Exercise is the key to any weight-loss program. You've seen the show, and you know that working out is a huge part of each contestant's success. But please don't compare yourself to the contestants. They are living and breathing exercise, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and that's not possible for most of us living in the "real world." So don't get discouraged if your weight loss isn't as dramatic as what you've seen on the show. Here are some pointers on how to make exercise an integral part of your weight loss plan:

Wondering about exercise? Check out Fitness FAQs for commonly asked questions, or you can contact our Experts by clicking on the Community tab, then on the "Ask the Experts" forum. Many of the questions in this forum may apply to your own experience. If you don't see your question there, contact our experts by clicking on the "Create a New Topic" button and posting a message. You should receive an answer in as little as 2 to 4 days.

Each morning, under the My Fitness tab, you'll find a Workout Plan that includes cardio (aerobic) and/or strength training. But there's no best way to exercise. You can substitute a workout that you are already doing at home or one that you simply like better. So go ahead and design a program that suits your needs. Or ask one of the BLC Fitness Experts for help.

There are two main parts to any good fitness plan: Cardio, which improves endurance and burns lots of fat and calories, and Strength Training, which improves balance, maintains and builds muscle mass, and may help prevent injury. Some days you may do one or the other, other days you may do both—it all depends on which days you chose in your Fitness Preferences located under My Fitness.

Cardio exercise can be anything that you enjoy doing that uses constant movement to significantly elevate breathing and heart rate and keeps them elevated throughout the exercise. Good examples include walking, cycling, rowing, swimming, aerobics (including using DVDs), running, stair climbing or step machines, elliptical training, skating or rollerblading, and skiing (water, snow, or indoor ski machines).

Think about which exercises you think you would enjoy doing and which you are physically able to do at this point. Do you like exercising alone or in a group? Indoors or out? Is there a gym nearby or an outdoor track you can use?

Week 1: Aim for 10 to 15 minutes of cardio per day. (If that seems too easy, increase your time to 30 minutes.) Do it 3 to 5 times per week.

Week 2+: Every week, increase your time by 5 to 10 minutes per day. For example, on week 2, you might increase your time by 5 minutes so that you are exercising Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for 20 minutes at a time.

Once you've reached 30 minutes of continuous cardio, stay at that level or continue to increase your workout periods by 5 to 10 minutes every week, until you reach 1 hour. Remember that you don't have to do the maximum every time you exercise—if motivation or time are in short supply, do what you can!

Your long-term goal: Eventually, you should be doing 200 to 300 minutes of cardio per week. Put another way, you should be burning 300 to 500 calories each workout. For more information, check out the Cardio Tutorial located under My Fitness. Begin by looking over the base training section.

Strength training is any kind of workout involving resistance, whether it be body weight, an exercise band, free weights/dumbbells, or machines. Our strength training program is designed to help you advance safely from learning good form to tackling more challenging workouts as you get progressively stronger and leaner. No gym membership? No problem. Our program is also flexible enough to allow you to exercise from the comfort of home and track your progress right here on our website. Best of all, the strength training program can be customized to fit your fitness level and training goals. Three non-consecutive days a week (you'll need a day between workouts to give your muscles a chance to recover and grow) is all it takes to get in the best shape of your life. Take a look at the Strength Tutorial located under My Fitness to learn more.

To log your cardio and strength exercise, take a look at the tutorial under My Fitness Basics.

In addition to the plans you'll find on the site, if you are already taking a class or exercising at home with a DVD or Wii, you can substitute and log those workouts as well.

To review your fitness progress over time:

1. Click on the My Progress tab, then click on Fitness Progress, which appears below and to the right of the main navigation bar. You can view calories burned results vs. goal at both the weekly and daily levels. Please note that "calories burned" reflects only cardio activity and doesn't include strength training.

Note: To view previous workouts, click My Fitness on the site's main navigation bar to go to My Workout Plan page. Use the day navigation arrows at the top of the plan to click to past days.