Where to Start?

Candylou11

I am feeling a little overwhelmed and frustrated here as to where to start and how.
I need to make some serious life style changes for medical reasons.
I work full time, commute, have a 12 year old, 2 dogs and a husband that works shift work so not sure
how to find to time to work on "me".
I have a body that does not seem to be able to tolerate exercise at the moment with out suffering an injury of some kind.

Suggestions/tips from anyone that has been successful at making those changes.

SRDB00

Hello,

You will find that there are a lot of people in your situation. I would suggest starting off with eating. Exercing is good but if your body can't tolerate that right now then eating at a deficiency will benefit you. Drink as much water as you can tolerate and you will start seeing and feeling a difference. :flowerforyou:

kherrons

Every minute of exercise counts. I say you have 3 really good things going for you in terms or finding some time for your health. Even if it's only a 10min walk up and down the street, you should take that walk with your kid and dogs. They all need to get out just as much as you do

Also swimming is a great low impact exercise for painful joints.

dedflwrs

If you can't exercise then the obvious answer is "change the way you eat". You might also want to start walking. If right now you do none then a few minutes a day, increasing a bit each day, will bring a change.

My son went to a 14 week program to lose weight and between the program and continuing on his own his lost about 120 lbs (that's as if he had lost a whole me, I'm 118 right now, trying to get back to 120). At the beginning his knees would hurt horribly and he would tell me he wanted to give up. I would tell him " Your knees hurt because they have to hold 214 lbs. Work through the pain and it will get better" and, sure enough, it did. He now walks many miles every day with no problems and when his overweight friends complain about pain now he gets annoyed and I have to remind him that that was him not that long ago and he needs to be a little more tolerant. Point is: it can be done. If you knew my son you would be in awe that he did it (he's bipolar, has Aperger's and very severe asthma). Chin up and do this for yourself and your child.

Annie_01

One meal at a time OP.

Start with breakfast (if you eat breakfast). Figure out 2 or 3 meals that will give you what you need in the way of nutrients...then move on to lunch. When you have that figured out...tackle dinner.

Start looking for snacks that fit your calorie and nutrient requirements. As you learn what you are doing then you can start adding variety.

My best advice...leave a little for a special treat some time during the day. I love the Skinny Cow Salted Pretzel Icecream bars...I have one almost every night.

For breakfast...I usually have a peanut butter/banana sandwich on whole wheat bread. Sometimes I fry an egg with a couple of pieces of turkey bacon on toast.

You can eat what you have always eaten...just smaller portions. I gave up very little though I did find that some things weren't worth the calorie density.

Good luck...just don't let it overwhelm you.

As far as exercise...I mainly walk...some hiking...and some resistance training.

There are videos on youtube that can be done seated...just search for "seated/chair exercises". I also did some at the beginning that were designed for the elderly. They got me started and strengthened my joints so that I could eventually do some of the more intense routines.

purplenurse711

Baby steps...First cut back on portion size and drink lots of water. Just focus on walking more each day. Park in the back of the parking lot at the grocery store or mall. Take the stairs and even walk in place while watching TV. Track every bite/lick of food. Sit down when you eat your meals and don't nibble off your family plates.

Most importantly, strive for consistency rather than perfection! You can do this!

Candylou11

Thanks Everyone for the support and the suggestions !!.

I have been focusing mainly on trying to change eating habits, and have lost almost 3 pounds which is a small start. I am also recovering from hurting my back somehow so haven't done a lot in turns of exercise, though have been trying to go for small walks with my son and the dogs- about half of what we usually do. Thanks to my amazing massage therapist, my back is healing and I am feeling like a human again. I was in so much pain, but things are more tolerable.

We are off camping this week so there will be opportunities for walks, and when I get back I will focus more on doing some strength training. I also have to realize that I must start small and can't physically do what I used to do even a year ago. Frustrating, but that is how it goes. I will re-gain that strength on day. I have been reading a lot of other peoples stories here and they have been very inspirational.

Candylou11

Well, it's been a challenging last couple of months. Was diagnosed with diverticulitis beginning of November and I am still dealing with the constant pain. Each day is different. I waiting to see the gastro specialist on Jan 21st and hoping that he will have some insight for me. Looking forward to restarting my weight loss journey once I am feeling normal again. Will re-start keeping track of my food again as I need to know fiber intake etc.....

Before my attack I was working on getting back into routine for cardio and free weights and had actually started to increase the weights a little. I even did the 30 plank challenge where I started at 10 seconds shaking like a leaf and worked up till almost 3 minutes with only little shaking LOL>.....