From what was once just a tiny question to what appears to be a bonafide group!

karmamido

Hi all, name here is Karen. I ran across this initial first post (Is there a group for any one over 70?) and started reading ... and became hooked. One thing that has struck me whilst reading these posts: People over 70 have learned more than just a thing or 2 about life! We are proof that with age comes wisdom and knowledge. Your posts show that we ARE an important part of this world, and our advice is sorely needed. You offer your care and your hearts to folks that write in here. You know how to motivate and comfort without having to result to nastiness. Thank you for being here. I will attempt to make you all top priority on my list!

karmamido

I did post this on another thread a bit earlier, but thought I might re-ask it here. Being a 70+ years old woman, I have developed severe Osteoporosis - coupled with severe spinal issues (including scoliosis). At the moment I feel totally defeated. I am in chronic pain 24/7 - surgery is not a viable option because of Osteoporosis. My blood work numbers are in the dumps. (1) I am trying to find a smoothie recipe that is high in Protein, Calcium, and Iron. (2) I cannot stand for more than 5 minutes, and my movements are hindered by the Osteoporosis... which puts a cabash on my exercising. I can't even walk down to the mailbox. I sorely need some kind of exercise. My non-moving "couch-potatoism" is not helping in the weight loss area, and I really need/want to rid myself of at least 30 pounds. Anyone have any pointers for a starting place? I sure would appreciate hearing it!

jeri30

@karmamido Try going to YouTube and searching chair exercises for seniors, beginners, etc.

Also, weight loss is done by counting calories so I'd suggest getting a food scale and weighing your food, and logging the information into MFP (or weight loss tracker of your choice) to track whether if you're eating within your calories for weight loss. Right now, the calories you're eating are the calories needed to be at your current weight.

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=chair+exercises+for+seniors

AnnPT77

karmamido wrote: »

I did post this on another thread a bit earlier, but thought I might re-ask it here. Being a 70+ years old woman, I have developed severe Osteoporosis - coupled with severe spinal issues (including scoliosis). At the moment I feel totally defeated. I am in chronic pain 24/7 - surgery is not a viable option because of Osteoporosis. My blood work numbers are in the dumps. (1) I am trying to find a smoothie recipe that is high in Protein, Calcium, and Iron. (2) I cannot stand for more than 5 minutes, and my movements are hindered by the Osteoporosis... which puts a cabash on my exercising. I can't even walk down to the mailbox. I sorely need some kind of exercise. My non-moving "couch-potatoism" is not helping in the weight loss area, and I really need/want to rid myself of at least 30 pounds. Anyone have any pointers for a starting place? I sure would appreciate hearing it!

Hi, @karmamido,

I can't much help you with #1, not being a smoothie gal. My first thought is something with Greek yogurt, protein powder (whey may be a good option), maybe greens like spinach? The yogurt and whey would be some protein, the yogurt some calcium, and the right greens would have non-heme iron. Heme iron would be better, but that's meat/fish and similar, which don't sound great in a smoothie, to me. YMMV.

I do have osteoporosis, and am only a bit younger (69)

With #2, I have to start by saying that exercise is good for a person in many ways, but it's not essential for weight loss. Exercising does let us eat a bit more while losing at the same pace, so get better nutrition, but we can lose weight at the right calorie level without it. There have been other people who have succeeded at weight loss here without exercise at all (because of disabilities or simple disinclination), or without increasing exercise. (I'm in that latter group.)

Given that the total amount of weight you want to lose is kind of moderate/medium, and you have serious pre-existing health issues (including the osteoporosis, which does have nutritional implications), I'd suggest you consider sticking with a slow-to-moderate weight loss rate, like maybe a pound a week at first (or slower), because weight loss is also a physical stressor, even though the long run results are positive. This could be a good thing to discuss with your doctor, maybe get linked up for some nutritional testing along the way to make sure things are going OK, maybe get a referral to a registered dietitian for help?

Losing around 50 pounds at age 59-60 definitely improved my bloodwork (went from pretty bad to consistently normal), and reduced my joint pain (which was not nearly as severe as yours to start with, and was a combination of arthritis, at least one torn meniscus, and some nerve impingement). I averaged about a pound a week loss, over the better part of a year. It was faster at first (noting that I had more to lose than you mention, plus much less severe pre-existing health conditions), but slower as I got closer to goal weight).

The chair exercise suggestion above is reasonable, if you can accomplish that (or any part of it). If you have access, pool exercise might be worth considering, because the water supports much of body weight, but still allows movement of any type and at any pace that's manageable. If going in a bathing suit in public is worrisome, as it was for me at first I admit, I will tell you that once I got past my mental hurdle, I never felt stared at, shamed, or experienced any other negative treatment in my YMCA pool in my swimsuit even though I was obese then, and have had bilateral mastectomies without reconstruction so am completely flat - maybe even a little concave - up top.

Really, any movement of any type that's feasible and not too painful for you is a reasonable starting point. If you're persistent with even small amounts of small movements that are a manageable bit of a challenge, you will gradually make progress. I started exercising in ways that were mild for me right after full-bore cancer treatment, when I was physically very depleted. It took time, because I increased gradually and moderately, but I made amounts of progress over the long run that were to me very surprising. I think you can make improvements, too, with a gradual, persistent, manageable challenge.

This is another area where you could consider asking your doctor for a referral, in this case to physical therapy. I've done that several times for various reasons, and in my experience those folks can be very good about identifying things that are doable, but create progress, to overcome our current problems and limitations.

Sincere best wishes for progress and improvement!