How should I start a new exercise program?

Now I know I won't be free of my middle in one week...

But if I did several 10 minute sessions on my elliptical trainer tomorrow, separated by 1 hour relaxation periods, would I overstress my legs?

I want to lose 35 pounds by September 14th. Can this be done safely?

Thx!

And sustain it for 20-40 minutes to get the benefits.

Figure out where you are here:

that waight, which seems to work out to about 11 pounds a month, or 2.5-3 pounds a week. The first thing to do, in my experience, is work out a serious diet plan and stick to it. This does not mean eating a lot less though, and certainly not starvation dieting. You should be aiming to take in about 250 calories less every day than you consume. That is going to allow your body to lose weight without slowing down your metabolism. As for the exercise itself, once again make a plan and stick to it. You will want to consider what you prefer, weights or endurance training. Both can be used to lose weight (weightlifting doesn't and can't build muscle mass if you are taking in fewer calories than you are consuming). You will probably want to consult an expert fitness coach on this matter if you really want to see results.

I would suggest spending at least the first week or preferably 2 doing light exercise to acclimatise yourself to the regime. Also, you may wish to incorporate 2 or 3 stretching sessions a day into your regime. When I rowed (badly, but my crew had good coaching), we used to train every day and stretch once in the morning, once before and after the training and once before bedtime. It reduces soreness, reduces injury risks, and it makes you more flexible to boot.

And it's basically ground turkey, steamed vegeables, pineapple, tuna... often hamburger helper but I'm nixing that in favor of plain food without the mix-in fat.

Just exercising will be a big plus. Both endurance and some strength training as, compared to 1 year ago, I've noticed my health has plummeted and I've lost muscle mass.

I just did a 22 minute job on the exerciser, forwards and backwards and then lifted a old computer in several reps as I don't want to spend money for barbells that'll be useless in a month. :-)

I intend to keep this up. And do it more often once I regain some muscle...

Thx for the advice!

and what gender? (I've been asuming male, but you never know with this wacky internet)

It sounds like you aren't getting enough calories as it is! Check out: http://www.weightlossforgood.co.uk/bmr_calculator.htm to calculate your calorie needs (there are formulas out there to do it yourself too).

I would start with very light stuff for the first week or so. So if you exercise 5 times a week (at the most - you need at least 2 days recovery and probably more like 3), a good breakdown would be:

2 times a week light weights (and I mean very light, so you can comfortably do 20 reps), 1 exercise for each major muscle group (biceps, triceps, upper back, chest, hamstrings, calves, quads, gluteals and lower back). Don't bother with abs in the first instance, they takes care of themselves and situps will do more to hurt your back if you aren't careful. You can comfortably ignore triceps and gluteals as well to start with.

3 times light endurance training, so that you are comfortable at the end. Running outdoors and swimming are by far the best forms of exercise. In fact I would make swimming my #1 overall exercise in any plan you choose to make (which may or may not be practical for you).

Especially in the first week, do the stretches. You'd be amazed how much they help recovery.

After about 2 weeks, start stepping it up slowly. With weights, never go below about 10-12 reps on an exercise. I would keep the weights and endurance on separate days. Fat intake doesn't matter that much as long as the diet is reasonably balanced, the overall caloric intake is much more important.

Cheezus has a lot of good points also.

Start exercise slow. The important thing is that you're doing it.
You need to change your diet, but not drastically. There are forumlas for calculating your calorie needs and BMI and BMR on the web, do a google. Remeber to eat well. This does not mean starving yourself, that does more harm than good. Exercise regualarly, but take it easy at first as you're getting back into shape.

Although fad diets come and go and work and don't work to a certain degree, there's one easy method that always works. Eat better and exercise more.

These are the biggest tips I can lend:
Set reasonable goals; small successes are better than big failures. The 2-3 lbs a week I mentioned in the title is if you're dieting pretty seriously... any faster than that is unhealthy. It will take time, but you will see results. Your goal needs to be long term and for health, not short term and for vanity. If you're serious about losing 35 pounds, it's a lifestyle change. You won't lose it in 3 months, but you will easily over two years if you can commit to the change. It seems like a long time, but you need to remember that you're doing something that will affect the rest of your life.

Buy this book: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0764551264/qid=1087691607/sr=8-2/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i2_xgl14/002-0028797-4435224?v=glance&s=books&n=507846
(Dieting for Dummies, ISBN: 0764551264)

Good Luck!