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First off, great job!

Working out really doesn't take that long. Most studies have shown that a typical non-steroid using weight training session only needs to last 45 minutes to an hour. After that time period, unless you consuming calories during the session the results you can get drop off dramatically from diminishing returns.

I agree that the biggest hurdle with people going to a gym is the intimidation factor. I'm in the gym 4 times/week and love seeing people who start and keep going. I want to tell them how awesome it is that they are doing it, but am never sure if that's the right thing to do some stranger lol.

If you can afford it the personal trainer is a great idea. The only problem is that many PTs plain out suck. I would try to do a session with one before committing to anything long term with a particular person. There are personality and knowledge factors that as a client you want to find out early.

Your story is also very common and is why a friend of mine is opening a gym that will cater to people who need a PT and are generally intimidated about the process. Obviously it will be a smaller niche gym, but I think it will work out pretty well.

Your advice here is good. You might want to quietly watch a few trainers in action, if you can do so unobtrusively - I did, and it helped. I picked a female trainer over a male trainer because I saw a few of the male trainers at my gym barking drill-sergeant-style, and I knew I'd react poorly to that.

As for the complements to a stranger, I did have a couple of random people at the gym say 'you've been working your ass off' or 'you've lost a lot of weight' in a non-creepy way when I was in line at the juice bar and I definitely appreciated it. But everyone's different.

You picked a trainer the right way. If you know what you need to be pushed and motivated then look for that in a trainer. They each have their own styles and personalities just like anyone else.

When it comes to random complements it's really me projecting my anti-social tendency while at the gym. I'm there for one reason and it's to work out. I put headphones and generally don't talk or interact with anyone the entire time I'm there. I guess if the opportunity presents itself I'll try and offer a complement in a non-creep way :)

I think speaking to others at the gym is somewhat cultural.

In lower middle class neighborhoods of Jersey City (JSQ), you can talk to others. Ask for a spot or advice on form, tell them "bad form, watch out", whatever. In Manhattan gyms (at least the 2 or 3 I've used), no one talks to anyone else. Ever.

You might be onto something. In my old city I used to go to an older gym with mainly people who wanted to workout and get strong. The bars had rust on them and the crowd was all very friendly, not big family friendly but they would all say hey when you showed up.

My new gym is a big box gym. It's super nice, and I keep telling a friend of mine that really it's too nice. The people aren't very friendly, but I think that's because there are so many more people working out here that you rarely see the same person enough times to form any relationship. Plus, many people are there to just hang out and act like they are working out. One time I actually overheard a guy ask another guy for a spot and the guy told him no and then walked over to another bench and just sat down. I was stunned and in all my years of working out had never seen someone not help another when asked.

Even in their most competitive days I couldn't imagine Arnold telling Lou no if he needed a spot.

It's possible the guy didn't know how to spot. I'd say no if someone asked me.

"I want to tell them how awesome it is that they are doing it, but am never sure if that's the right thing to do some stranger lol."

General heuristic: If you are not sure, if it is right to approach a stranger, just do it. Really. Talk to them next time.

And don't end your sentences with "lol", please.

I go back and forth on things like lol. It's hard to convey in writing when something should be take lightly or as a joke. Without the standard facial cues of smiling it's easy to take something the wrong way.

And in general your heuristic is correct, but the gym is an odd place. I'm pretty social, but would prefer no one talk to me while working out. I'm usually so busy watching the clock and focusing on the task at hand that I don't want to seem rude to someone by having to eventually ignore them to finish my workout.

This is why we have these punctuation marks called "smilies". :-)

(I fear that all the image-substitution of smilies will create a generation of internet users that can't read the original ascii ones...)

I've taken to printing out something I was going to read anyway (like lecture notes) and reading it on the treadmill while brisk walking at 4.5 mph or so. Going to the gym isn't time consuming anymore - I just get two things done instead of one. Obviously that wouldn't work for real running or weightlifting, but it's better than no exercise (which is what I was doing).

40 lbs in less than 6 months represents a massive drop in your weight. Anytime you're losing more than 5lbs a month you're asking for trouble, especially when there isn't some kind of significant and readily identifiable reason for previous weight gain (e.g., hypothyroidism, limb injury, etc).

While sudden drops of weightloss right at the start of a major lifestyle change are pretty normal, if you continue at this rate you should talk to your doctor.

I disagree. Anything up to 2 lb per week is a reasonably healthy rate of weight loss, especially if you're quite overweight to start with. Losing 40 lb in six months is both perfectly healthy and a damn good achievement.

I'm not saying it's not great, but it's not a sustainable rate of weight loss if your goal is to lose a lot of weight.

When I cut soda from my diet I lost 10lbs in a month. In a month! And then it tailed off and I was depressed because I couldn't sustain it, I had unreasonable expectations. And if you're losing 2lbs a week for a very long period of time, it can be an indicator of underlying medical issues.

At some point though you shouldn't want to lose anymore weight. Unless you start out really overweight, simply losing weight shouldn't be the goal anyways. Lowering BF% is a much better goal that reflects your overall body composition. I'm 6' 1" and almost 200lbs and weight wise I could be considered overweight, but my BF% was 11% the last time I had it checked and I've since gotten leaner.

In short, don't get depressed about the scale. Look in the mirror and keep making body composition changes.

2 lbs is totally sustainable. I lost 80 lbs this way and have kept it off for two years.

I would say 10 lbs a month is about average for someone who is motivated and losing weight.

I have to disagree. Most doctors will agree that losing up to two pounds per week for a healthy adult is acceptable and normal during the course of intensive exercise.

Much like matwood, I was ~205 at 6' with an athletic build. I wasn't overly fat, but hefty (ok, kinda fat). Running and working out six mornings/week and basketball in the evenings allowed me to drop 2 lbs/week, to a much leaner 165. Coincidentally, I had a doctor visit or two during that time and the doctors never expressed any concern over it.

Fortunately, and I believe this generally for healthy adults, you will reach a plateau. I did so at 165 and never fell below that, even when I increased my running, lifting and other recreational activity.

You can't sustain any weight loss no matter how little for the simple mathematical reason that body weight is nonnegative. I do agree that 2 lbs/week which is about 8000 calories, or about 3-4 days worth of calories, is a lot. For an average weight person. If you weigh a lot then it may be ok because you naturally burn more calories per day so 8000 calories may only be 2-3 days worth. You shouldn't look at the lbs/week figure but at how many percent fewer calories you're consuming than you need to sustain body weight.

Agreed. I think 1 lb per week is more in line with the doctor recommended rate, but 2 lb per week is the threshold you're not supposed to cross. 8 lbs per month in 5 months is right at that. That is a damn good achievement.

Are you a doctor or otherwise qualified to make the above assertion? Not trying to be confrontational, but very tired of continually seeing people spout information they read somewhere as if it was written-in-stone-fact, even though they have no expertise in the given field.

Well done!

If personal willpower isn't getting it done, I'd suggest team sports. I got into rowing a few years ago, and it's been great. Basketball, soccer/football, tennis can be great sports for consistent quality workouts.