never too old

barbaradetz

My name is Barb; I'm fifty some years old and have been on a diet since I was five years old. I find that monitoring my food and exercise helps me to maintain a healthier lifestyle. I had heart surgery about two years ago after being on a vegetarian diet for eight months and losing twenty pounds. I guess it was too little too late. I am a diabetic and have found it difficult to learn how to eat properly as such and to give up the poor eating habits that led me down that path. Over the ten years since I was diagnosed, I have conquered many of the pitfalls though and learned to eat in a healthy manner. I still cheat occasionally, but I think that is a healthier option that cheating constantly. After heart surgery I lost another twenty pounds and have struggled to keep it off. I am on my second weight surge and have to lose 16 pounds to reach my goal weight. I don't have a structured exercise program, but make a conscious effort to add activity to every day: taking stairs instead of elevators, parking far away from the store when shopping, etc. I have lost the same 8 pounds twice in the last three months so I thought I'd start posting and encouraging others. Misery loves company, right? I think we all struggle with common urges so encouragement should promote our mutual success.:drinker:

123im4u2c

Hi Barb
I'm Lynda, and I just turned 60 years old this past March.
You are so right, age is just a number, and you are never too old ,not to want to look good, and feel good!
I am a former fitness trainer, and I still workout, and strength train as well as walk at least a mile or two every
day! I live in N.J with my boyfriend of 29 years, his name is Bob! He and I are also both former Casino people, I was a cocktail waitress, and he was a high roller dealer! I have a son who is married to Kathleen, and they are the parents of my two adorable
grandchildren Colton, a boy who is three years old, and Carolina, my little girl who just turned one year old.

I have never had a problem with my weight, I was always pretty fit! 4 years ago I was in a robbery at gunpoint, which made
a drastic change in my life! I developed PTSD and also a thyroid disease called Graves ( Hyperthyroid ) With that came another host of problems! I started to gain weight approx. 10 lbs, and I worked hard to lose them. last year, three days before Thanksgiving ,Bob had a stroke. We both stopped smoking as part of being a buddy system, I gained 10lbs back, and ended up with a muffin top, and going up a size. I was a 4, then a 6' A size 8 is too big so I am stuck in a rut!.:sick: :grumble: I have never been able to eat breakfast, so I think this is why the weight is still on me! I try, but one of the pills is an amphetamine that kills my appetite! That's why I decided to join My fitness pal, so I can follow along, and get some ideas from some of you who have had success, and maybe even a thyroid disorder like me! I look forward to getting to know some new people too, as I currently do not work, and I guess because of the illness and the robbery you could say I am semi retired, because I will probably never go back to work again!

My company right now is Bob, My two cats and a crazy Cockatiel. I also have a feral cat that I baby! :laugh: Ah what a life :ohwell:
Well anyway, I just thought I would stop by and introduce myself, there seems to be a lot of young people here, so it was nice to find someone I could relate to, I act like I'm 30 :huh: but I'm sure as heck not! I hope that we'll get to know one another, and maybe share some tips with each other. Until then, Nice to meet you, take care, wer'e never too old!

LaGata8484

Hi, Barbara,

I'm Kate. I'm 52 years old. I have always been slightly overweight all my life. I am 5'3", and have a very small frame, so I can carry a lot of weight and not look it. I wouldn't say I have dieted all my life, but I have been very conscious of my eating habits. This is the second time in my life that I find myself trying to lose 30 to 40 pounds. I have always been most successful when I use a food diary, take in more protein and less fat and sugars, and when I increase my exercise levels.

In 2008, at age 47, I went from 190 down to 150. I accomplished that by doing a lot of walking and strictly cutting down on calories. Now, at 52, I'm trying to go from 180 to 150. I'm telling you all this mainly because I also used to worry about CHEATING. I replaced that vocabulary with TREATING. If I did an extra 30 minutes of exercise during the week, I felt that I'd earned myself two Lindor truffles. If I wanted something sweet, like chocolate pudding, I would get the Jell-O Temptations and have one of them a day, after dinner. In the summer, I love the sugar free Popsicles, especially the Tropical flavors. I love pico de gallo - you can eat as much of that as you'd like. Ten corn or rice tortilla chips are 140 calories, but if you really want a crunch, put the pico on top of a rice cake instead. There are so many things I've switched and exchanged in order to get my treats. I don't feel at all like I'm "cheating" anymore.

Thanks so much for sharing your story! I agree, we're here to encourage and support. I'm looking forward to hearing great things from you in the future!