve the muscle groups in your legs, so you might as well start getting them tuned up.
Are there any kinds of recreational activities you used to enjoy, but no longer do? Bicycling, rollerblading, hiking, whatever? Dust off the bike, or whatever. At our age, it helps to crosstrain because the muscle groups don't recover as fully overnight as they used to. I usually do 2 days of biking (90 minutes to 2 hours at a time), followed by a day or 2 of rollerblading or 6-mile walks, followed by a couple of days of canoeing, etc.... you get the idea. The important thing is to find stuff to do that's fun enough to keep you motivated for the 2 or 3 weeks it'll take until you start seeing tangible results on the scale, while still burning calories and getting your metabolism back in gear.
Learn to check your pulse on the move; I put a couple of fingertips on my right carotid artery while looking at the watch on my left wrist. Count the beats in a 5-second span, and multiply by 12. Counting the beats in a 10-second span and multiplying by 6 works even better. At age 49, your target zone is 111 - 128 beats per minute for optimum weight loss (65% to 75% of maximum heart rate), and 128 - 145 beats per minute for cardio conditioning (75% to 85% maximum heart rate). It's important to do both, although not necessarily in the same workout. If your cardiovascular system isn't in top shape, you won't have the stamina you need for the long fat-burning workouts at the lower heart rate. Anything below 110 beats a minute, you may as well be home doing the dishes. You'll get the best weight loss results from interval training; check out that website and it'll explain better than I can.
If you've got an old set of weights around the house, start pumping some moderate iron too. It not only burns calories in and of itself, it builds muscle tissue, which will increase your metabolism and burn slightly more fat. Also, don't forget the stretches. Again, even more important at our age. It not only helps prevent soft tissue injury, it greatly reduces recovery time in the muscles of your legs, so you won't be too sore to work out again the next day.
Don't be shy about taking a day off every 4 or 5 days. Keeps your legs fresh, and your attitude up. Look for ways to increase your activity level in little bitty pieces during the course of your daily business - park at the far corner of the parking lot instead of right next to the door, take the stairs instead of the elevator, get off the bus a couple of blocks before your normal stop and walk the rest of the way, etc. You'll be amazed at how fast those little chunks can add up to an extra mile or two a day, without even feeling like you're exercising.
And don't get discouraged. It took you years to get big, it'll take more than a week or two to lose all that weight. If you drop 6 pounds a month, you're doing good. Keep in mind that your body is going to be fighting like mad to hang onto those pounds, because it's designed to hoard fat as much as possible. But you're smarter than your body, and over time you'll out-think it. Takes a while, but you'll get there. One step at a time. Good luck, man.
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Panda, panda, burning bright
In the forest of the night
What immortal hand or eye
Made you all black and white and roly-poly like that?
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