I bought a treadmill and I plan on using it 1/2 hour 3 or 4 times a day and whenever I want food I'll walk on it for 10 minutes (I don't eat when I'm hungry, I eat when I'm bored). A friend told me that you shouldn't walk on a treadmill more than 1 hour a day. Does anyone know if that's true?

Thank You,

Bernice

Technically that is true, but just walking is not such a big deal. If you can be consistent with this plan , you shouldn't worry about going over an hour, especially if you're dividing it up into smaller increments throughout the day. If you're going at a higher intensity for a solid hour or more, that's when you have to be more concerned about it. Your plan sounds fine. :)

Intensity is primarily determined by heart rate. For me, that would be low intensity, but that might be high for you. First, you'll want to find your resting heart rate. When you wake up in the morning, before you get out of bed, get your heart rate for a full minute; that's your resting rate. Then you can find your target rate and find out what intensity you're exercising at. 15 minutes into your workout, take your pulse for a minute (while continuing to walk) and see where you're at.
If your hips hurt, that may be cause for concern. Have they always hurt since you started exercising? Do they hurt at other times? Is it aching or sharp pains? How long have you been exercising? Have you seen any weight loss so far?