55-65 year old women's success?

mk2fit

Woo hoo @krenwren ! Good for you! Ugh on tofu and rice cakes. I'm with @griffinca2, eat what you like, otherwise, your journey will just not work for very long.

calmandpeaceful

[ Just stayed within my calories, ate reasonably healthy but no radical dietary changes, still treated myself from time to time. Persistence and perseverance is definitely the key! Portion control, filling up on veggies, eating a salad before my meal, and having a "salad day" after any days of indulgence really helped keep me on track. I ate delicious food every day, concentrating on meeting my protein goals, and found ways to get lower-cal options without sacrificing taste (no rice cakes or tofu for me!).

Thanks for your response! Did you track every day? I love the idea of eating a salad first, before dinner. Very smart. How did you determine your protein goals? I agree on the tofu and rice cakes - would rather have a nice raw red pepper. Congratulations on your weight loss.

pstegman888

calmandpeaceful wrote: »

[ Just stayed within my calories, ate reasonably healthy but no radical dietary changes, still treated myself from time to time. Persistence and perseverance is definitely the key! Portion control, filling up on veggies, eating a salad before my meal, and having a "salad day" after any days of indulgence really helped keep me on track. I ate delicious food every day, concentrating on meeting my protein goals, and found ways to get lower-cal options without sacrificing taste (no rice cakes or tofu for me!).

Thanks for your response! Did you track every day? I love the idea of eating a salad first, before dinner. Very smart. How did you determine your protein goals? I agree on the tofu and rice cakes - would rather have a nice raw red pepper. Congratulations on your weight loss.

I absolutely track every day (even over the holidays) - too easy for those calories to creep up! I look on it as a challenge, not a burden. As for protein, I first let MFP choose my protein level based on my stats, but when I realized after the first few weeks of tracking that I was falling woefully short, that carbs are my weakness & trigger food, and that I always feel physically worse after a high-carb meal, I went into my "Goals" section & bumped up the protein a few percentage points. I don't always meet that protein goal, but it gives me something to shoot for, and I am usually fairly close. If I have a high carb day, then I make sure I follow it with a "Protein Day."

pstegman888

griffinca2 wrote: »

pstegman88, Totally agree; but if you can exercise do so (do what you can), it helps with maintaining bone & muscle mass as you age. No tofu or rice cakes for me either; if it doesn't taste good, why bother.

Oh yes, I do exercise and am as active as I can be, always trying to move the boundaries of what my body is capable of. I have good days & bad days (sometimes bad weeks or months). It's just a lower level compared to what a normal person would be capable of, so not a very significant impact on allowing more calories or making great cardio/strength progress. But I've still gained some strength & stamina with the little I can do...again, the consistency & persistence is key. I used to be quite athletic before my illness, so I had a good muscle base to start with. Slowly building it back up, and allowing myself a nice nap after my little workouts, lol!

Churchjc

Good morning, ladies. I've been following your thread and hoping you'll let me join in. I'm only 47, but post-menopausal due to cancer treatments. I began using MFP in 2012, and went from 235 lbs to 180 lbs. Then, in 2013 I was diagnosed with stage 4 cervical cancer. During treatment, I dropped to 160 lbs, regained the weight afterwards, then had more treatment and dropped to 160 lbs again. After that treatment ended, I regained the weight and am now, sadly, at 195 lbs. I'm 5'9".

I'm still in treatment, but thankfully one that doesn't make me sick. I have been so weak and out of condition for so long, that returning to exercising is a scary thing. I'm on a 3-day(!) streak of logging my food, and I'm going to start going to the Y and begin some light workouts. I honestly didn't expect to live this long, but since I'm still here, I feel a bit obliged to start working towards looking and feeling good again.

If you don't mind a youngin' hanging around your thread, I'll continue to read and be inspired, and maybe post as I make some progress. Thanks!

griffinca2

Churchjc, You're on my prayer list. Just take it one day at at time and don't stress if you mess up; start over & "don't give up the ship!"

calmandpeaceful

Church - you are a strong woman!! I'm inspired that, in spite of your tremendous cancer challenges, you are working to improve your health - even going to the Y after all you have been through. You are tough and strong!!!

mk2fit

@Churchjc, I will add you to my prayers. I agree with griffinca2 and calm. You are welcome here! Even taking a walk around your yard is good if you don't feel up to the Y. More power to you!

krenwren

@Churchjc you are of course welcome! We are all young at heart so come on in!!! There are some great ideas and stories here.

Churchjc

Thank you all for the welcome! I haven't managed a trip to the Y yet, but my son did buy me a Microsoft band for Christmas, and I've been trying to up my step count every day, so that's something. Thanks again!

lorrpb

My view is that it's not necessarily harder at "our age". If it's a little harder physically, it can be easier mentally. Maybe we are more committed because "doing it for health" means a lot more. We have the life experience to stick with our goals and commitments. What "other people" think doesn't affect us as much. The mental aspect of weight loss is the hard part, and we have lots of skills in that area. Younger women frequently ask me what I've done & how I stay motivated. So it's not like they have it figured out and it's a breeze. Sometimes I feel bad that I'm not faster or stronger in classes, then I have to remind myself that at age 60 I'm often the oldest there and I've made immense progress in 19 months. In the end, it's my own progress that matters.
SW 301
CW 176
GW 150
19 mo.

janet6567

Hi all! I am 66 years old and need to lose at least 40 pounds. I started logging on MFP a week ago and have joined a gym. I plan to start off going 3-4 days a week for cardio and strength training. I would love some friend on my weight loss journey who have similar goals for mutual support.

1PoisonIvy

I need to close my mouth

retirehappy

lorrpb wrote: »

My view is that it's not necessarily harder at "our age". If it's a little harder physically, it can be easier mentally. Maybe we are more committed because "doing it for health" means a lot more. We have the life experience to stick with our goals and commitments. What "other people" think doesn't affect us as much. The mental aspect of weight loss is the hard part, and we have lots of skills in that area. Younger women frequently ask me what I've done & how I stay motivated. So it's not like they have it figured out and it's a breeze. Sometimes I feel bad that I'm not faster or stronger in classes, then I have to remind myself that at age 60 I'm often the oldest there and I've made immense progress in 19 months. In the end, it's my own progress that matters.
SW 301
CW 176
GW 150
19 mo.

Great attitude and great results as well. Congrats on your loss so far, you will get to goal .

JanetMMcC

(oops. Posted inadvertently, don't see a delete button.)

scott77_

I am a 67 year old woman and have lost 40 pounds since last February. It is slow but sure and that is ok. I attend yoga twice a week, ride my recumbent bike 30 minutes a day and work with 3 pound weights 15 minutes a day. One day at a time is true for me. I see a Nutritionist every 3 weeks who helps me a great deal with the mechanics of the eating program and encouragement. I have about 40 pounds left to lose and I am finding it harder to lose at this point. I WILL do it and so will you!

JanetMMcC

PianoRun wrote: »

... post-menopausal women who have lost significant weight ...

I'm 63, and have lost 72 or so lbs, roughly 1/3d of my starting weight of 213.

My docs had been warning me for some time that I was inching toward diabetes. For some reason, it finally took hold, maybe because the resident training under my doc had a suggestion that didn't sound obsessive: swap out white carbs for whole grains, potatoes for sweet potatoes.

Now, probably the biggest part of my subsequent 50 lbs was that no white carbs meant no more candy, ice cream or chips. But for some reason it didn't feel like dieting. I paid attention to portion sizes, but didn't need the obsessive attention that Weight Watchers had taken. Over the next maybe 18 months, I went from too-tight size 20 jeans to loose 16s.

I might have stayed happy there if the office hadn't assigned me an iPhone. About a month after I got it, I discovered it had been tracking my steps. That forced me to see just how big a slug I was. I pushed myself to walk more. Then I rejoined MFP, which I hadn't remembered joining in the first place. The last chunk of poundage took me from last May, when I investigated the iPhone's heart icon, until early November.

I figure I'll have to log, with some portion weighing, for the rest of my life. But I can now get up from the ground or floor without a cane or a helping hand. I'm getting ready to cull all those 16s, 16s and 20s for Goodwill. My asthma maintenance dose has been cut by two-thirds. I can handle it - something it's taken me since high school to be able to say.

krenwren

I'm with @1PoisonIvy , I just need to close my mouth! I have lost and gained the last five pounds and have not made any significant progress in the 170 days I've been posting here. I've said it before, it's not that i'm tremendously unhappy with my weight, it's just I'd be doing my self a big favor if I lost 30 pounds to take the stress off my body. My current weight is 177 and I would like to weigh around 150 which would get me into a normal BMI. I just need to knuckle down as so many of you have done. Not sure what it will take to get me to that discipline but I've done it before (when I was 40) so I know I can again.

trina1049

@krenwren & @1PoisonIvy I don't think you have to close your mouth! Just find foods that you like/love and use them as replacements for the foods that don't keep you satisfied or craving more. The goal is to eat as much as possible and still create a calorie deficit. What do you love that has the nutrients you need and satisfies you? For me it was more protein and healthy fats along with low glycemic carbs (berries, veg, whole grains, etc.). Start with small steps, one food at a time and build upon that; mix in some activity (walking, etc.).

Think of your food in terms of a calorie allowance -- like a bank account; how can you stay within your budget and get all of the nutrition you need? Whatever exercise you do adds to your calorie allowance. It's weird, once you start, you want to do more; then before you know it, it becomes second nature and Ba Bam!, you've nailed it.

krenwren

thanks @trina1049 I'll try, i'm just stuck now as I haven't been able to create that deficit needed to lose. I need to start with eliminating or limiting the white food. That has worked in the past and I can live with it!