I got really excited yesterday when my dad called me and said that he wants my help getting in shape. He is 54 and stopped smoking about a year ago. Since then he has gained 20 pounds and wants to ge rid of that. For now I told him that he should focus on eating breakfast every morning, since he doesn’t now, something like oatmeal, and walking 20 to 30 minutes everyday. Once he has done that for a month, we will look at doing more.
I wanted to ask for advice from anyone else. I have always been relatively active so I dont know as much about going from unfit to fit. I know that there are alot of people on here who have made that move so I was wondering what your first steps were. Any help would be appriciated.
That’s great about your dad! While walking 20-30 everyday wouldn’t be anything to those of us on ST, walking everyday might seem alittle more daunting for someone who is not used to exercising. Maybe 5 to 6 days to start (?)…sometimes people initially get excited about fitness, try to do too much and go overboard and then end up quitting. I certainly agree with your other advice, breakfast is really important. He may also want to see his physician for a check up before starting an exercise program… just a thought. Good luck!
you have the basics. He has to start walking first. Baby steps, start at 10-15 minutes, but consistency has to be the key. Get him up to 30 minutes a couple weeks out. Then add a morning and a evening walk. This will start to rewire his metabolism and not try to overload the system. 20 minutes in morning and 20-30 at night. Once he gets comfortable doing that, get him in the pool for water aerobics and water running. After that, get him in the gym for light ( I mean light 5-10 pounds) weights.
A physical is actually a really good idea that I hadn’t thought of. Good way to see if there are any activities he should stay away from and give him a baseline. Thanks for the advice.
Besides a walking program, another relatively easy change is to have him focus on drinking more water (assuming he is not presently drinking enough, which is the norm). For someone used to doing nothing, it’s amazing how much walking 4-6 times a week and drinking plenty of water will change things.
That is so great! I quit smoking 3 years ago and had a real hard time keeping off the weight. I feel his pain.
Your first bit of advice is awesome. Having breakfast is a great way to jump-start the metabolism. Plus he probably needs a lot of fiber in his diet. I couldn’t go “#2” in the morning with out a smoke for the first year. I finally gave in and started eating a high fiber cereal. The most fiber I have found in any cereal is in Fiber One. It may not taste as good as bacon and eggs or Cheerios, but it is so much better for you. (I use organic fat free milk too)…then about 10 am I have a piece of fruit.
As far as the exercise…I agree with you as well. Start walking. If/when he wants/can start running…I started going “out” for 20 minutes. I would walk a minute and then run a minute. Slowly I built up to running 2 minutes and walking 1 minute…and so on. I did my first 4-mile road race in 4 months after I started getting in shape.
Proper shoes! If he’s going to be walking, get him some comfortable but supportive walking-specific shoes. If he’s going to be running ever, then obviously get him fit at a reputable running store. If he’s anything like most 54 year olds I know, he’s probably working out in the same set of leather Adidas tennis shoes he’s had from the 70s.
If he’s into gear collecting or techy stuff, something like a simple heart rate monitor all the way up to a Garmin or equivalent GPS device will help keep him motivated.
How about a workout log? Something you can share online maybe?
Some other simple eating tips that may or may not help him: Hold the mayo (or replace with ranch if you need something), switch to diet soda if you can’t cut it out completely, no late night meals and definitely no late night snacks.