I'm 44 years old, 5'4", 143 lbs. I have been working out off and on for a while but five weeks ago I got serious and joined a gym. I now workout 1 hour five days a week and run 40 min on Saturday. Sunday I rest. My workouts have consisted of 30 min cardio MWF and 30 min of wts. Tues Thurs I do 40 min cardio and 20 min core training. I can see a difference in my mid-section (my main motivation for working out) but I have only lost a pound in the last five weeks. My diet is good - other than a glass of wine in the evenings and a couple of beers on the weekend. I would like to get to 130 and am not in a hurry. Does this routine make sense for long-term weight loss?

From my own experience with weight loss, you have to change your routines to get your body thinking and using different muscles. I am a runner, started running short distances and am now training for a marathon. I lost 50lbs with running and working out, but I changed it up. It look me about a year and a half to lose it. Slow weight loss is the best because your body adjusts to the weight loss and keeps it off. Eating right will also help with progress. The main key is to keep your metabolism up but eating several times a day. I am constantly snacking on something. Keep junk foods in your diet too. If not, you might binge on them when you are having a craving.

It should take you no more than 6 months I would say to lose your weight. I am 5'8 and 139 lbs now but I can't seem to get down any lower than 137. I have tried and tried but my body is fighting me.

Thanks so much for your input. Glad to report I have dropped another 2 pounds since my original post. And I agree - slow weight loss is the best. I am seeing a difference in my body - I see toning in my arms and legs and my dreaded pouch is getting smaller. This keeps me motivated to keep going. Best of luck to you on your fitness and weight goals.

I've been slowly loosing weight as well. Unfortunately it's harder to keep it up when you don't see results as quickly as you may like...

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Exercise Bands

I have been working out one and off for years now. I find that if I track my workouts I can see how I've either improved or regressed. It also gives me the motivation that I need to keep working out.

I guess what I am trying to say is that if you want to get fit and stick to your exercise program, you must TRACK YOUR PROGRESS.

To this end, I created a simple website that allows you to track your workouts, keep a diary of what you've eaten, and chart your progress. It isn't designed to make money, so it is clean and simple.

I just used the page for myself and my family for the past year, but I thought others might enjoy it and find it useful as well. It's workoutzone.net .

btw, it's free so take a look and use it only if you find it useful. Enjoy!!!