For some folks, a “beginner” schedule would start off with walks of a couple miles or more. Nice, but hardly realistic if the last time your exercised was a year when bouffant hairdo’s and bell-bottom pants were in vogue!
Below are 2 schedules: STAGE ONE is for those who are starting at Square One. Don’t be embarrassed. Everybody has to start somewhere and the fact that you’ve started at all while the other 82% of Americans are still on the couch is a major miracle!
The STAGE TWO schedule is both for those who have a small amount of baseline activity and also as the graduation level to use when you’ve completed Stage One. If you are an advanced beginner, skip to STAGE TWO.
| Wk/Day | SU | MO | TU | WE | TH | FR | SA | TOTAL |
| Wk 1 | 0 | 0 | 10 min | 0 | 10 min | 0 | 10 min | 30 min |
| Wk 2 | 0 | 0 | 10 min | 0 | 10 min | 0 | 13 min | 33 min |
| Wk 3 | 0 | 0 | 12 min | 0 | 10 min | 0 | 14 min | 36 min |
| Wk 4 | 0 | 0 | 12 min | 0 | 12 min | 0 | 16 min | 40 m |
| Wk 5 | 0 | 0 | 13 min | 0 | 13 min | 0 | 18 min | 44 min |
| Wk 6 | 0 | 0 | 14 min | 0 | 14 min | 0 | 20 min | 48 min |
| Wk 7 | 0 | 0 | 15 min | 0 | 15 min | 0 | 20 min | 50 min |
| Wk 8 | 5 min | 0 | 15 min | 0 | 15 min | 0 | 20 min | 55 min |
| Wk 9 | 10 min | 0 | 15 min | 0 | 15 min | 0 | 20 min | 60 min |
| Wk 10 | 12 min | 0 | 15 min | 0 | 15 min | 0 | 25 min | 67 min |
| Wk 11 | 15 min | 0 | 15 min | 0 | 15 min | 0 | 30 min | 75 min |
| Wk 12 | 15 min | 0 | 20 min | 0 | 20 min | 0 | 30 min | 85 min |
(All daily amounts are expressed in minutes of exercise.)
Congratulations! You are now a member of the elite group of Americans who actually exercise 3 or more times per week. Way to go!!
Now you're ready to tackle STAGE TWO.
There are a couple big differences with this schedule. First, in this schedule, the pattern has been rearranged to allow you to do your longest walks on the weekend if you wish. Second, by the end of this schedule, you will be walking every day. Don’t panic! Daily activity is the “Gold Standard”. To achieve this it will take some time for you to adjust your schedule to this new regimen. And, you may have to split a walk into two parts on an occasional day.
Do your best. Consistency matters. If this is all new to you, it will be trial an error for awhile until the new pattern is established. You can do it!! Ready . . . Set . . . Go!
| Wk/Day | SU | MO | TU | WE | TH | FR | SA | TOTAL |
| Wk 1 | 10 min | 0 | 15 min | 0 | 15 min | 0 | 30 min | 70 min |
| Wk 2 | 15 min | 0 | 20 min | 0 | 15 min | 0 | 30 min | 80 min |
| Wk 3 | 15 min | 0 | 20 min | 0 | 20 min | 0 | 30 min | 85 min |
| Wk 4 | 15 min | 0 | 20 min | 0 | 20 min | 0 | 40 min | 95 min |
| Wk 5 | 20 min | 0 | 20 min | 0 | 20 min | 0 | 45 min | 105 min |
| Wk 6 | 20 min | 0 | 25 min | 0 | 25 min | 0 | 45 min | 115 min |
| Wk 7 | 20 min | 0 | 25 min | 0 | 25 min | 0 | 55 min | 125 min |
| Wk 8 | 20 min | 0 | 30 min | 0 | 30 min | 0 | 60 min | 140 min |
| Wk 9 | 20 min | 0 | 30 min | 10 min | 30 min | 0 | 60 min | 150 min |
| Wk 10 | 25 min | 0 | 30 min | 15 min | 30 min | 0 | 60 min | 160 min |
| Wk 11 | 30 min | 10 min | 30 min | 20 min | 30 min | 0 | 60 min | 180 min |
| Wk 12 | 30 min | 20 min | 30 min | 20 min | 30 min | 10 min | 60 min | 200 min |
(All daily amounts are expressed in minutes of exercise.)
Well done! Keep up the good work.
© 2007 Ellie Hodder. All rights reserved. Reproduction prohibited without written permission of the author.