40+ Club: Beating The Winter Bulge

singfree

Good morning!

Anahita, welcome! Indeed, you can do it! In fact you are doing it! Your prescribed course of action looks great to me. You've sought out professional guidance and are sticking with it. You will be amazed with the transformation not only in the mirror, but your blood test results. Please stay with us and keep us posted.

Another cold day in PA...brrrr!

I'm planning to do a kettlebell workout this morning before Church. We are going to Harrisburg to a concert given by the Harrisburg Symphony. They are a spectacular group of musicians.

Nothing much to report otherwise.

Have a great day!

Trina22

Welcome Anahita!
I too turned 40 in January of last year. When I lost weight before now, I never exercised but now that I do, I love it! So sorry to hear about your health issues. I had minor surgery after losing some weight and it made me really depressed and of course I gained all the weight back. I can't imagine how much havoc major surgery could wreak! My goal now is to get really fit for an almost all outdoor/physical trip to the Southwest of England in May. Lots of hiking in Cornwall and walking up Glastonbury Tor. Where do you live in the U.K.?

Singfree, to clear things up, when I exercise I certainly enjoy eating the calories I've earned! I depend on My Fitness Pal to tell me how much more I can eat on those days and I do it!!! I have not changed my diet at all, really. I still eat all the natural and vegetarian foods I have always eaten - I just eat the right portions now and snack on pickles, veggies, etc. instead of potato chips (always my downfall). If I crave something in particular I simply adjust the other things I eat the rest of the day (or earn calories through exercise.) My goal weight is 160 pounds and I am 5'7" - so yes, I have about 10 to 12 pounds to go. I have found that it takes a certain mindframe to invest energy into planning your meals and thinking about when to fit in exercise - if I can keep that up, I can keep the weight off fo good - anyone have suggestions on how to do that?

Oh, and I am also in Eastern PA - in Lehigh County (right on the edge of Berks County). Hi neighbor!

Thanks to everyone for your input on my questions! Trina

Texssippian

Hi all!
Cold here in north Texas: 33 degrees. Son made it safely back to San Francisco yesterday. Mr. Holiday started packing up Christmas last night.
Made a "Wally World" (Walmart) run yesterday with the entire population of the county in there. Must be the cold that brings everyone out... Stocked up on clean food for the office. I have a little dorm refrigerator in my office. I lent it to a friend in December who was moving and did not a frig for about a week. I moved offices two weeks ago (and pulled something in my SI joint in the process). Finally am unpacked with the frig back and can have healthy food: fruits, nuts, yogurt, low sodium turkey, low sodium cheese. I can really tell a difference when I eat very salty food and I don't like the feeling.
Sitring: I am complaining about moving my office three doors down from where it was. It is amazing your move to Korea!
Frank: Enjoy the kettle weight. We have free weights at home but I hav not used them since this joint injury. Had to reschedule our trainer as I have to go out of town tomorrow (to Temple TX) and not sure when I will be back. Hope everyone has a great day and week! TxMs

nina1968

This is a great site. I am knew to this site, I am 41 and have been hard core dieting for a week today, And by following the fitness program and calorie counting I have lost 5 lbs in a week. although i am having some issues with reaching my calorie intake. I have been below what i am told i need. Will this really make a big difference in my goal to continue to lose weight. I exercise everyday most times 2x a day. Thanks for the support and encouragement

TwentyTen

Great to be here. Having never made an effort to lose weight in my life before, it's good to be amongst those doing it and succeeding! So far the advice and support i have found here is wonderful, and I am only at day 3! 40's hit me hard. After a lifetime of having no weight issues, the pounds just started to pack on, seemingly out of nowhere. And they just do not go away on their own do they? Yikes!
I am also four months post op from a total hysterectomy which has had it's own challenges and I would love to hear from anyone else having gone through or going through the same. I actually had a very rare , sweat free night last night, it was fantastic getting a real nights sleep for a change.. As I type about it here tho', the heat is spreading and the sweat is starting to bead up on my forehead. Grr.
Serious about shedding these pounds, I gained alot fast over the last few years. I am not used to disciplining myself so I need all the support I can get.
Thanks to everyone for being here!

torsaer

Can I join? I just turned 44 so guess I qualify! I have three children and around a stone to lose - it's crept on gradually over the past couple of years and now I find I can't fit anything in my wardrobe. I also have an underactive thryoid and am on thryoxine. Now I have a new iphone I've downloaded the mfp app and keep updating on the mac too. I've probably read every book going and have tried a few things too - going sugar free, fat free, wheat free etc etc. Just started running to see if that will help too. Does anyone have a weight loss secret?

JuliaSoCal

Sunday is my weigh in day. I am excited to report I am down 1.5 pounds today ( YEAH ME!!!). So far, I have only changed my eating, and have not added the exercise piece, but will get there soon. I have a hard time carving out the time to fit it in, but know it is a MUST... I am mostly an ALL IN type of person, so in the past if I did not exercise AND eat well, I would throw in the towel and think "why bother???" So,it is actually nice to see the weight coming off by food control only.

Have a great week everyone,
Julia

rockwife

hi from tn. I just found this site today. It has been our third "snowed in day" so I had time to read a magazine that mentioned the site. It seems really user friendly and to the point. I currently with 258.4. I have been seriously dieting and exercising since Nov.
I have been up and down on the scale, but have lost a total of 10 lbs. That seems really slow. I have HBP and sugar is no longer a friend. I began taking Metformin also in Nov. Hoping that with the ease of use of this site and a husband that is very encouraging I can get it under control.

StiringWendel

Hi everybody!!

Welcome to all our newcomers!! :flowerforyou: I'm so excited to see so many people wanting to join our group. Please continue posting. Ask questions. Tell us about yourselves. Some of us have been on this journey together for a year, but we always welcome new faces! :drinker:

Anahita, it sounds like you have a great plan in place. The good thing about having lost weight in the past is that you KNOW you can do it. I, too, have been up and down the scale more times than I care to recount, having finally decided a year ago that 2009 was going to be the LAST year I ever felt like I needed to go on a diet. In other words, I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure I don't go back up again. It really sounds like you have everything in place to do that as well. What part of the UK are you in? I lived near Cambridge for four years back in the mid-90s and absolutely loved everything about it. I was a size 10 when I got there....and a size 12 when I left. Too many Cadbury's bars I think! :blushing: .

Trina, I've been in maintenance since last May, and it is a bit of a struggle. There are some days I just don't want to think about what I'm eating, but I stick with it, still count my calories, plan my meals for when I'm going out.....and it is working. I'm still hoping it becomes second nature to me. I think, over a little more time, it will. And many days already it is just a simple habit I don't think about. What I struggle with most is in allowing myself the odd day where I DON'T think about it as much. I think it is perfectly acceptable to have those days and maintain weight, but I still get down on myself if I do (except over Christmas, and then I just ate WAY too much because I wasn't paying any attention. :noway: ) I know how to lose, but maintaining is where I've always gotten in trouble. But, nine months in, so far, so good.

TxMs, good to see you!! Have you seen a doctor about your injury? Sounds like it is pretty serious if it is still bothering you. I hope you are okay. :flowerforyou: And I don't care if a person is moving office or a house across the world....moving is NEVER easy!! Take care of yourself.

nina1968, sounds like you have a great workout plan. What types of workouts are you doing twice a day? I'm just curious. I tend to workout twice a day as well.....strength training followed by cardio when possible.

TwentyTen, I never had night sweats until this past November. And then I got them horribly. The funny thing is I only have them when I'm eating alot of sugar. They were gone instantly (and I mean that literally) both after Thanksgiving and after Christmas when I went back to eating cleanly again. It really amazed me to see my body react to sweets the way it did. And those night sweats were really bad. :noway: Hopefully, over time, you might see an improvement too because they are no fun.

JuliaSoCal, congrats on the weight loss! I think it is really important to focus on proper eating for losing weight. Where fitness will come in handy, though, is in keeping the weight off. But don't overwhelm yourself. If you feel it best to focus on your nutrition right now, focus on the nutrition right now. And if you get a chance down the road to incorporate fitness, do so. But I totally agree with you that taking on too much at once can be too overwhelming. It sounds like what you are doing is definitely working right now....so go with it!

rockwife, a 10 pound loss since November is a great thing! Especially with the holidays (if you enjoyed any extra food during that period of time). I know I've always struggled with patience when losing weight, but it is really good to take the time to do it properly so you can keep the weight off when you go 'off' your diet. And, btw, I love to hear you have a supportive husband. Sometimes, that can make all of the difference in the world.

singfree, thanks for letting me know about the kettlebells and the lower back. I am definitely going to look into them when we get back to the US. I am looking for some added variety to my workout regime right now, and this may be just the thing. Do you think you will be happy having just one kettlebell? I think the reason I never bought any is that I thought I would need a full range, like I do weights? Do I....or would one or two suffice? Thanks again for your thoughts!

And I want to take a minute to wish our beloved Swissmiss a Very Happy Belated Birthday!!! I hope you had a great day and celebrated throughout the weekend. :drinker: :flowerforyou:

All here is well. I have one more STS workout before I go into my recovery week. I'm still eating cleanly and all that stuff. I've worked out a plan for the next cycle (which focuses on hypertrophy/muscle building). I'm going to up my calories a bit (by about two hundred), try to drop some of the cardio (I'm not so sure about this....but I'm going to try) and really focus on lifting heavy to see if I can't get back some of the definition I had in my arms last summer. I was eating quite a bit more last summer than I am right now, and that seemed to work well for me. But I'm going to try to make it through the next cycle with totally clean eating as well. Of course, I've got a couple of things to enjoy coming up....like Valentines Day and the Super Bowl and such.....and I'm going to enjoy those things (in moderation, of course). But it feels good to have a plan in hand and a goal for the next six weeks.

I hope everybody has a great Monday.

singfree

Good morning!

Wow! So many new faces here. That's great!!!! Welcome to all newcomers.

Busy day yesterday. We went to a concert in Harrisburg and went to eat afterward with two other couples. We went to a Tex-Mex place, so you know it blew my calories out the window! It's Feb. 1, so It's also time to take charge of my diet. I know I've had a rough week, but enough of eating bad things. I should honor my mother's memory by eating well. Good thought!

Stiring, I'm not sure if only one kettlebell will suffice. Only time will tell on that. Right now I have one 30 lb kettlebell, and I am seriously considering returning it for a 35 pounder. I know that you can buy adjustable kettlebells, which can range between 10-50 lbs. It will also take up less space. My thoughts on kettlebells are that it will be just one component of my workout. If I get bored or just need a change of pace, I'll probably go back to standard weights or do some training using my own body weight. I still think that good old fashioned pushups and pullups provide a super workout.

Right now I need to concentrate on my diet more than anything else. If I can get into a routine of eating the right things most of the time, I will look and feel so much better.

Trina, I travel in your neck of the woods often when we go to Allentown on I-78. I live just north of Hamburg/ Port Clinton on Rt. 61. It nice to have a "neighbor" here!! I love riding my bike on the back roads where there is little or no traffic. I know it's pretty much the same where you live.

Have a great day!

duffyzmom

Happy Monday Morning All!

Wow so many newbies - Welcome :flowerforyou: Welcome :flowerforyou: Welcome:flowerforyou:

I'm very excited to have completed the Burn phase of Chalene Extreme and am looking forward to moving on into the Push phase. My goal for February is to do a much better job of logging my foods and keeping an accurate accounting of my exercise calories. I'm also hoping to get back outside running but since it was 10 degrees this morning I may have to stick with indoor cardio for a little while longer.

Trina and Frank all that Eastern Pa talk is making me nostalgic my son was born in Easton almost exactly 14 years ago.

zebras

I, too, am nostalgic whenever Sing mentions PA. I went to summer camp 5 years in the mountains, and to college one year near where Sing lives.

I'm "all shook up" today. Saturday night right before I went to bed, I watched this 10-minute independent movie that had two zombies in it. I'm not usually subject to nightmares, but after I fell asleep, I dreamed I was driving and there was a zombie in my car, then I felt my cat in the bed, and it startled me and I toppled right out of bed, hit my head on the night stand on my way down. My arm hurts too. Luckily, I did not lose consciousness, and I don't have any disorientation or dizziness. Then to add insult to injury, when I woke up in the morning it was TOM and Advil did not help much with some devastating cramps.

I think all I'll be up to tonight is some slow walking on the treadmill, if that. I can't jounce my head around until the lump feels better, so the elliptical is out.

Well, thanks for listening. Welcome to all the newbees, its great hearing your stories.

duffyzmom

Zebras: Sorry to hear about your injury - I'm very proZombie so I must say I'm sure the Zombies are very sorry as well. Be very careful with your head - I'm sure that almost any exercise that raises your heart rate will probably make the bump throb. Ice and Rest!

zebras

Thank you Duffyz and the Zombies. I keep getting ads from Amazon about the new Zombie classic Pride & Prejudice & Zombies. I think the whole concept is hilarious, I just can't spend money on books right now, so I have to wait until someone else reads it first. I think if I were to re-write a classic in the same manner I would have to write A Room With a View of Zombies. LOL

singfree

Zebras, sorry about your Zombie encounter. I can't watch that stuff either. "Night At The Museum" is enough for me!! :laugh:

duffyzmom

Thank you Duffyz and the Zombies. I keep getting ads from Amazon about the new Zombie classic Pride & Prejudice & Zombies. I think the whole concept is hilarious, I just can't spend money on books right now, so I have to wait until someone else reads it first. I think if I were to re-write a classic in the same manner I would have to write A Room With a View of Zombies. LOL

My darling cousin knows how much I love my Zombies so she sent me a copy of Pride & Prejudice & Zombies. Combining Jane Austen and Zombies - GENIUS - I just wish zombies were portrayed in a better light. I mean come on we all have cravings we just can't resist.

Love this quote about the authors- "JANE AUSTEN is the author of masterpieces of English literature. Seth Grahame-Smith once took a class in English literature.":laugh:

Sing - you and my husband must be cut from the same cloth - poor guy used to see horror movies with me when we were dating and then once we married I found out the truth - He hates them.

singfree

Happy Groundhog Day!!!

Will the fat rodent see his shadow? My guess is yes...lots of lights from the TV cameras. Give me "Gus", the 2nd most famous groundhog in PA (the PA Lottery mascot). Gus predicted 6 more weeks of bad powerball numbers.

Alf, are you still with us? We miss you!! How are the classes going?

Busy day yesterday. Work and a long rehearsal in Hershey last night. I was able to eat pretty well and had a workout at lunch at the gym. Today I will continue to eat well. I will do another noon workout and a kettlebell workout this evening. This fat has got to go!

Duffy, I am thankful my wife hates horror & suspense as much as I do. That is reserved for when I look in the mirror!! :laugh:

Have a great day!

duffyzmom

Happy Groundhogs Day! Here is my little factoid on groundhogs - did you know they are excellent tree climbers? Never knew it until my dog chased one up a tree.

Sing: too funny - I swear someone broke into my house and stole my mirror and replaced it with an HD one.:laugh:

Texssippian

Hi All!
Welcome to all the new people! Zebras: sorry about your injury from the Zombies! I refuse to watch any horror show. Watch out for head injuries. Maybe think about putting a towel on the corner of your night stand so it won't happen again. I seem to find every sharp corner on a piece of furniture with some part of my body. Had a really nasty bruise from walking into a sarp point on an arm rest of a chair in a lobby. I was walking and texting at the same time. Never do that again.

I am about to turn 51 and went through "The Pause that Refrreshes" several years ago without much problems. I figured out a couple of things about hot flashes: Caffeine was a trigger, so i went caffeine free for a while. If at all possible, as soon as you feel a "flash" coming on, try to get as cool as possible as quickly as possible: ice water, kick off the covers, fan, whatever.

SI joint feeling better. I am going to try to make it to water aerobics tonight if I can get out of the office early enough. Happy Ground Hog Day! TxMs

zebras

Good morning all. Happy Groundhog Day. I wonder if there are Zombie Grounhogs? LOL

Sing, I'm sure your mirror loves you!

I didn't even try to workout gently last night. I went home, asked my husband which room he was not going to be in, and plopped on the guest bed and took a nap. Oh well.

Trina22

Zebra - I just bought Pride and Prejudice and Zombies but have not had a chance to read it yet. The fact that Elizabeth Bennet knows Ninja moves sounds brilliant! I just finished "Jane Bites Back" which might be more to your liking - Jane Austen in modern day NY state. 200 years ago she was turned into a vampire by that wicked poet, Lord Byron. Very funny read if you love Jane Austen (and Byron, as I do!) Since I started my healthy life program I read on the elliptical instead of the couch!!

DuffyzMom - So did you live in Easton for a time or were you just traveling through when you went into labor? ;~ )

Welcome new people - I just joined this group a couple of weeks ago. it's grrrrreat!

tamarads

Zebra - I just bought Pride and Prejudice and Zombies but have not had a chance to read it yet. The fact that Elizabeth Bennet knows Ninja moves sounds brilliant! I just finished "Jane Bites Back" which might be more to your liking - Jane Austen in modern day NY state. 200 years ago she was turned into a vampire by that wicked poet, Lord Byron. Very funny read if you love Jane Austen (and Byron, as I do!) Since I started my healthy life program I read on the elliptical instead of the couch!!

DuffyzMom - So did you live in Easton for a time or were you just traveling through when you went into labor? ;~ )

Welcome new people - I just joined this group a couple of weeks ago. it's grrrrreat!

Trina... I, too, have discovered the wonder of reading on the elliptical! I was getting very frustrated with the many, many commercials as I was watching tv, the shows weren't holding my attention away from the fact that I was exerting myself! Love reading so it was a natural progression...

beachcomber

Hi everyone, I'd like to join in too.
I had a physical in October and my doctor wanted to put me on cholestrol meds and I told him to give me a chance to lose some unwated LBS and then I will retake the test. Well since October, I have lost 7LBs. I can tell that it is body fat that I have lost so I am pretty happy with myself. I would like to shed another 10 LBs. My clothes are loser and I don't feel like I'm stuffed in a sausage casing. So I am taking it slow. I know that slow weight loss is weight loss that won't reappear quickly. Anyway, I am going back to see my Doc in a few months and hopefully my Cholestrol is down. I know my weakness and it's the late night Pizzas I join in with my sons twhen they order. I have stopped my late night binging !!!!

angelwings2000

Lately Minnesota is giving me the perfect workout routine. Shovelling snow burns lots of calories and it seems to be becoming my daily routine. If there is not enough in my driveway......I start tackling the neighbors! Being a helpful *& thoughtful neaighbor while I am getting my exercise. It doesn't get any better than that!! :happy:

angelwings2000

Stiring......I like the way you explained exercise calories to Trina and it makes perfect sense to me. Being only five feet tall I know my body does not use the calories quite the same as a taller peson. It makes perfect sense the way you explained it. Sometimes, when I get a good workout in and have calories to spare, I am already stuffed by the calories I have eaten and can't imagine trying to eat all of my calories back (and not rely on junk to do it)

Texssippian

Love the Jane Austen comments. Our daughter is going to Oxford, UK this summer for a six week course on Jane Austen. she has to finish all the books before going in July. I am reading them again too. Not sure I want to tackle the zombie Jane! I was an English minor in undergrad but mainly focused on Shakespear and William Faulkner (since I was in Oxford MS where he lived.)

Angelwings: great idea to be a good neighbor while getting your exercise in.

Beachcomber: Welcome! slow and steady wins the race! Are you getting whole grains and oats in your diet every day? I use oat bran when making meatloaf and sprinkle it on yogurt too. also eat dry cheerios instead of chips for a snack.

duffyzmom

Trina - Kinda both We lived in Easton just a little longer than my pregnancy. I actually moved into the house in late May found out I was pregnant in June delivered in February and we were back in the Midwest by the next Christmas. When we were living in the Toronto area we drove down so my son could see the hospital where he was delivered and his first home etc. I think my husband and I enjoyed it much more than he did but ah well.

Texas: So jealous of your daughter I was an English major with my focus primarily on 19th Century English Lit. I'm personally more of an Eliot fan but Austen ranks a close second.

zebras

Tex:

That's cool about your daughter, its nice to see the younger generation still interested in Jane Austen. I love the Bollywood treatment of it too, in Bride and Prejudice. If anyone sees the Colleen McCullough sequel to Pride and Prejudice it is very well written but not memorable. I picked it up because I read the Thorn Birds at a very early age and I still love it. Now, how did a dream about Zombie's turn this thread into the Jane Austen Book Club? LOL.

Sing:

How are those Kettlebells going?

Texssippian

Zebras: Love Bride and Prejudice!

Anna has to do a special project on the era in which Jane Austen lived. She is going to research dietary trends of the era. Too bad they did not have MFP to look at what people are eating... (I am jealous of her too! although, we are planning on going over with our son when she is finished for the week before school starts back for both of them.)

rockwife

48 f from Tenn. Been battling the same 10 pounds since Nov. The scale seems to only move up. (probably because I get frustrated when it doesn't move down and grab a bag a chips and eat them on the way home)

Found fitness pal on Sat. Guess maybe I need to measure food more closely. I have worked out and recorded everything and the scale only moves up.


From reading the post I know that i am not alone.