I've seen a couple of other people post their routines here for critique -- I hope you don't mind another.

I've embraced my inner laziness, and celebrated the fact that we have a small work-out room in the basement of work. So every day that I come into work, I work out as follows:

 
M/W/F:

I start off with the weight machines. Excuse my descriptions, because I haven't a slightest as to what the exercises are actually called. I do (lateral row?) where you pull the handles to your chest 3-4 sets of 8-10 reps; I started at 20 pounds, and am now up to 40 pounds. I do the one where you push the platform away from you with your knees bent to straight, 3-5 sets of 8-10 reps. Started at 50 pounds, now up to 80. I do (butterfly?) the one where you put your arms up like a U and then bring the handles in towards the middle, 3-4 sets of 8 reps; started at 10 pounds, up to 30 pounds. And the one where you tuck your ankles under pads and lift your legs up to work the muscles around your knees, 3 sets of 8 reps; started at 10 pounds, up to 30 pounds now.

Then I use free weights in a way that a very fit co-worker showed me, bringing one arm up straight, and then bending it backwards and lifting up, to work the muscles on my underarm (it's really helped with that flab that hangs down!). 3-5 sets (per arm) of 8-10 reps; started with 5 pounds/arm, up to 10 pounds now.

The above exercises usually take about 20 minutes.

On these days, I then do the elliptical machine for 20-28 minutes (or 15, like this morning, when I was running LATE!) on weight loss mode. I usually burn 200-300 calories doing this, according to the machine, which asks for weight and age to calculate this. I usually do my lows on resistance 4 and my highs on 8 or 10 -- sometimes I'll throw a few minutes of 12 in there, if I can handle it. 

Then I do crunches -- 100 of them, leg lifts -- 50/side individually, and recently I've been trying to do lifting them together, but I can only do 10 of those at a time, they're hard! I've also been trying to do the quasi-crunches where you bring your elbow up to meet your opposite knee. I can still only do about 20 of those. These I do daily.

T/Th: 

I do the above set of crunches/leg lifts/etc.

I use the rowing machine for... as long as I can handle it, to be honest. I usually try for the 5k, and when I can finish that, I usually do so in about 28 minutes (burning ~230 calories, per the rowing machine). I can usually keep at about 30 rpm, with a 500m split time of between 2:45 and 3:00. I have to stop a lot, though, as I find it a much harder workout than the elliptical, and on days when I'm not feeling well, I sometimes only make it to 2k (~11 minutes) or 4k (~22 minutes).

Saturdays and Sundays I usually rest. Though if I've missed a day, I'll do some DDR, and until I got a flat tire, I was trying to take bike rides on Sundays (though they ended up quite short!).

And days when I don't drive in and the weather isn't foul, I walk to and/or from the metro, which is .7 miles each way (15 minute walk, due to stoplights). 

My only worry is that my heartbeat seems to get very high during my cardio exercises. Not dangerously so, but I seem to have a hard time keeping it down in (what the machines call) the "weight loss zone" as opposed to the "intense" zone or whatever they call it.
 

I used to run, and I miss it, but I've been diagnosed with arthritis in my knee, as well as cartilage problems, so I've been banned from running and stairs, inasmuch as I can possibly avoid them. I've tried the bike that our work-out room has, and it just doesn't seem to give me as good a workout (but then, I couldn't figure out how to adjust the resistance, either). 

I guess my question is: is this good enough for a weight loss workout routine? I started in mid-august and have lost 27.5 pounds; I'm now at the cusp of 200. I figure I must have gained some muscle, because even over the last few weeks, when I haven't been so great at eating right, I've lost at least a pound a week. But I'd like to make sure I'm doing the best I can in the very limited time I have (45-60 minutes/day, depending on if the public transit system cooperates) and not wasting my time, as it were.

Thank you, and I want to say that it's really fantastic to have people here, able to help us out with things like this. 

I'm no expert - but just wanted to say WOW! And congrats! Sounds like you're doing a lot!!

Hi Njdisa,

Is that good enough? Yes! You are doing great! You've lost 27.5 lbs. and that is something to be proud of! You probably have gained a good amount of muscle (which will help you burn calories more efficiently, even while at rest). Your heart rate may be up into the aerobic and anaerobic zone, but as your fitness condition gets better it will become harder and harder to get your rate into those levels. The aerobic and anaerobic zones burn calories and fat at a higher rate than the fat burning zone.

It sounds like you are making the most of the 45-60 minutes per day that you have to exercise. Keep up the good work and keep me posted.

Good Luck,

Paul

 In that case, I won't worry so much about the higher heart rate. I think you're right -- it's been up around that level, but I've kept increasing the intensity of the workout, so that would explain why I'm not seeing a change in the heart rate.

I didn't know that aerobic and anaerobic zones burn fat and calories faster -- why is it, then, that it lists the fat burning zone as the preferred zone? For example, when I use the exercise bike, if I use the heart monitor, it'll actually tell me to slow down, because I'm out of the "weight loss" zone? 

 Of course, after I posted this yesterday, I ended up not getting to work until 25 minutes before I had to clock in this morning, so it was my sit-ups/etc routine and nothing else before hoping in the shower. Good thing I got in the extra work-out with shoveling snow last night!

 "Fat Burning Zone" (generally 60-85% of your max heart rate) is the zone where you will burn your calories primarily from fat. However, losing weight is a calories in - calories out equation.

So the more calories you burn, the more you will lose. You really don't care where the energy comes from, as long as it gets burned and creates a deficit. Working at the cardio zone (up to 85%) burns the most calories, thus for long term weight gain is the best thing.

All that having been said, you have come up with what looks like a very nice routine. Bringing the heart rate up and making the work more challenging will just burn more calories, thus help you lose weight even faster.

Best of success to you,

Jim 

Hi njdisa,

Jim's absolutely correct.  Your goal is to lose weight and the harder you work, the more calories are used for fuel.  Everyone should work in all three zones intermitently.  Each bring their own benefits to your body, and variety is always important to any workout regime.  The trick is knowing how to work within each zone.  In a fat-burning zone, you're going to be able to continue exercising much longer than you would in an aerobic or anaerobic zone.  That's why changing your workouts so one day you're walking on a slight incline on the treadmill for 45-60 minutes is great, while another day doing intense interval training for only 25 minutes is equally great.  Your bike uses a built-in HR monitor which will ensure that your HR stays within its range for "weight loss" - it's not that it's preffered, it is just reminding you to lower your HR so you can work out continously in the zone you pre-dispose it for.  It should do the same if you program it for "aerobic training" or "interval training."

Keep it up!

Good Luck,

Paul