WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR FEBRUARY 2012

Cando055

Thanks for the warm welcomes. I'm thrilled to find such an active group! How on earth does anyone respond to every post? I don't know how I'll ever keep everyone straight, but I'm going to try.

Barbiecat, I think line dancing sounds like so much fun. I wish there was a place near me for country dancing. I've going to try to find something.

Enjoyed several bites of chocolate bourban pecan pie and a bottle of nice red wine last night celebrating my husband's birthday. I was at the gym first thing this morning and spent an hour on the elliptical and stationary bike rather than my usual 40 minutes. Hope it compensated somewhat.

Whoever mentioned soup got me inspired. Went to the Amish market after the gym and got a ham hock for split pea soup, and a bunch of vegetables and beef cubes for a huge pot of vegetable soup. I make the best -- I can brag because I'm not much of a cook but I'm really good at chopping, and vegetable soup requires a lot of chopping. All low-cal vegetables -- onion, carrots, celery, turnips, zucchini, yellow squash, green beans, cabbage, spinach, and a big can of chopped tomatoes. What a great lunch for the rest of the week.

Eileen

mazaron

Sleep in Saturday :happy:

Gym classes – I could not agree more with Yellowrose . We need to model and teach healthy lifestyles at school. I gave up using candy as rewards this year and now (thanks to suggestions from MFP folks) have a treasure box of pencils & wee dollar store toys for students to choose from. The little “parachute guys” are the current favorite.

Issyfit, far from dropping PE from the curriculum the province mandated 30 minute of “daily physical activity” a couple of years ago. I might not be good at team sports, but I get them moving other ways. We do classroom dance routines, chair aerobics, work out with tension bands and, when the weather permits, we go skipping outside. They groan about the dance routines, :grumble: but I make them go until everyone participates and even the most reluctant recognize a chance to get out of “real work” for a few minutes!

The Spin Class? :explode: It was a great workout and the girl who led it was fun and encouraging. I am sore today in places that cannot be discussed in public :grumble: it’s those darn bike seats – but I plan to add the class to my Friday routine.

Jb- Thanks for the wonton recipe. I’ll be shopping for ingredients today and serving them for dinner.

Eileen, I was not bored reading your story, I am with you! :drinker: Take out the broken ankle in Rome (though I did rupture all the tendons in my ankle by falling off the curb in Athens, and spent the next 4 months in an ankle brace) and mine is similar. I woke up in the summer of 2011, 35 pounds overweight in a frumpy size 14. It sounds like you have a good plan in place, and you’ll get there one portion controlled serving at a time!

Genealace: Furnace working and DBF phoning, sounds like your life is getting back on track. :happy:

AhealthierSuz: Thanks for the cartoon :laugh:

KC – Congratulations on lacing up the skates and getting out there with the kids! :flowerforyou:

Michelle – you’ve inspired me. I’m going to make a pot of soup this weekend and portion it out for the week. I make good soup! J’boy would love ginger cookies, but he just at a box of Mac & Cheese for breakfast, :huh: so I am not going to add to his quota of high impact food today. He met me at the gym with me twice last week and did his own workout.

Amanda What fun to be finding outfits to wear to weddings and loving what you see in the mirror :flowerforyou:

AHealthierSuz You must live in a warmer climate than I do – it’s beautiful and sunny here today but -5 degrees C, not gardening weather yet! Have fun outside.

Eileen, your comment about not being a good cook but good at chopping made me giggle. I sliced my finger chopping a banana (really, a banana!:noway: ) yesterday. It’s a good thing I keep my knives sharp because it was more of a papercut than a real gusher, but it proved again that I am not good at chopping. Will you come over and help me prep my soup?

I'm off to the Rec Centre for a weights and interval run workout this afternoon, the rest of the day will be spent in relaxing until I go out to watch "The MIghty Ducks" with my curling team. Our bonspiel theme this year is "Disney" and we are going dressed as the hockey team from the movie. I plan to take a plate of raw veggies and my own hummus so I can snack on those and stay away from the chips and dip.

Hasta pronto,

Nancy

RebelRenny

Lazy Saturday morning here. DH and I love Saturday mornings, just hanging out. My daughter calls me and we chat, I call my mom and we chat. I leisurely check out MFP stories and read posts of wonderful women with interesting lives, who inspire me to go on.

For those of you who have been around a while, remember I used to do 'Skinny Saturdays' with focus on fruits and veggies and water? I think I might go back to that. It is a great way to detox.

Since coming back from Mexico last week I logged a 6 lb loss, thanks to getting sick. I am happy to report that the weight remains removed. I do have my appetite back, and have to be more aware of my calorie intake.

I had wine last night. My goal is to limit wine to the weekends, and then no more than 2 glasses per day, so that would be 4 glasses over the weekend. For me wine drinking is more a social thing than needing alcohol, although alcohol has a mellowing affect on me. I don't drink in the evenings, but we got used to having a late afternoon glass when coming home from work and DH and I talk about the day. During the week, I now simply have my water bottle beside me instead. That just isn't the same as sipping wine, so I am looking for ideas how others cope. Years ago, when we did not drink alcohol at all, we used to have a coffee after work, but coffee and tea that late in the day interferes with my system. I do not drink caffeine after 2 PM. I also never drink pop or juices.

Have a lovely Saturday ladies.

Renny

vikkij12

hI Vikki here from New Zealand. Back again and it is really interesting reading what everyone is up to. You are all so inspiring, I am up and down in my weight, I blame menopause but really it is all down to having no self control. Being tired doesn't help the control. I am trying the spare room at the moment to see if I can get a good nights sleep, but the cat has changed beds with me instead of staying with my man!!!
Started couch to 5k this morning, I was going to start yesterday but my muscles were too sore after a nearly 4 hour hike across the ranges on Friday (but i did it which I was proud of) so went for a bike ride yesterday instead and started the c25k today.
Its a holiday here tomorrow so might get back out on the bike in the morning. We have had a not so nice Summer this year, lots of wind and not a huge amount of sun. my vegs are pretty average this year. but this afternooon intend to get the winter vegs planted (brocolli, cauli, and cabbages) the silverbeet went in a couple of weeks ago. hoping my man builds my new chook house soon so I can get some new chickens.
Better get going, I am on music at church this morning so just got time for another practise.
Vikki

issyfit

Issyfit, far from dropping PE from the curriculum the province mandated 30 minute of “daily physical activity” a couple of years ago. I might not be good at team sports, but I get them moving other ways. We do classroom dance routines, chair aerobics, work out with tension bands and, when the weather permits, we go skipping outside. They groan about the dance routines, grumble but I make them go until everyone participates and even the most reluctant recognize a chance to get out of “real work” for a few minutes!

I'm glad to hear that. I think the trend is the opposite around here with all of the budget cuts.
editing to get my workds out of the quotes.

scompton54

Good Morning! Wow do I feel those lunges from yesterday. Great suggestion. I have an appointment with a new orthopedic surgeon today. Hope he can help me get my life back. I'd be thrilled to just walk again.

Love all these February suggestions. I'm learning a lot from all of you. TGIF

PS. Love the book suggestion too. Really loved the Hunger Games series, read them after my 12 year old. Will have to look for the other one.

borrowed them for a co worker and all my kids, their friends, and I all read them over Christmas. The first is the best but they do keep you reading/

scompton54

I have had a terrible week.....all my own fault. Little exercise, too much wine and too much food. Tonight I am hosting a soup party so probably won't do well with today either but back to the gym tomorrow which is where I burn the calories.

Mazaron: I bought a gel seat at Canadian Tire which I use when I ride the bike,,,,,well worth the money!

regards

sarah

Laura80111

It's Saturday and it's finally stopped snowing....:flowerforyou: we have about 20" + it's beautiful to sit inside and look at.

I've been doing some experimenting with receipes and working around those calories, fat and sugars...some have been really good and other's no so. I do so love to cook but not being home makes it so hard:grumble: so come the weekend I'm looking into all my cookbooks for things that sound good and that can be changed. I finally did the Angel Food Cake w/ the crushed pineapple, that I got from someone on MFP two years ago...it was / is wonderful

We head to friends tonight and she is aware that I'm trying to watch what I eat...so she's cooking chicken, brocolli and salad...so i should be doing okay for tonight.

It sounds like everyone is pretty busy let's keep up the exercise and drinking of the water:drinker: :drinker:

Laura

shmogo9

:flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: just a quick hello on this sun-shinny-day....hope everybody is having a wonderful Saturday....

I'm off again... :drinker: till tomorrow night when i can check in again - chow for now!:bigsmile:

chooklady

I want to keep up the bit of running that I am doing now by doing the Runkeeper fitness classes that coach me verbally as I run along. I also want to do the Runkeeper linked app "Stronger" so that I can develop muscles in neglected places.
And i want to continue with this wonderful Fitness pal that is working so well to change my dietary habits!

ValReaves

Hello Everyone! My goal for today was to increase my water...and I'm doing OK.. Just wanted to say how much I appreciate everyone here. Have a good evening.
Val :-)

kckramp

What a nice day here. I have been reading about some of you and snow, however I noticed that azaleas are in bloom here near Charleston SC. I was able to go out for a nice walk today, and was working in the yard for a bit this morning. Tomorrow will be a busy day, we will be working on renovating a rental house we have then off to a superbowl party. Hope everyone has a great evening and a wonderful Sunday
KC

vypeters

Hi everyone! Sounds like a bunch of you are having great, energetic weekends. The best kind!

It has been a busy day - I'll try to catch up better tomorrow and reply personally, but in the meantime I again appreciate the compassion and support I've gotten here!

DH and I signed up to walk in a 10k run/walk on April 14. It's a fundraiser to send a team to the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. How it works is that walkers signing up for the actual Avon Walk have to commit to raise $1,800. This local walk raises that amount for a team from the town where it's being held. They've been doing it for several years.

I can't run. I have a bad knee that won't take impact (my own fault - carrying 300 lbs for all these years did it in). In fact, this knee was one of the motivators to lose the weight so I could have it replaced. Since I lost the weight it has done marvelously, though and I can walk as far as I want, do low impact aerobics, step, whatever...but it won't take pounding. I did try a few months ago to do the Couch to 5k" program, but gave it up after a few days when it became clear that the knee had its limits.

So I was thrilled to find a 10k where a lot of people walk it. We'll power-walk and have a great time.

The good news is that I likely won't be having the knee replaced any time soon. Just losing the weight was enough for now!

Hope everyone has a great rest of the weekend!

Virginia

joanneonline

Hi Ladies! What a great group.

My February Goals:

Lose 8 lbs
Workout min 30 mins 6 x's per week
Drink 64 oz of water daily
Take my calcium and B12 daily
Get to bed by 10 PM nights I don't have class - by 11:00 the 2 nights I do

marlouise

Hello Ladies, Time sure is flying fast, seems like it is just the start of the year. Hope everyone is doing well with their goals, I have been up and down but it is due to food choices. Got tired of trying this and that and decided to go back to where it was working. Cleaned out the cupboards, and started a plan of action again. So far it has been working well again. Should be back to where I left off soon.

February brought a bout of bronchitis to me not overwhelming but quite a challenge as it was brought on by a virus that is a lung lover. For the moment it is under control, doc gave me a good report on the lungs and some stronger stuff, than what I had to really clean out the corners. It is in a concentrated form, 1 tsp lasts up to five hours, that is a measured spoon. No sugar in it just as bad as some say Buckleys is.

Still working the two jobs and waiting for the third to call, usually around late spring into summer people start taking time off.
Hope all is well here, keep hard at it and don't look back.

Catch you later,

Marilyn

exermom

Sarah - what to me is REALLY frustrating about this insurance paperwork stuff is that I purposely made my appointment well in advance. I hate having to wait and wait. We'll be going to FL again and I really want to get this done before we go.

barbie - one of the things that I like about those samples is that you get just a very little. What I don't like is that many times the samples are of things that I would never eat. At times I do wish they'd have samples of things that I might eat if I knew I liked it, but I don't want to buy a whole big box just to get one mouthful to find out that I don't like it.

momtina - welcome! A good diet, huh? I can only say that there isn't one specific diet, everyone is different. You will probably just have to try different things to find what works for you.

Meg - WOOHOO! Those animals sure appreciate it! We're all so proud of you.

Pam - so glad you're feeling better

Welcome everyone who just joined, too many to mention by name, but we're so glad you're here

Just finished making pumpin ginger soup. It only makes 4 servings, I'll have one tonight with some veges and I'll freeza the other three.

Did an hour of yoga today then bowled 4 games. I'll get better one of these centuries!!!! Tomorrow I'll do some balance games on the Wii.

mazaron - sarah is right, the gel seat is worth the money. I did find after a few years (yes, years) that I no longer needed it. But it did take a loooooonnnnngggg while.

Virginia - I have to say that you're quite an inspriation!

Not that I'm complaining, mind you..but I don't know what it is. Ever since I've had this "period" thing, I haven't had much desire to eat. Like tonight I almost couldn't finish my orange. Normally, I probably would have had a piece of chocolate late at night, but that just didn't appeal to me. Yet, my stomach feels so bloated! Pants that normally are decent, felt tight around the waist. I know that I've been watching my sodium. Tonight I had soup that I made, not from a can. Actually, it was better than what you can get in a can. Hope this bloated feeling goes away pretty soon. Don't hope the feeling that I'm full goes away...lol

Here's hoping everyone has a great evening.

Michele

wizzywig

:flowerforyou: Hi everyone, sorry I've not posted for a few days, we've had internet problems, hope they are sorted now, so far so good.

:noway: Can't believe I've missed a few days and not only are we on a differnt month, but so many pages to catch up on.

:ohwell: I lost my way towards the back end of last year and January too, but I am doing my best to get back into healthy eating. In Feb I aim to do 10 mins (at least) of exercise not including the dog walking, so back to the keep fit DVDs and video's.

:noway: After saying yesterday morning on our long dog walk how lucky we were not to have any snow, Saturday afternoon it started as a slight drizzle, but kept on and on and this morning we have about 6 - 8 inches of snow. Think it's stopped for the moment, but the forecast is for more snow today. I know this might not sound a lot for you over the pond, but we don't get a lot of snow in York so this is a big deal for us. :bigsmile:

wizzywig

:embarassed: woops accidentally posted, I tell you the internet at the moment has gremlins in it.

Haven't read all the posts yet, will catch up after I post.

I'll try and upload a photo of the kittens, they are so cute and little Maggie is into everything, she got stuck behind the fridge yesterday, it took me a while to find her, I could hear her mewing, but couldn't tell where it was coming from, I even looked in the oven :ohwell: before realising she'd somehow squeezed herself behind the fridge. Yes she is going to be trouble, :bigsmile: Logan is much more cautious about things.

My goals for February are;

Drink more water
Exercise at least 3 times per wk
Cut down on snacking

Well ,I'll go back to read how everyone is doing. Congrats to those who are losing and hugs/support to those who need it.

Happy Sunday!

megathome111

Happy Super Bowl Sunday friends! May the best team win and your SB Party challenges minimal....smart choices are the key. Go GIants!

We head to a friends for dinner/party this afternoon. I was asked to bring dessert...so blackberry pie for the folks who want it, and I'm thinking a granola/ blackberry / yogurt parfait for those who want something healthier. If you haven't tried the Special K fat free Granola, it is really great.

One of the things that I am finding and am really pleased by is that even with smaller portions on my plate...I don't feel compelled to eat everything on it. Maybe I have finally outgrown my mom's mantra from childhood...."There are starving children in Africa" :laugh:

Finished up shopping for the bathroom remodel, but hubby got sidetracked, and now will be painting today. I'm off to do some time on the treadmill, make my desserts, and all the talk about soup has motivated me to make a pot of that today. You all are positive influences in so many ways. I thank you for that.

Have a healthy day.
MEG

blankcanvas

I would love to join your group! Women my age with similar life issues and challenges like menopause:huh: My goal for Feb is just to get the damn scale moving again.. Grrr...I. Think I have to switch up my exercise routine a bit which is always a challenge with hip and back issues..How do I join?

Pam3

I would love to join your group! Women my age with similar life issues and challenges like menopause:huh: My goal for Feb is just to get the damn scale moving again.. Grrr...I. Think I have to switch up my exercise routine a bit which is always a challenge with hip and back issues..How do I join?

by posting you have joined,....welcome and good luck on your journey

kackie

Wow!!! It is February and I am just now reading the posts for almost a week! I had 4 girlfriends in town for 3-4 days and they just left yesterday. I did NOT log in while they were here..:grumble: :grumble: :grumble: ...I just get busy when I have a house full and that is the first thing that I drop! I tossed all of the goodies that my friends brought last night, so I can't eat them any more. I re-stocked my frig with my more usual, fresh foods, so hope I can jump right back on track. Oh...how easily I get off-track!!:huh:

My goal for February...well the REST of February...is to LOG MY FOOD EVERY SINGLE DAY...no matter what!!!!!!!! Simple, right????? One would think! I leave for MT this Thursday to join DH who left last week to head there. I should be skiing every day, so exercise is not the issue. Food is! So logging is VERY important! I CAN do this!:huh:

Welcome Blank Canvas and new ladies that I missed! Look forward to getting to know you!

I look forward to catching up with what everyone has been up to for the past few days. Take care, Dear Ladies! Kackie

shmogo9

:flowerforyou: good morning all - well the scale was two pounds in the right direction this week - starting to like busy busy weeks if this is the results got another busy day ahead of me and then home for dinner with my Husband, both my sons and my new daughter-in-law.... not really a sports fan but really want to see the half time show - Madonna.....I'd kill for her body at my age let alone her age :laugh:

Michelle - enjoy your super Bowl party today - sounds like you got all the right plans in motion.:drinker:

Wizzywig - welcome back and hopefully your internet issues are solved.... our 'nice weather' is going to take a dive this week if the weathter guys are right - supposed to get colder starting tomorrow - more snow on the way for us!:sad:

Meg - choices are definitely the key - I'm finding this time around - I'm not depriving myself anything and am doing so much better - it's amazing to me. Just logging everything into MFP is keeping me on track. AND my Mom had the same "starving children" and I too seemed to have carried that over to my kids until my youngest one day said "I'll pay to send them this food because I'm full" then I realized I was turning into my Mother - and not in a good way :embarassed:

blankcanvas - welcome - I think you'll find alot of support and friendly ears in this group - I know I have

Kackie - I love when friends or family come to vist but I too get off track VERY EASILY - am getting a little worried about my husband's 60th birthday on the 17th - have lots of out-of-town family and old friends coming in and I'm hoping I don't go too far off the map that I can find the road back.....as I'm sure you will too! :drinker:

good luck to everybody today who is attending or throwing SuperBowl parties :drinker: :drinker:

congrats to everybody for posting your amazing February goals - I know that for me - putting it in writing really holds me accountable.....:happy: If you're struggling - try putting some "reasonable goals" on paper (well computer screen :bigsmile: ) you too might find that it really does help!

okay - have to run to start my busy day! Have a wonderful day ladies - will try and check back in later to see how your day goes....if I'm not asleep by 9pm :laugh:

chow for now - BethB

kmacgera

Hi there! This month I can pack lunches more often, and get up for the gym before work a little more often. Stay healthy! A cold sidelined me in January for a week.

jam0525

Hello everyone,

I can't believe all the posts already.

For Februrary I am going back to doing GutNBut (core exercises that work those two areas) with a little modification. I am adding in some arm exercises and rowing squats. My goal is 100 repetition of a combination of core exercises 3-4 times a week.

For the Superbowl - we are having a combination of healthy things and traditional game junk food and calling it dinner. I think I will be able to keep within my calories today.

It's nice to see some old friends have returned to this group and it is just as nice to see all the new faces.

Jeannie

westernjoy

Yesterday was awesome day got 2 out of the 5 raised beds weeded. And prepared for spinach,lettuce,radishes and a few other cold weather goodies. Got the cold frames ready. Just have to get a fence around the garden chicken are now free ranging.
Did 45 minutes of round pen with my horse. Training her to recognize hand signal. Boy that is a lot of moving. I'm on the ground. Not riding.
I'm happy to say I haven't lost any weight this week but my pants are fitting nicely.
Welcome to all the newcomers.
My thought is just take one day at a time.
Joyce

mazaron

Hmmmm..... now I know how I got so fat. :noway:

Last night we (the curling team) were planning our bonspiel costumes while we watched the movie "The MIghty Ducks".

Let me backtrack here. The Curling Club hosts an annual women's bonspiel in mid-February. It's always got a theme, and prizes are awarded to the team that best represents the theme at the Saturday night banquet. This year's theme is "Disney". We decided to skip all the animated movies and go as hockey players from the "Mighty Ducks". There are some great funny moments :laugh: in that movie, and given that, in ten years we have never, ever made it into the prizes we kind of identify with them!

Anyway, during the course of the evening I was very conscientious and limited my snacking to the good stuff fairly well. I did finish my six pack of light beer, but I planned for that. However, when I got home I made myself two toasted cheese sandwiches! :frown: When I added them to my food log this morning I was 700 calories over my daily limit, and that includes all my exercise calories too. Late night toasted cheese sandwiches used to be a regular feature of my diet. :embarassed: Now that I've seen how many calories they cost, and calculated the cost to my moral and my body as well, I think I'll be able to avoid that temptation in the future.

Onward and downward.....

Nancy

mynyddisamrs

A quick whizz in here tonight......

:ohwell: My mystery dining experience today was ...awful!! It was a carvery (NOT the one on the food diary ...that was closest way to log it!!)
The place was sad and tired. :noway: There were hygiene issues and it was not a place I'd like to linger over desserts or coffee. We got away sharpish!! Also ....The health shop mystery shop I was to do wasn't possible ...:sad: the place was closed!!
Never mind eh!!

So DH and I came home and have had some tasty pate, crusty bread etc. AND .....:bigsmile: some chocolate!

A new week begins tomorrow.


:flowerforyou: BFN
Jackie

realpure

Nancy,

Your post made me laugh. Would love to see you dressed like a Mighty Duck. I'm sure the evening and laughes were worth the mini set back.

I too totally understand why I am fat after logging food here this last few weeks. I've learned to log before eating...... but it's NO surprise why I look like a pear. I have always subscribed to the baking is fun and eating is more fun approach to most everything. Especially since having children.

Trying to plan for a Super Bowl party we are going to, I was plugging in what I plan to eat. 1 - 2" brownie is 190 calories!! What??

Good luck everyone! - Glad Monday is the beginning of a NEW week.

Cando055

Nancy, I love your positive attitude! It reminds me that this is all a learning experience.

My gym just started a mind-body-spirit program, and today was a discussion of the book "You Create an Exceptional Life." Great book about the effect affirmations and a positive attitude can have on changing your life. It really spoke to me, especially the section about negative body images. Anyway, the discussion was led by the owner of the gym, and only 5 women showed up, but it was a great hour and I got a lot of support around feeling inhibited from taking some of the fitness classes. So, this was a big step out of my comfort zone and it was very rewarding.

Going to do a little office work now, then make that pot of vegetable soup. Have a great afternoon, everyone.

Eileen