the Wendie plan is interesting.  I have some info on exercise as well.
If any of you read my initial post last Tuesday, you'll know that I
used to be an exercise freak before my neck surgery (fom an accident).
It was a struggle to get back to a healthy place where I can do limited
exercise.  No more weights, though.  I have to admit that most of my
life was spent as a very fit person, but now i know what it's like to
carry a lot of weight.  Oye.  I went from a size 4 to a size 12.

So what does this have to do with Wendie?  Well, it relates to how we
exercise to be most efficient.  Did you know that our body at it's
basic is meant to turn up the metabolism in spurts?  At our primal
level we were intended to run to catch prey and then stop to prepare
the meal, so to speak.  So our metabolic pattern in these situations
are low (at rest), then high (running).

In order to be really efficient, we need to mimic those metabolic
patterns.  So, when someone exercises at their "heart rate level" the
whole time while they're on an elliptical, or a treadmill, or whatever,
they're not taking advantage of their exercise routine.  A "perfect" 20
minute exercise would consist of a

* warmup for 5 minutes
* 3 minutes stepped up to your heart rate level
* 1 minute at your highest heart rate level
* 3 minutes heart rate level
* 1 minute ABOVE your heart rate level (anaerobic)
* 3 minutes heart rate level
* 2 minute at your highest heart rate level
* 2 minutes heart rate level
* cool down

I belive this to be the most efficient way to exercise.  Try it for a
variation and you'll see how fast your workout goes.  One tip is that
it's much easier to do when you're not reading or watching TV.

Of course, with all pieces of advice, you can take it or leave it.
Just thought I'd throw it out there.

You're welcome.  After reading your original post it sort of piqued my
curiosity about the Wendie Plan and how it might work for me, so I've
decided to follow it this week and see how it goes.  I'll post my results
next Monday.

Brenda