<p>garland,
How old you were when you started on that program?
Also, you have brought up the same idea as I. Yes, how you can see those muscles if there is fat on top of them? Where you store fat is programmed by your genetics. As I said, I do not have problems with my legs, my fat is stored in my upper body. Garland, you are very fortunate to have fat in your legs, you will never have diabetes - desease that sends most of my relatives underground because we store our fat in upper body and it is very dangerous, but nothing we can do about it… except of getting anorexic.</p>
<p>I don’t know, my mom has diabetes but is built somewhat like me. We do run to very healthy hearts, though, which is apparently connected to less upper body fat. I know that this is a healthier way to store fat (if that makes any sense) but it’s harder to lose, and harder to hide. I see women much larger than me who look great in skirts because they still have nice calves–I look like a bowling pin, frankly, and lots of exercise and eating carefully just keep it from getting worse. :(</p>
<p>As far as how old–I don’t recall exactly, but I’d guess late thirties. It really has been an important habit for me, and has made a great deal of difference (even when you can’t see the muscles.)</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Actually, I would say that the risk of injury from a beginning strength training program is a fraction of the injury risk from a newbie starting a jogging/running program. One of the real plusses of strength training is that it can give you large benefit with relatively few low impact reps. Running a mile requires 1500 reps, each with an impact of 3 to 4 times your bodyweight. That puts enormous stress on the joints. I’m all about being smart with exercise programs and avoiding stuff that will injure you. It seems to me that the #1 way us older guys and gals bring an exercise program to a screeching halt is an injury.</p>
<p>I guess it depends on what you mean by “tremendous results”. I’ve feel like I’ve seen tremendous results in 11 months – inches, pounds, and fitness.</p>
<p>PS: I would never do a sit up. Sit ups and crunches are horrible for your lower back and not very effective exercises. They are particularly poor exercises if your goal is to burn belly fat. There are much, much better ways to strengthen and stabilize your core muscles.</p>
<p>poetgrl 
I’ve been keeping up, just haven’t had time to post. Today is Day 7. Yesterday, which i hesitate to call Day 6, I overslept, and only had time for 5 minutes of yoga when I woke up. But later in the day, I went back & did 30 minutes on the treadmill. So, even though I wasn’t able to get it all in in the morning, I could see the difference in motivation — before, I would have dilly-dallied and not gone to the gym later. This time, I just changed my clothes and went. It seemed rather… habitual. And as for today, I did 20 minutes on the bicycle and 45 minutes of yoga and weight training.</p>
<p>Also, poetgrl, thank you for your post. It’s very inspiring. That is exactly what I am trying to accomplish for myself, to make simple, consistent changes in my behavior that will add up to accomplishing a major goal. I am wondering how you were able to stick with it for that first year. It seems more common to backslide after a few months. Every day I question whether I can change such ingrained behaviors and ways of thinking for good. </p>
<p>I have been reading Switch (thanks, dmd77), which is very helpful. I’m realizing that I am a classic over-analyzer who overthinks and becomes paralyzed. Peopled like me think that complex problems require complex solutions. Very liberating to see that one simple change can be so effective! One line from the book jumped out and spoke directly to me: “What looks like resistance is often a lack of clarity”.</p>
<p>mom60, How are you doing today?</p>
<p>aliasforparent – it’s never too late. And you can always start again.</p>
<p>I"m an overanalyzer, too.</p>
<p>Even when I was doing my dissertation my advisor pointed out that I was making it too complicated…yep. </p>
<p>So, the best concrete example of how to stay motivated when it comes to creating a new habit can actually be seen in real time here on CC in the example of interested dad who never misses an opportunity to discuss and stay focused on fitness stuff. He keeps himself engaged through encouraging and motivating others. This is a really good paradigm for success, actually. </p>
<p>For me, I just did it a day at a time. On the days I didn’t want to go, I just said, “I’ll do it today and I can quit tomorrow if I want to.” But, once the work out was over, I always felt so great, I did it the next day.</p>
<p>As Dorothy Parker said, “I hate writing, but I love having written.”</p>
<p>Now, I love working out as much as having worked out. I’m probably addicted, but I’m a recovering alcoholic, and we always say, “Addictions are like real estate, you just hope you can keep trading up.” ;)</p>
<p>Glad to see you made it to day 7. Hope you feel good about that.</p>
<p>mousegray- thank you for asking. It is 330 pm and I just got home and I am deciding whether to change my clothes and go out for a walk or sit in the warm house and stay on the computer. Guess what I was going to do? I am now going to go change in 15 minutes and at least get in a short walk.</p>
<p>I did it. Thought I would do a quick walk but like many of us I found getting out is the hard part. Once out I kept going and was able to go 40 minutes briskly with some decent hills. Best of all relatively pain free. This is the longest I have been able to walk pain free in months. My PT will be thrilled.</p>
<p>Fantastic!</p>
<p>Mom60 – We are thrilled too!</p>
<p>mom60, fantastic! I will think about you tomorrow morning. My inner demon is already whispering in my ear about how I won’t want to jump up and work out first thing in the morning on a Saturday.</p>
<p>Day 8. I woke up feeling very groggy from a sinus infection, feeling like I could sleep all day. Went to the gym anyway feeling very irritated by what I’d gotten myself into. I figured I would stroll on the treadmill for a few minutes and call it done, but somehow the movement started to clear my head and I ended up walking, then jogging, then doing sprint intervals for 30 minutes! It really is true that getting started is the hardest part. There is no doubt that if I hadn’t promised myself to stick with it for 21 days (and made a public declaration), I would not have gotten to the gym. Today ended up being very motivating.</p>
<p>poetgrl, you were right, even doing 30 minutes which is 10 minutes longer than my usual, has really lifted by mood.</p>
<p>Well, that’s great. And, here’s how this works, since I am committed to supporting you, I went to the gym today, myself, even though I was convinced I “couldn’t possibly fit this in.” So, your public declaration has got us all feeling better about ourselves today.</p>
<p>Thanks.</p>
<p>Well, I guess I get the slug of the day award. I decided last night that this weekend would be a two day break and so I didn’t do a darn thing.</p>
<p>Idad, you’ve earned a rest!</p>
<p>Joining the club (at least for today), I removed the piles of laundry from the Nordictrak, finally, and got a full 30 minute session in tonight. Thanks all for the inspiration; now I need to make sure it’s a habit and not a one-timer!</p>
<p>^^^Getting the laundry off was an achievement in and of itself! They ought to add that to their advertisement – Get in shape <em>and</em> dry your dainties with NordicTrac!</p>
<p>I also take the weekends off from walking, afraid to aggravate a bum knee from my running days, but I’ll do some free weights so that I’m doing something. How’s that sound?</p>
<p>^^^That sounds just about right. I’ve found that it’s important to not overdo. I’m still nursing a bum shoulder, after a year I still only have about 80% of my movement back. I injured it in the first place on some torture machine in the gym.</p>
<p>Day 9. Kinda stiff today but managed another 30 minutes on the treadmill.</p>
<p>Nice to have the company, Novelisto and youdon’tsay!</p>
<p>Mom60, hope you’re still pain-free.</p>
<p>poetgrl, thank you. I think about you, and how your first year at the gym started everything for you, when I feel like calling it off.</p>