Want to get fit, don't know where to start

dylanchloe

Hi.
Could anyone recommend a beginners fitness class in Athlone ideally or Roscommon town.
Im very overweight and unfit and want to change this. For a number of reasons I've completely neglected my health / fitness over the past 2 years and need to cop on. I don't want to join a gym just yet as I'm feeling a bit self conscious. I've started walking but was hoping there would be some sort of a class I could start with. I also think if I have to attend a class it might keep me motivated. Someone told me Zumba classes are great for fitness but do you need to be quiet for for those?
I'd really appreciate any help /advice.
Thanks

_Brian

I know some people want the support that a class brings.

But especially in the beginning walking is your friend.

Maybe get a walking buddy for company.

I walk alone but use headphones when I walk.

Then either increase your distance or reduce the time it takes for an existing route. Don't underestimate the gains you'll make quickly but you need to challenge yourself every walk, doddling along does nothing.

Best of all it's free and plenty of fresh air.

BaRcOe

If you want to get back into it, I would join a gym, and pay for a PT for the first month or two. Take the hit money wise, and once your PT leads you in the right direction and makes you a nice programme, you can do your own thing. Your PT can ease you into it, and give you that confidence boost you just might need to get used to the gym and its surroundings. Just remember, the gym should not be an intimidating place. It takes a lot for somebody to build up the courage to go. And remember everyone else who is there, also feels a bit self concious. I'm half fit, but still feel self concious when I see guys who are absolutely ripped in the gym.

Find what you like at the gym, wether it be classes, weights, or cardio. Find the excersies which don't bore you too much. Begin to love the gym and fitness in general. You will come out feeling great, looking great and becoming more confident.

Also the fact that you've posted here and told yourself to 'cop on' is a great step! Fair play to you! Best of luck in your journey!

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BaRcOe

Also, I advise tracking your food with MyFitnessPal. At first you might find it confusing, but once you get into it and see what you are actually eating calories-wise, you can make adjustments.
1. Download the App
2. Put in your weight, height...etc
3. Put in a realistic goal: If your current weight is 13 stone, put 12.5 stone into it as your goal. This will give you a daily calorie goal.
4. Start tracking meals each day. You can search the food / brand / scan the barcode. It's really easy. Then the next day it becomes even easier because you can simply select 'yesterdays breakfast'.
5. At the end of the day, log in to MyFitnessPal and hit Diary and then Complete Diary. This will tell you if you are on track to meet your goal.
Doing this, not only educates you on what foods are good / bad, but you will make better decisions when it comes to shopping / cooking. Cut out full fat milk, butter...etc Replace your usual snacks with healthy snacks. I love chopped apple and peanut butter (healthy fats)! Make sure to get 'Meridian' peanut butter. It has no extra salt / oil.

Labcoats and Running Shoes

What do you enjoy doing OP? You're more likely to keep up exercise if it's something you enjoy rather than something you force. Zumba is grand but only if you're into classes and dance type aerobics. If you're not, it's a waste.

For example, I hate classes. I love exercising by myself so things like swimming, running, weight lifting are all things I do on my own.

Do you enjoy the walking OP? If so and if you'd like to do it with people, you could always look up hill walking groups or groups that go for a brisk walk through your local park.

Other options: 5-a-side, wall-climbing, kayaking, MMA, hockey, rugby, running, swimming, triathlon, fitness classes, crossfit, cycling. There are any number of possibilities out there for exercise! You just need to find what you enjoy the most because then it won't feel so much like exercise.

I'd also recommend downloading MyFitnessPal and setting up a profile. I would suggest working out your calorie needs using the Scooby's Workshop calorie calculator (just google it). You can then change the average daily calories on MFP to what Scooby tells you. Generally I've found if you put in "lose 2 lb. per week" on MFP it automatically suggests 1200 cals no matter what your starting weight is. Log literally every piece of food/sip of liquid and be completely honest with yourself. You can also make recipes in MFP and save them so the next time you're making Spag Bol or whatever, you just have to go to "recipes" and log it. Last piece of advice is when you input exercise into MFP, it'll say you burned (for example) 500 cals walking. Don't eat back those calories. You've already accounted for them when you said you were "lightly active" while working out your calorie needs. Treat any exercise as a "bonus" in terms of weight loss.

Best of luck OP!

Triceratops Ballet

dylanchloe wrote: »

Hi.
Could anyone recommend a beginners fitness class in Athlone ideally or Roscommon town.
Im very overweight and unfit and want to change this. For a number of reasons I've completely neglected my health / fitness over the past 2 years and need to cop on. I don't want to join a gym just yet as I'm feeling a bit self conscious. I've started walking but was hoping there would be some sort of a class I could start with. I also think if I have to attend a class it might keep me motivated. Someone told me Zumba classes are great for fitness but do you need to be quiet for for those?
I'd really appreciate any help /advice.
Thanks

I second the walking, find yourself a good podcast and go, when I first made the decision to get fit and lose weight walking and eating right was all I did, at the start it helped me lose weight to get that confidence I felt I needed to set foot in a gym, that's nearly 10 years ago and now, I'm involved in olympic weightlifting and boxing, and I train 5 days a week. As an exercise for a beginner it's really the easiest and most accessible way to go, at any given time the best exercise for weight loss is the one you will do.

BTW zumba can be great fun, you don't need to be super fit you just do as much as you can

good luck!!

marcus001

I would fix your diet before spending any money on gym membership. Losing a good few pounds is only going to make the gym or jogging easier when you eventually join. Think about how much lighter you'll feel by losing 10lbs (I have no idea how much extra weight you have so don't take that figure serious).

Dieting and exercising when you're new to both is very difficult and it causes a lot of people to give up. Figuring out the diet first will probably increase your chances of success in the long run.

I'm not saying neglect exercise entirely, just don't go mad with it from the beginning whole trying to consume fewer calories.

Also, make smart choices when it comes to your diet. Don't starve or try to rush things. Counting calories gets a bad rep but there's no harm in counting calories for a week so you get some idea of what you're consuming. Taper down slowly and good luck.

somesoldiers

Feb 2016 I was 20st,my little boy was starting to crawl and it was a chore to get up and down to the play mat so I said enough is enough. If I never did it for myself I'm going to do it for my boy.
Years of no exercise, sitting at a desk and a fondness for Guinness & Bulmers got me to that point.
I joined a gym for the year because I am so miserly that I knew I would go if I paid up front. €250 for the year. I started walking on the threadmill then running.plugged in headphones, Ipad up on threadmill, tv series downloads and off I went.4 to 5 times a week.i made some dietary changes though nothing too drastic and cut the pints down to a session once a month, take away once every two weeks maybe.

i lost almost 5 st by end of 2016. I have cut back in 2017 to 3 times a week as we had another baby and I mostly do weights now but I have maintained my weight loss. I might ramp it up a gear in 2018 and try to get another 1-2 st off but even if I never do I feel great.

Try a few things out to see what suits you OP, maybe your local gym does a free weeks trial? I was very apprehensive starting off at 40 & 20 st but no ones cares or bats an eye lid. People do their own thing. its warm, you can watch tv and you won't get wet or hit by a car!

Beat of luck