Seeking Balance

Catawampous

Hey all

I was introduced to MFP by a co-worker of mine. I've been playing with it for a couple of weeks now getting use to its functions, information, logging, etc. Holy cow is it an eye opener! I was pretty shocked at the amount of garbage I was able to consume in a day. It's amazing how I fell into such a numbing state of mind that I had no clue how bad it really was.

I'm 54 years old and lost my way sometime in my mid-40's. I guess around the time menopause set in. I use to be in decent shape. Now - not so much. I have 50lbs to get rid of! I could give a myriad of reasons how this all happened but I've come to realize that in the end, those reasons really don't matter because they are more like excuses. I just have to fix it.

MFP has me at 1350 calories a day. I put it on sedentary even though I don't sit at a desk all day. I did that because even though I'm moving non-stop all day at work, it really doesn't feel like it's exercise in any true form. I've worked out a few meals with that calorie goal in mind and appears to be doable for me I just need a bit more variety. I'll work on that.

Now to the balance part. Time for exercise. Man is that tough. To me I need both of these things to have a body in balance with itself. I'm up at 3:30 in the morning taking care of our animals and getting ready for work. I leave at 4:45 in the morning and am at work by 5:30 am to start a 6am to 2:30pm shift. Then back home and repeat my morning in the evening doing the same things. Add a hubby into the mix and you can see I am WAY out of balance with time for me.

I have a bowflex at home and have had it for years. Sad part is I actually loved it when I used it on a daily basis. Now it sits collecting dust. I need to dust that thing off and get to work! I love Yoga and have a few tapes of that. Somewhere around here I have some cardio exercise tapes I can put to good use also. My brick wall is finding the time.

For me, I need this balance. A good diet AND a healthy lifestyle of activity. I'm just having trouble getting enough time for the activity part.

How are you all doing it? Any insightful tips would be welcome!

vegmebuff

For me I try to incorporate 'fitness' at every turn. Then it turns into a mind-set/all day activity instead of 'now I will exercise'.

Everyone is pressed for time -life is sure busy! I will do squats while brushing my teeth - standing leg/butt lifts, etc., I take the stairs when available, I park further from where I have to be, etc.,

Maybe dust off the Bowflex or exercise video and do 10-15 minutes as soon as you get home.
See if 'hubby' could help out a bit more with chores? Also, let him know what you need and want in your life. Maybe he wants to 'join' you in this new lifestyle choice?

Change one to two things daily/weekly to your diet so it doesn't seem too overwhelming. Your new way of eating healthier will easier for you.

Catawampous

vegmebuff - Very interesting. Thank you! Have to admit I never thought of "fitness at every turn." My mind has always gravitated to the "now I will exercise" type of thing. Thinking outside the box a bit, there are some things I can actually do at work that can help. If I can do that and then commit to 15-20 minutes of some cardio/strength type exercise when I get home that should help make a pretty good difference.

Thank you!

try2again

Just a couple of thoughts. If you do have an active job, consider going with "lightly active" and at least see if it doesn't get you results. Those settings aren't really intended to be about exercise, but your regular lifestyle. Exercise is extra. Also, make sure the weekly weight loss goal you chose is not too aggressive. Many people choose 2 lbs/week because it sounds good, but the resulting low calorie allowance can quickly become discouraging and counter-productive. Take your time. That's great you are interested in your fitness too, but sometimes trying to change *everything* right off the bat is also a bit overwhelming and can work against you. Maybe just work on your calories for a few weeks and then set a new goal? That being said, I do like @vegmebuff 's suggestions above. Wish you the best!

Catawampous

Ok thanks try2again. I'll adjust the settings to lightly active and give it a month or two and see what happens. I have it set to 1 lb a week. Maybe I should just concentrate on making logging an actual habit first and then work the rest in when I'm on track with that. I do have an excessively busy life and I don't want to overwhelm myself and loose focus. Thanks for the well wishes

EttaMaeMartin

shift somethings to others to do. carve out even 15 minutes to start. maybe when you come home, good way to unwind before jumping into more work. if you really want it you will find a time, maybe weekends or days off? best of luck. i can relate i used to have to be at work at 6 and off at 2. i was a waitress in a very uptown cafe. great money, too many distractions for me! miss the cash! j

EttaMaeMartin

another thought, if you are waiting tables, it is anything but sedentary, wear a pedometer for a day and see how many miles you walk, if i am off base on the waiting tables, just ignore me!

Catawampous

Hi Etta - No, not waiting tables. I work taking care of animals. I lift 30-50lbs of feed bags daily. Water crates too. Clean their rooms and caging, check their health, etc. So while not physically taxing all the time, I don't sit down except for 30 minutes at lunch

Thanks for your input! I don't have a fitbit/pedometer or other electronic gadgets at this time but I will see about picking one up. If nothing else, it would give me at least a general idea which is always better than no idea.

bigbear3006

Hi! I am very much in the same situation and menopause put the brakes on an already slowing metabolism!

I agree with everything that has been said... Especially about "excercising at every turn". At the end of the day regardless of all the fads (and I love low carb eating), it is calories out and calories in! So burn more during the day, and it sounds like u are active. You can't out excercise a bad diet! I found something on Pinterest I like.... Excercising for an hour is the easy part, controlling what you put in your mouth the other 23 is the hard part...VERY true!

For me... I have finally reached the point where I have had the heart to heart w myself about what I want the rest of my like to be like. I'm not getting younger... Do I want my body to allow me to do things that I enjoy as I get older or not. I have a family history of lots of bad stuff. No one can make that choice but me and hopefully you. MFP is great at increasing your awareness but the choice is yours. Sorry if I am stating the obvious...

I'm just starting to get active in the MFP community myself! Good luck! You CAN do it...

AloeInspired

Hi there. I'm new to the Forums. I signed up with MFP a year ago and did nothing with it, deleted the app and forgot about it. I recently took on private healthcare and one of the ways to save money or get benefits is to exercise and lose some weight. I got a garmin heart rate monitor that measures steps each day and other exercise as you add it. It's the best thing I did. Three weeks in and i have the motivation to do something about my weight, which has been causing me so many little niggly problems. My story was similar to yours, until recent years, I'm now 52, don't work, I do walk the three dogs daily for about an hour, but I'm a completely different person than I was five years ago. My health is my main concern, but it was a shocker when I stood on the scales to discover that I'd gone from 53kg to 90kg! Hearing that other people are going through the same thing is a relief, I would definitely recommend a step counter of some sort and twin it with MFP, your calories change to allow for the exercise you're doing

melaniedscott

If you've got a cell phone, you may be able to download a step counter to it.