Your goal: to add two, 20-minute strengthening sessions to your regular routine.

Don't worry much about your walking speed or distance. At this point you're still in the process of making this a habit. Perfecting your walking form will help you in the weeks to come by making it easier to pick up the pace and walk for longer periods of time without getting tired or injured.

The twice-weekly strength training sessions are also important for injury prevention. There are other benefits to including them in your routine as well:

• Strength training helps you firm and tone.
• Stronger muscles have more stamina so you'll be able to walk more easily.
• Building muscles speeds up your metabolism so you lose weight faster.

Separate your strength training sessions by at least one day to give your muscles time to rest and recover. Do 1-3 sets of each exercise in the order they're listed below, 8-15 repetitions per set.

Basic strength training routine

Squat
A. Stand with your feet as wide as your hips, your weight slightly back on your heels, and place your hands on your hips. Pull your abdominals in, stand up tall with square shoulders and a lifted chest.

B. Sit back and down, as if you're going to sit on a chair directly behind you. Lower as far as you can without leaning your upper body more than a few inches forward (this depends on your flexibility and your build). If you can, bend your knees far enough so that your thighs are parallel to the floor, but don't go any further than that and don't allow your knees to travel out in front of your toes. Once you feel your upper body fold forward over your thighs, straighten your legs and stand back up. Take care not to lock your knees at the top of the movement.

Toe Raise
A. Stand on the edge of a step. (Or, if you have a step aerobics platform, place two sets of risers underneath the platform.) Stand tall with the balls of your feet firmly planted on the step and your heels hanging over the edge. Rest your hands against a wall or a sturdy object for balance. Stand tall with your abdominals pulled in.

B. Raise your heels a few inches above the edge of the step so that you're on your tiptoes. Hold the position for a moment, and then lower your heels back down. Lower your heels below the platform in order to stretch your calf muscles.

Pullover
A. Holding a single dumb-bell with both hands, lie on the bench with your feet flat on the floor and your arms directly over your shoulders. Turn your palms up so that one end of the dumb-bell is resting in the gap between your palms and the other end is hanging down over your face. Pull your abdominals in, but make sure your back is relaxed and arched naturally.

B. Keeping your elbows slightly bent, lower the weight behind your head until the bottom end of the dumb-bell is directly behind your head. Pull the dumb-bell back up overhead, keeping the same slight bend in your elbows throughout the motion.

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