# Help a seriously overweight guy come up with an effective excercise routine?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-seriously-overweight-guy-come-up-with-an-effective-excercise-routine/674297
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [November 19, 2013, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-seriously-overweight-guy-come-up-with-an-effective-excercise-routine/674297 "2013-11-19T21:50:23Z")
**Posts on this page:** 11
**Page:** 3
### Author:  [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Try2B_Comprehensive)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2013, 8:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-seriously-overweight-guy-come-up-with-an-effective-excercise-routine/674297/41 "2013-11-21T08:27:19Z")
> [@Telemark](#):
>
> It’s really easy to hurt yourself by doing squats and lunges improperly. If you are going to a gym it would be good to hire a trainer for a session or two to make sure you are using proper form on these exercises to avoid hurting yourself.
I agree. Being sort of new to this, it might be a good idea to get some guidance before doing too much of anything new. Sounds like you’re doing that though.
As for over-doing it, I was looking at a half-marathon training program lately. It is 14 weeks long, the last Sunday being race day. Whatever. Every Monday and Friday are rest days. Every Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday are ‘easy’ (slow-pace) runs of 4-7 miles (things sort of increase as it goes along), with Wednesdays always being the shortest. Thursdays are generally hills and Sundays are long slow distance days (from 8 up to 14 miles).
I know you’re not training for a half-marathon, or even running at this point. But I think it is a decent template for a reasonable walking program too. Most of the days you don’t strain yourself and you work gradually up to the longer distances. It tops out at 40 miles a week, from 30 at first. Until you toughen up your body with some regular exercise, it might be a good idea to not exceed distances people training for a half-marathon would cover. So, maybe go easy for about 14 weeks before trying more aggressive stuff, since getting injured can knock you out for months.
It does mention that people who want to train more than this can add nonimpact cross-training to the rest days, like yoga, stretching or swimming.
---
### Author:  [@bengangmo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bengangmo)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2013, 9:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-seriously-overweight-guy-come-up-with-an-effective-excercise-routine/674297/42 "2013-11-21T09:14:48Z")
> [@snowthx](#):
>
> I agree with this. In my case, when I started to get serious about exercise ~10 years ago, I had two little kids at home. There was really no time during the day (work) or after work (wife needed a break) for me to exercise. I found that I was getting up earlier than everyone, so I leveraged that and made the early morning my own. I started working out before anyone could miss me. Now if I run any other time of day, it feels odd.
>
> For me, it was just finding time each day that no one else had claimed, and I used it as best I could. Then, no matter what happened later in the day, I always had my workout completed.
>
> The mornings, for me, have the added advantage of cooler temps, cleaner air, and getting to see the sunrise.
My trick was / is to exercise WITH the kids (3 and 9) -
I push one in the jogging stroller, and the other cycles.
---
### Author:  [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2013, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-seriously-overweight-guy-come-up-with-an-effective-excercise-routine/674297/43 "2013-11-21T13:44:09Z")
> [@Lancia](#):
>
> … Someone upthread challenged me to begin doing body exercises, including a 15 second plank if I could. I did my first plank this morning, and made it to 37 seconds. 🙂 I’ll do some research on proper squats and lunges, and begin doing those as well. …
> [@Telemark](#):
>
> It’s really easy to hurt yourself by doing squats and lunges improperly. If you are going to a gym it would be good to hire a trainer for a session or two to make sure you are using proper form on these exercises to avoid hurting yourself.
> [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](#):
>
> I agree. …
Impressive on the plank **Lancia**!
A trainer is never a bad idea but honestly I have never, not once, known, known of, or even heard of, anyone who as injured themselves doing body weight only squats or lunges. I am not sure where you got the idea that it is easy to hurt yourself doing them improperly. Do you know people who have? Of course just like any new exercise don’t overdo right out of the gate and ooking to see what proper form is is great. But we are not talking about loading the spine with barbell. IMHO there really is no need to scare anyone away from just starting up with these basic whole body body weight resistance exercises whether they have a trainer or not.
---
### Author:  [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2013, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-seriously-overweight-guy-come-up-with-an-effective-excercise-routine/674297/44 "2013-11-21T13:46:30Z")
Martial arts training. It will help you lose the weight, not just from the exercise, but also from the emphasis on discipline and self-control.
---
### Author:  [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2013, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-seriously-overweight-guy-come-up-with-an-effective-excercise-routine/674297/45 "2013-11-21T14:21:20Z")
> [@DSeid](#):
>
> Impressive on the plank **Lancia**!
>
> A trainer is never a bad idea but honestly I have never, not once, known, known of, or even heard of, anyone who as injured themselves doing body weight only squats or lunges. I am not sure where you got the idea that it is easy to hurt yourself doing them improperly. Do you know people who have? Of course just like any new exercise don’t overdo right out of the gate and ooking to see what proper form is is great. But we are not talking about loading the spine with barbell. IMHO there really is no need to scare anyone away from just starting up with these basic whole body body weight resistance exercises whether they have a trainer or not.
Yeah, I think **Telemark** wasn’t aware that you were talking about body weight squats/lunges. I’d be more than comfortable with telling someone to just read an article on ExRx or find a video on YouTube for instructions on doing body weight squats/lunges.
If someone was contemplating doing squats with a barbell, or really any free weight exercise and it was their first time ever putting their hands on iron I’d recommend they not do so until they go through about a week’s worth of sessions with a personal trainer. I don’t think someone needs a PT long term (unless they really want one for motivation), but if you’ve not done weight lifting it’s good to have someone show you a routine for a week, so you can basically copy the lifting schedule they show you and so they can demonstrate proper form.
Proper form isn’t hard at all and becomes mechanical after you’ve done it awhile, but I’ve seen people injured when they don’t know what they are doing and try to lift a lot of weight.
---
### Author:  [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2013, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-seriously-overweight-guy-come-up-with-an-effective-excercise-routine/674297/46 "2013-11-21T16:27:07Z")
> [@Martin\_Hyde](#):
>
> Yeah, I think **Telemark** wasn’t aware that you were talking about body weight squats/lunges. I’d be more than comfortable with telling someone to just read an article on ExRx or find a video on YouTube for instructions on doing body weight squats/lunges.
You are correct, I was thinking barbell squats/lunges. Having a spotter who can critique your form is really a good idea if you go that route, but body weight exercises are much simpler and less likely to cause injury.
---
### Author:  [@NVME702-redux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NVME702-redux)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2013, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-seriously-overweight-guy-come-up-with-an-effective-excercise-routine/674297/47 "2013-11-21T17:20:44Z")
> [@Lancia](#):
>
> Hauling my substantial self across campus every day, feeling winded each time . . . feeling insecure because I know how big I am and how I stand out in a crowd of people . . . not being able to find clothes that fit . . . no, it’s not easy for me.
>
> So health is a big issue for me, but losing weight is also important.
This really got to me. ☹
I decided to respond mostly to encourage you since you already got a lot of great suggestions on here but I also wanted to recommend two things that might help you stay on track.
1-keep a photo log of your food, everything that goes in your mouth
2-keep a photo log of your body- of course you can keep it private, but you will want to have some pics as a point of reference to see how far you’ve come.
Get out there, meet some like minded folks and get moving!! You can do it!
NVME
---
### Author:  [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)
#### Post date: [November 22, 2013, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-seriously-overweight-guy-come-up-with-an-effective-excercise-routine/674297/48 "2013-11-22T04:27:32Z")
> [@bengangmo](#):
>
> My trick was / is to exercise WITH the kids (3 and 9) -
>
> I push one in the jogging stroller, and the other cycles.
Oh yes, I did/do that, too. I would have them carry my water or sport drink so they would have a “job” while riding their bike with me.
---
### Author:  [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Try2B_Comprehensive)
#### Post date: [November 22, 2013, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-seriously-overweight-guy-come-up-with-an-effective-excercise-routine/674297/49 "2013-11-22T05:59:34Z")
> [@DSeid](#):
>
> IMHO there really is no need to scare anyone away from just starting up with these basic whole body body weight resistance exercises whether they have a trainer or not.
Well yes, I don’t want to turn the thread into the kind of nanny state in which no one can take action because, you know, you’ll shoot your eye out. Body weight resistance exercises are at least yogic though, and yoga tends to take place in a class with an instructor with a lot of education about these matters. A personal trainer will be just as informed, and for this kind of stuff the internet can probably do the job too. Not getting injured is very important because an injury can completely screw everything up, but OTOH a human body is a rather sturdy thing, kind of like a short tree that can walk around.
What I have to say is that intense exercise will burn mostly glucose, while slower exercise will tend to burn more fat. So you want longer duration exercise sessions, just enough to bump up your heart rate, eventually up to 2-3+ hours, but even at a slow pace you had better not just jump right into it.
---
### Author:  [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)
#### Post date: [November 22, 2013, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-seriously-overweight-guy-come-up-with-an-effective-excercise-routine/674297/50 "2013-11-22T19:12:33Z")
> [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](#):
>
> Well yes, I don’t want to turn the thread into the kind of nanny state in which no one can take action because, you know, you’ll shoot your eye out. Body weight resistance exercises are at least yogic though, and yoga tends to take place in a class with an instructor with a lot of education about these matters. A personal trainer will be just as informed, and for this kind of stuff the internet can probably do the job too. Not getting injured is very important because an injury can completely screw everything up, but OTOH a human body is a rather sturdy thing, kind of like a short tree that can walk around.
>
> What I have to say is that intense exercise will burn mostly glucose, while slower exercise will tend to burn more fat. So you want longer duration exercise sessions, just enough to bump up your heart rate, eventually up to 2-3+ hours, but even at a slow pace you had better not just jump right into it.
Yoga may be body weight exercise but most body weight exercise is not yogic. Body weight squats and lunges, push-ups, planks (not planches) … these are basic movements. And with our op’s current body weight are a both low risk and sufficient means for preserving or even increasing fat free (read “muscle”) mass during weight loss.
Also, there are very good reasons for our op to initially start with longer duration lower intensity exercise (mainly to establish an aerobic base and to reduce injury risk) … right now walking is _great_ … but the bit about fat loss being better with lower intensity exercise because more fat is burned during lower intensity ([the fat burning zone myth](http://www.active.com/triathlon/articles/the-myth-of-the-fat-burning-zone)) is something that does need to be corrected.
Burning glucose or fat _during the exercise_ does not matter to fat loss _over the course of a day_. The total calories burned matters. The impact on your metabolism, intake, and activity the rest of the day matters. Longer term fat loss, body composition, and overall fitness by nearly any definition of the term, benefits from adding higher intensity activities to a plan. Our op is not there yet and there is no rush to get there but there will be a point that his ramping up the intensity will be something required to further increase fitness, reduce fatness, and more likely than not, to keep it fun.
---
### Author:  [@Try2B\_Comprehensive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Try2B_Comprehensive)
#### Post date: [November 23, 2013, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-seriously-overweight-guy-come-up-with-an-effective-excercise-routine/674297/51 "2013-11-23T04:24:08Z")
> [@DSeid](#):
>
> Yoga may be body weight exercise but most body weight exercise is not yogic. Body weight squats and lunges, push-ups, planks (not planches) … these are basic movements. And with our op’s current body weight are a both low risk and sufficient means for preserving or even increasing fat free (read “muscle”) mass during weight loss.
>
> Also, there are very good reasons for our op to initially start with longer duration lower intensity exercise (mainly to establish an aerobic base and to reduce injury risk) … right now walking is _great_ … but the bit about fat loss being better with lower intensity exercise because more fat is burned during lower intensity ([the fat burning zone myth](http://www.active.com/triathlon/articles/the-myth-of-the-fat-burning-zone)) is something that does need to be corrected.
>
> Burning glucose or fat _during the exercise_ does not matter to fat loss _over the course of a day_. The total calories burned matters. The impact on your metabolism, intake, and activity the rest of the day matters. Longer term fat loss, body composition, and overall fitness by nearly any definition of the term, benefits from adding higher intensity activities to a plan. Our op is not there yet and there is no rush to get there but there will be a point that his ramping up the intensity will be something required to further increase fitness, reduce fatness, and more likely than not, to keep it fun.
What is or isn’t yogic is beyond the scope of this discussion. At the end of the day though, a plank is a plank. I think it is good that the OP is working in this direction and not glued to just one thing. His feet hurt after a certain point, so he does no impact hand stands. What makes more sense than behavior in the service of his goals?
I will definitely read your link later. I could be wrong and will appreciate the correction. I never disputed that muscle tissue is more ‘active’ than fat tissue and will increase one’s metabolism. Higher intensity days/weight training will certainly help in the long run. Generally speaking though, I still think duration will trump intensity at this stage if the goal is to burn fat. If we continue to use the half-marathon schedule as a template, there would be one or two ‘heavy’ days per week, no more.
[Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-seriously-overweight-guy-come-up-with-an-effective-excercise-routine/674297.md?page=2)