First off, a bit about me.

I'm fat.
I have asthma, so running, etc are out.

I acquired a "Nordic Trac Pro" didn't cost me anything except digging it out of the parents' basement.  It may not be the best alternative, but since the campus cops have made it VERY clear that they do not want me on campus even though I'm a student (effectivly rules out use of the student rec center / gym), and its too cold out to do my good-weather routine of walking for an hour+ each day, I'm left with this for in-my-apt excercise.

My question(s):
Right now I'm at 15-20 minutes of moderate "speed"  (A bit faster than walking) and am gradually building up -- goal is 30 minutes at a time, every day. (for now)

Is this actually accomplishing anything or am I wasting my time?  Should I be going for faster "speeds" with it or longer duration?

Diet alteration is already happening to cut out excessive carbs and calories while still being fairly balenced -- I don't like the "cut something out completely" diets, since I can't stick with them.

Basically, I just need to lose weight more than anything else -- I'll worry about the finer points once I've lost the spare person I'm hauling around all the time.    (Did I mention I'm fat?)  I figure if I can lose a pound or so per week, and keep going....I might be where I want in a year or so, and I think a lb/week loss isn't going to be unhealthy.

going from a sedentary lifestyle to one with more activity will help you change your body compostion. Any exercise is good for you (as long as it is not extreme, ie damaging joints or muscles)
Faster and longer will be your ultimate goal as you improve your cardio health

Quoted: going from a sedentary lifestyle to one with more activity will help you change your body compostion. Any exercise is good for you (as long as it is not extreme, ie damaging joints or muscles) Faster and longer will be your ultimate goal as you improve your cardio health

Thanks....the biggest problem I'm going to have though is my asthma....hard to do much good cardio stuff when you can't breathe

I'm real sorry for your medical condition but like I said any physical activity will help. Depending on the severity of your asthma, I've heard that losing weight and increasing cardio health can possibly help. 30 min is a good goal to start for but you have to remember that the most benefit will be raising your heart rate to the target heart rate, after that the longer the better.

I've lost 69 pounds as of last month. Stationary bike and diet.

Quoted: Quoted: going from a sedentary lifestyle to one with more activity will help you change your body compostion. Any exercise is good for you (as long as it is not extreme, ie damaging joints or muscles) Faster and longer will be your ultimate goal as you improve your cardio health Thanks....the biggest problem I'm going to have though is my asthma....hard to do much good cardio stuff when you can't breathe

I also have asthsma but working out really helped mine. I havent had an attack for at least 4 years and I feel great about myself. Trust me, the first time you climb a set of stairs w/out getting winded you'll be glad you took the time to exercise(and you gotta eat right to).

Here are some ideas for you:

1.  Set goals and achieve them.  Reward yourself when you reach them.  Don't do like I do and puss out and not give yourself a reward when you reach a goal.

2.  Change up your routine.  Long boring sessions of slow paced cardio do little to help after a while.  When you reach your goal of 30 min.  Think of something else to do.  Try throwing in some sprints.  Other types of exercises.  Get yourself an exercise ball, and workout with that.  Remember, muscles are the only thing that can get rid of fat.  The more muscles you have the more fat you can burn.

3.  Find a diet that works for you.  There are millions of them out there.  They all work, it's just not all of them will work for you.  The hard part of any diet is finding the right one for you.  No diet is worth a shit, unless you can live with it.  Experiment and learn about nutrition.  Working out and exercising is only part of it.  If you want to go from being a chub, to being lean, the diet part of it is the most important.  

If you got any questions, just ask.

If you lose too much and don't meet the WEIGHT MINIMUM here....   Your ACCOUNT could be LOCKED!

You'll lose keyboard commando credibility if you're not fat.  w00t!

Get some good walking shoes and walk a couple miles a day and cut back on the crap in your diet and drink lots of water. The weight will fall off you like you wont believe. Gradually pick up the pace/distance.

S.O.

I suffer from asthma as well, and as others have mentioned, exercise has helped mine.  It's important to take it slow and build up your lungs ability to handle the exertion, and over time, you will increase the amount of activity you can deal with.  Obviously, the air quality in the environment you work out in also plays a key role.  Dry, dusty, or "mildewy" air can wreak havoc on your asthma, especially while working out.
Take it slow and build up your tolerance, so to speak.

I have asthma and some other long named lung disorder (I break out into coughing fits out of nowhere sometimes that last a few minutes, face turns red, eyes protrude from skull lol, etc.)  and I do lots of exercise.  In fact the excerise seems to "beat" the asthma and my lung disorder out of me.  I go to gym in the mornings, and I'm fine the whole day except at night before I sleep, I can't wait to go to the gym the next morning :)

Walking burns more calories then running.  So to lose weight, walk.  Do at least 30 mins - 60 mins a day. EAT RIGHT!  No more fast foods/candies/popcorn, anything.  I might even suggest a high protein/ low carb diet.  Drink at least 8-10 large cups of water a day.

Good luck, post here for motivation.

Nikkels