40+Club-Making it Work

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  • singfree
    singfree Posts: 1,591 Member
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    Happy Monday, everyone! It's been a busy weekend for me...no time to post or keep up with you guys. I had spring concerts with the Susquehanna Chorale on Fri/ Sat and my Church choir did a concert yesterday afternoon. Today our grandson (18 months) arrives for a few days as his parents are attending a wedding in the Dominican Republic.

    Needless to say, my eating and exercising was kaput this weekend. Today I start with a clean slate. On another thread, a man in the know (Banks) advised me to up my cals since I am exercising an awful lot especially during the week. I will try this and no cheats of any kind. I'm having trouble maintaining muscle mass and shedding the few remaining lbs of fat. Banks thinks that I am restricting my caloric intake too much, thereby shutting down my metabolism. Yes, this makes sense...but it is still hard to eat a lot of calories.

    I'm going to try this for 2 weeks, until we go to Calif. to visit my brother in law. Keep your fingers crossed for me!
  • Swissmiss
    Swissmiss Posts: 8,754 Member
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    sing...the man with the information is probably right. Your body may think it is starving. My body thinks it is:laugh: . Do you eat snacks? Doing this can up your metabolism. Just don't make them candy bars.:smile: Fresh fruit and veggies.

    :flowerforyou: angele...are you eating snacks? (I seem to have a one track mind today). It may help to scatter your calories over three meals and two or three snacks. Your stomach will not be empty for long this way and this will cause your metabolism to go up. Also, be sure to drink lots of water.:drinker: :drinker:
  • singfree
    singfree Posts: 1,591 Member
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    Unfortunately up to now, I usually kept my cals pretty low. The big problem, I believe, was the empty cals of having red wine and pretzels in the evening. I am cutting this out in favor of something more nutritious. I do eat at mostly regular intervals, but I am burning off WAY more cals than I am eating, hence the probable metabolism slowdown. I am going to up my cals by a few hundred (clean eating) and see what happens.
  • StiringWendel
    StiringWendel Posts: 3,813 Member
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    singfree, I saw that exchange with Banks, and I have to agree with him. I was surprised to hear you've been taking in only about 1500 calories given how much you burn off during your exercise. As you know, I've been taking in 1500, and I'm not burning nearly as much as you, and even I am aware of some effects on my musculature at this caloric intake. So, yeah, I think it is a good that you are going to up those calories a bit.

    Had my most indulgent food weekend in quite some time this weekend, but I kept myself under control. We had the neighborhood over for dinner last night, and since it was a last minute thing, I didn't have time to research healthier options and just did the usual burgers and such. Since I cooked everything, I wanted to taste everything, but kept it to one taste for some of the unhealthier stuff (like this great mac and cheese recipe I have, and for the seven-layer dip). I even ate a cookie--but just one :blushing: . And boy did that taste good after four months of nothing but a rare taste of dark chocolate. And, of course, I had wine both nights this weekend. :drinker:

    The end result....I lost two pounds over the weekend. :noway: Now I'm down to 107.7, which is actually a bit lower than I want to be, if for no other reason than I'm having to hold even my smallest jeans up with a belt right now. But I'm going to get back to cleaner eating this week, and get my calories up and over 1600 by the end of the week. I really don't want to get into an unhealthy eating habit again, which would kind of be easy to do right now since I'm trying to figure out maintenance mode still, so I'm going to keep my focus on what I had been planning all along, and take that mentality into our vacation next week. I hope.

    Swissmiss, hope all goes well with your surgery. Please let us know how you are doing when you get a chance!

    Welcome angele! I think you are doing great having lost 10 pounds in 2 months. That's quite an accomplishment! Losing weight is not easy, that's for sure. I know I get so tired of being hungry sometimes (this weekend not included!). Just make sure you are eating enough to sustain your energy, and make sure your calories are the best quality calories you can take in. And, finally, be proud of what you've managed to do so far! :flowerforyou:
  • singfree
    singfree Posts: 1,591 Member
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    Yeah, I've been a bit foolish by undereating. I KNOW BETTER, but sometimes I can't bring myself to eat all of the extra cals required to fuel my workouts. Sometimes I burn well over 1000 cals in exercise. I think the key here is more cals and clean cals!!
  • kelligirl
    kelligirl Posts: 210
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    The weekend with my "in our forties" friend went well. Eating out posed no problem, so that was good! I've put off weighing in until TOM has left, but I'm looking forward to seeing what the scale has to say. I do know that the scale isn't really an accurate indicator of my progress, because for me, simply sticking to a lifestyle change is progress. It's great motivation / education to read everyone's posts.
  • tron3002
    tron3002 Posts: 440 Member
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    String... I am actually quite jealous of your weight loss:ohwell: Dont get me wrong, I am happy for you I just wish the scale would start moving in the downward scale for me as well. Maybe I'm just not as dedicated as you all are. I dunno, I try.

    Sing... You do exercise A LOT!!! Its amazing how many calories you burn off. May I ask, how tall are you? I looked up the caloric intake my husband should be eating with out exercise and it was 2090. 1500 just seems rather low for someone as active as yourself.
  • tron3002
    tron3002 Posts: 440 Member
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    angele... 10 lbs in two months is darn good. Good job! :happy:
  • singfree
    singfree Posts: 1,591 Member
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    Tron, I'm almost 55 years old, 5'8", 152 lbs.
  • mkwood10
    mkwood10 Posts: 428
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    I added my starting weight so my ticker reflects what I have lost, and unfortunately what I gained back before finding this sight. But I measured myself today. I always measure around my waist where my belly button is, and even though the scale hasn't budged (which is discouraging) I did lose a 1/2 inch... That gets me excited to keep going. I know I should be proud of myself for the amount of weight I have lost already ( went from a 39 inch waist down to 34 1/2) but I want my belly gone so bad that all's I see is one huge gut and not the improvements. I really need to work on the mental part I guess.

    Tron,
    Congrats on going from 39" waist down to 34 1/2":happy: :happy: Thats a MAJOR accomplishment! Don't get discouraged about the belly........ I feel the same way:grumble: :grumble:
    I've lost about half of what I gained when my hubby came home from Iraq last fall, but the belly just isn't going anywhere, especially above the belly button!! It's so frustrating - I never had a completely flat stomach after my daughters were born, but I was comfortable enough for a (modest) bikini. Last year I even had some muscle definition - I'll probably never see that again :cry: . Had to invest in a couple of tankinis for the lake - there's no way I'm displaying this flab for everyone at the lake :laugh: :laugh: Haven't had time to work out hardly at all since May 1st due to remodeling in the house, but have started using the AbLounger every night for 100 crunches. Its a start.........
    Hang in there......... we'll get rid of it eventually or die trying LOL:laugh: :laugh:
  • eriny
    eriny Posts: 1,509 Member
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    hello
    100 pushups
    75 situps
    25 situps w 10 lb ball
    40 10lb dumbbell
    40 100 curls
    4 20 sec floor leg lifts 10 lb ball
    4 sets of ten bench leglifts w 10lb ball floor to over head
    12 dragon flags
    40 110lb pulldowns
  • tron3002
    tron3002 Posts: 440 Member
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    mkwood... Thank you for the encouragement. I am just having a hard time losing the last 15 pounds that I get easily discouraged... So again, thank you...

    Now as for my whining time.... Why do I make beef for dinner. I know my son and husband like it and sense my husband is rarely home I thought I'd make him something nice, but when i enter in my dinner and see how many calories I need to burn ff because of it.... Uggg!
  • singfree
    singfree Posts: 1,591 Member
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    Good morning all! Thanks to the many of you who offered advice about eating enough cals. Yesterday I started eating a bit more. I did not bike yesterday, so I did not burn those "big" calories. I just worked out at the gym and did a bit of extra weight training at home. Our grandson (18 months) arrived for a few days and my poor wife needed all the help that she could get chasing hime around the house.

    Depending on if I bike or not, I will adjust my cals accordingly. I am also trying to keep my protein intake high (about 45%). This should help with fat loss. I am not a fan of low carb since I work out so hard. I am merely decreasing it slightly to around 40-42%. The fats that I eat are coming mostly from olive oil and almonds. I had some red wine last night, but no pretzels. I really think that the carbs from the pretzels is a big factor in not shedding those few remaining lbs of fat.

    Tron, don't beat yourself up over "special" meals and events. Enjoy the evenings and savor those moments.

    Mkwood, you and I are in the same boat with belly fat. That is why I am experimenting with upping my protein.
  • Swissmiss
    Swissmiss Posts: 8,754 Member
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    :flowerforyou: tron..When my family wants their beef (they love burgers) I will get a piece of fish out for me. And I just have to say that your picture looks terrific. If I looked like that I would have a pic of myself here instead of the one of my cat.

    :flowerforyou: mkwood... I bought the Abs Diet book. It has me eating a lot more protein and drinking a lot of water. They believe that more protein is helpful for losing the belly fat. I am not sue if it is working (I have not been following it close enough), but I do feel better..health-wise. More energy. I am also drinking Crystal Light Metabolism. I know that it has caffeine and that is why I have a bit more energy but I love it.

    :bigsmile: singfree..(I didn't give you a flower..just a big smile). Your weight with your height sounds good. You weigh about the same as I only I am three inches shorter.:grumble: I get so much helpful information from you. You really know your stuff when it comes to nutrition and exercising.

    I was a bad girl last night. I hadn't eaten since the night before because of having surgery. I was so hungry and sent my husband to Mcdonalds for a cheeseburger and fries. I still stayed within my allowed calories but this certainly was not a good choice. It did taste good though.
  • singfree
    singfree Posts: 1,591 Member
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    Swiss, yes I'm pleased with the weight. My focus is to burn off a few lbs of fat while retaining muscle mass. My strength is excellent, but I don't want to lose muscle size because I have a fairly small frame. Being 5'8" I want a strong, but lean look. It is difficult to accomplish when you are close to reaching that goal! Thanks for the smiley face!
  • Swissmiss
    Swissmiss Posts: 8,754 Member
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    You are welcome, sing. You do have the advantage of being a man. I know that you will get the muscle that you want.
  • StiringWendel
    StiringWendel Posts: 3,813 Member
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    tron, I think you are doing great! I can't really explain why I've lost weight this time because I haven't lost it so easily in the past. But I guess this time I was willing to make cuts where I'd never made them before (like taking the cream out of my coffee as an example). I definitely don't think that my approach is for everybody because not only is it a very restrictive approach, but I have been incredibly fortunate over the past four months in having few interruptions/distractions in my quest to achieve a lower/healthier weight. Not everybody is blessed with that, and I don't think that can be over-stated enough. I happen to think it is wonderful what you are doing with your fitness as I think fitness, in the long run, is way more important than anything the scale will ever say.

    Swissmiss, good to see you up and about! I'm glad you are enjoying the Abs Diet. Like I said before, my husband really enjoyed following that program when he was on it.

    eriny, looks like you continue to push yourself in your workouts! Good for you.

    I ate much better yesterday (back to normal!). I'm going to be doing about an hour of lower body strength training this morning, which I enjoy. My problem area is definitely my legs, so I need to keep pushing away in this area. I've made good improvements over the past few months, but I'm still not comfortable being seen in shorts or, worst yet, a swimsuit. I would love for that to change, especially living here in So. California now.
  • Swissmiss
    Swissmiss Posts: 8,754 Member
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    stiring..have you found that being so strict can eventually put you in a rut? And then have to cheat a little to get the scales to move down? Actually, I am asking if you hit a plateau easily.
  • kelligirl
    kelligirl Posts: 210
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    StiringWendel - hey...... Happy Birthday Week!! :drinker: We do birthday weeks..... my bf is cooking dinner each evening all week - and he's become quite conscientious about food choices I might add :happy: - and I've asked for a day (Saturday) to complete "projects" around the house. I :heart: my Birthday Week!!

    I went ahead and weighed myself this morning, even though flo hasn't left yet - bags are still sitting by the door; I lost 2#. That's 4# since 4/26. I'm happy with that, especially considering that I've been exercising less than my minimum goal.

    Life is Good!!! :flowerforyou:
  • Swissmiss
    Swissmiss Posts: 8,754 Member
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    Congradulations kelligirl. Keep up the good work !!:flowerforyou:

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