Treadmill question

I'm three years out from VSG (which was the BEST decision I made for myself, except for marrying my hubby).  I lost 83 pounds total which was exactly my goal.  Last week I found myself up 13.2 pounds and had to have a long talk with myself.  Long story short: I've been eating the wrong foods, too much of those foods, not drinking water, and not exercising.  So I said "enough."  I've been choosing food wisely, focusing on the protein, NO JUNK (sweets/carbs are my downfall- Girl Scout Cookies are cookie crack) and - lo and behold - I got on the treadmill again.  I'm doing every other day, just 30 minutes, 2.5 MPH to get me used to it again.  I'm not sure what my goal should be in terms of the treadmill: time or distance?  Should I shoot for an hour a day, or say 2 miles per day?  And should I be doing it every day?  I'll do some internet research about this but know that the experts are HERE on this board so I thought I'd ask for opinions.  In case it matters, I'm 44 and in good health and plan to use the treadmill/walking as my primary source of exercise.  Thanks for any suggestions!   I am down almost 3 pounds already and am so happy to see that my body hasn't given up on me and that it will respond when I do my part and make the right choices.  

Hi Lisa - the treadmill will be great cardio for you.  To make it more effective, do interval training on it (http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/workout/cardio/treadmill/trea dmill-interval-plans/).  You'll burn more calories and increase your endurance faster.  

And if you want to burn more fat and build muscle faster, limit your treadmill/cardio to 3-4 days per week and do resistance training 2-3 days per week.  That can either be a kettlebell workout,  resistance bands or a light weight workout that you do using your own bodyweight.  Any of these you can do at home yourself.  Prevention Magazine has some great at-home workouts and I'm sure you could find some good stuff on the internet too.  

The important thing is to not just walk/job/run on the treadmill every day.  Our bodies were made for walking and become super-efficient at it really fast...you want to keep the body guessing.  

I have a different perspective...  during my weight loss phase I would go for long walks daily (4-5 miles). For me I consider the calories burned a bonus. It was more about regularly moving and exercising in the evening when I am most prone to eating crap food. The walks work especially well as it gave the hubby and I a lot of quality time together, which reinforced doing it regularly. I agree with the above post- mixing up the exericise is a good idea. The most important goal IMHO is to find something you do consistently and can be a life long habit. I can't wait for it to thaw, as I am finally, finally  cleared for walks!

Do you have a Fitbit? I am addicted to mine. It is so rewarding to see the calories burned and the steps taken in a day, especially when I have gone to the gym.

Treadmill is my primary reason for going to the gym but I also religiously do the abdominal crunch machine and lift weights when time permits. After surgery, I started out at 20 minutes per session and added 5 minutes to that each week as a goal. I am now up to 60 minutes per visit of 3 times minimum per week. I find adding 5 minutes at a time is hardly noticeable but really rewarding.

Good luck to you. Keep it up!

I do. I bought the ultra back in the weight loss phase, but the hubby lost it. I now use the Flex, but don't like it as well due to the display. I bought it and will keep it though due to it being shower proof and a wrist band type... so I can forget about it most days.