WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR FEBRUARY

barbiecat

:flowerforyou: :drinker: :flowerforyou: :drinker: :drinker: :flowerforyou: :drinker:
WELCOME to the thread for Women ages 50+ (or thereabouts). Actually, all women are welcome. This thread and this group of women changed my life. I hope you have a similar experience. We check in with each other regularly and welcome new members. This has been a very supportive and encouraging group. :flowerforyou:

How did you do on your goals for January? What are your goals for the month of February? This is the month when a lot of people start to get away from those goals they set at the beginning of the new year. Let’s not let that happen to any of us. Never, never, never give up.

One of my goals will be to post every day. I can't wait to hear from all you and continue our great friendship for another month


We can do together what we cannot do alone.


I have a rule for myself that I have to drink a cup of water before I can log on.

weaklink109

Hello Everyone,

I am a little early, but posting on the new thread so I can find it quickly.

****IMPORTANT NOTE FOR FINDING US ONCE THIS THREAD REACHES 500 POSTS***
A reminder, since we are all prolific posters, it is a virtual certainty that we will reach the 500 post limit before the month is over. REMEMBER, it may sneak up on us and there may not be a chance to post a link to "part 2" for February before we get to that point. It has been my experience that the default "click here" link that automatically appears at the end of thread does NOT take you directly to the new thread

So here is what you need to do to find the new thread. Go to the "Home" tab under "community" and then click on "Motivation and Support" section of the threads. This will give you a list of each recent post, and you can scroll down til you find "part 2" of our thread. If you don't find it on the first page, you can choose the page numbers at the bottom of the list to see the next 25 listings.
***************************************************************************************************

Have a good Monday. I am off to bed, hopefully for a good night sleep.:yawn:

Barb

arborsong

Good morning ladies! I feel so motivated this morning. I feel thinner, too! This week, I start a weight management program through my chiro. It is an herbal approach to maintaining proper levels of all those chemicals, hormones, etc in our body. Time will tell..........................

February goal is to pay attention to what I eat and don't snack. This alone should release 5 pounds this month.

Here's to a joyous February for all!

DebbieW

Good morning ladies! I feel so motivated this morning. I feel thinner, too! This week, I start a weight management program through my chiro. It is an herbal approach to maintaining proper levels of all those chemicals, hormones, etc in our body. Time will tell..........................

February goal is to pay attention to what I eat and don't snack. This alone should release 5 pounds this month.

Here's to a joyous February for all!

Louise - I'm really happy for you! It feels great to feel thinner, doesn't it? I hope you share all of your "inside" info with us from your weight management program. I look forward to reading your inspirational posts!

Well, the other day I bought a nice navy blue sweater, I loved the flowing drape of the lightweight knit fabric. I thought it would be perfect to wear with a pair of navy dress pants that I have. These same pants I have not worn in a couple of months because I "grew out of them". I really felt like wearing this new sweater today and so I took the pants (with great hesitation) out of my closet.

I put the pants on...hmmm. they went past my thighs okay.....

hmmm.......they went over my hips okay....

now the real test was about to begin......the dreaded "doing up of the zipper".

I started to pull up the zipper and to my shock, the zipper went all the way to the top. Oh, "but" I thought, "will I be able to do up the button"? Well, I did do up the button.

I just kind of stood there, looking in awe at this miraculous event unfolding in the mirror.

I can't believe it, I am going to wear these pants.....today! Wow!

This is when you feel the payoff for all that hard work of exercising and watching what you eat.

This is a good feeling!

I hope all of you get to feel this excitement!

Good luck everyone and here's to making the best choices for our best life!

Debbie

mamacindy81

Good morning everyone!

Louise: great going with your weigh in! I love feeling skinnier

Debbie: I'm glad you are able to fit into those pants! I have a pair of goal pants hanging out in my room. I thought I would try them on yesterday to see what I am looking at. I was excited because I was able to get them on an zipped! But alas "Muffin Top" appeared so they are going to have to stay goal pants for a bit longer!

Hubby put his arms around me yesterday and commented that I am getting smaller! He also has been commenting that my hiney is smaller too!

Well, back to work this week as my scale didn't move downward at all. The good thing is I didn't gain. I'm going to have to figure out having hubby at home all the time and him wanting 3 squares a day.

My goals for Feb. will be:

Drink lots of water!
Get my exercise in daily, no exceptions!
Add strength training in a consistent manner!
Seek peace, pursue it. Don't let the little things that really don't matter waste my time!


Well off to check on Granny and take Eric his coffee.

Cindy

BirdieM

Good morning ladies!
Got a little sloppy last night again with rice cakes! :grumble: :embarassed: I'm struggling with the focus. Focus is everything! :flowerforyou: Once you lose that, the old "stinkin thinkin" comes back.:devil:
Today will be very busy as it is the extended last day of January because of the weekend :noway: So I'm geered for craziness for one more day.
I didn't make my goals for January.:ohwell: I just kept my weight the same.:indifferent:
For February, my goal is to be as strict and disciplined as I was when I first started in August. :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: The weight is secondary....the head is everything!!!:drinker: :drinker: :drinker:
Got to go to work!
God Bless!!
Birdiem:yawn: :drinker:

zaza54

Good morning-
I forgot it was Feb. Thank you Barbicat for posting the link from the Jan. thread! :flowerforyou:
By the way, all of you who have already posted are very inspiring. I look at your weight loss tickers and read that your clothes fit better and that you make great choices about eating and exercising, etc and I feel like I need that kick in the pants to make the same good choices.

I thought I had been doing better, but apparently I still have a very hard time grasping that I can't and shouldnt' eat the way I did when I was younger. I used to be able to lose 2-3 pound pretty easily. Not so anymore. :mad: Maybe that's the menopause effect and that's what is so different. Anyway, I'm a little frustrated to see the scale move in the wrong direction despite 2 vigorous exercise class this week-end. I am also aggravated because I actually have to go shopping today and look for a bigger size so I have one outfit to take to Florida next week-end. I swore I would never let it get this bad, but a few days is not enough time to fit into what I have.:explode:

So, lesson learned. My broad goal for Feb. is to modify what and how much I eat. I need to break that down into somehting more attainable and measurable, but haven't figured that out yet.
Thanks for listening to this rant. Good luck everyone w/your goals.
Zaza

zaza54

Cindy, I can really relate. I hate that "muffin top". :explode: As you can see, I'm still ranting and frustrated. But I am going to try to follow birdiem's and your examples and get my head and focus in the right place , etc.

mynyddisamrs

Good afternoon all you .....Fabulous February 50+ Losers - - More snow and a huge hailstorm last night.
So far so good today. 2 hours cleaning exercise but I'm going to try and not count the calories given back from exercise.
Tried to get a pair of small scales to weigh out food but no luck in our large chemist Boots. I'll try on line now.

By the way ... if this is misspelt it's probably 'cos I have my contact lenses in!! Hard to get the balance right between reading and distance!! AND the sun's shining making seeing the screen hard.!! My excuse for being toooo lazt to move and get my glasses!

Exermom - I think it was you that asked - Freezing squash is not good. Tends to thaw and just be very watery. I've frozen courgettes (Zucchini) by slicing, just blanching in boiling water, draining and then freezing on tray in sep.pieces. Not sure how you'd do this with a spaghetti? squash.

Having a blonde moment now!! - Diane W - (I think it was you!! - well done on those blue trousers!! I too have a pair of trousers. I did get excited and try them on a few weeks ago. What torture to do up!! I'm going to try again in 2 weeks time and will let you know!

Came back from work to find DH actually managed some DIY!! Continuing loo story!! He managed to get the siphon bit working by melting two holes in the casing and wiring the arm so that it flushes if we push the part where the buttons press onto. Got it so far?.......We still haven't got the cistern top on but hey!!... at least I don't have to stumble downstairs in the night!
We will wait for the new part to arrive before we try to get the top on!

Also.... man of many talents this!... he managed to work out a way to stop the carpet under my mums commode from moving!! Stops her pulling it and moving it leaving the main carpet exposed . He actually screwed the carpet to the skirting board - washers in place to prevent the rubber edge tearing! Believe me folks thats good for my DH where DIY is concerned! Do any of you have handy men in your lives?

So... it's February here we come folks .... Keep keen and keep lean!! ( do you like that?!! - quite good for a mondaty don't you think?

Bye for now - I'm moving on to log the menu for today!

Jackie

mamacindy81

Morning again,

I must mention that the goal pants are a size 6. But sizes are just what the pair of pants in hand say. they can range all the way from 12 - 6 (depending on how old they are) and still fit! Vanity sizing is so wrong.

Cindy

pmjsmom

:flowerforyou: Happy February, everyone!:flowerforyou:

I start back to work today so my goals for this month are:
1) To remember to drink my water! (Shouldn't be a problem as I usually NEED to drink a lot at work! )
2) To eat breakfast EVERY DAY! (I'm getting up earlier for this one. I do SO much better when I have breakfast!)
3) To work out every morning before work.

I'm SO glad to be going back to work!:happy: We stopped at the store I work as a vendor at yesterday (its a Lowes store) and I ran into a couple of people I work with. They seem really glad that I'll be back AND they told me how good I look!:happy: Its always nice to know that my hard work is being noticed!

Well, going to finish my coffee and get my Monday workout done! I'll be checking back in later.

plantlady99

Morning Ladies:flowerforyou:

My husband & I are going to the gym today. We hopefully can fit going to the gym 3x a week to start.

Kathy

dricotta1

good morning all and Happy February,
I think this is the toughest month for me. It's cold and my body just wants to hibernate and store fat! I really have to push because I haven't lost the 4 lbs of holiday treats yet! Sooooooo........My goals for Feb. are to exercise 5 days a week and log calories. If I do that consistently these 4 lbs should be gone by the end of the month.

I also want to say to all of my sisters here that many of us are caring for elderly parents, either at home or long distance and it is VERY stressful. We love them, pof course, but the extra strain both physically and emotionally takes its toll and the stress hormones make us add weight easily. We MUST take care of ourselves or we're no help to anyone. Be nice to yourself and cut yourself some slack when you weary and irritable.

Love and courage to all,
Diane

jam0525

Just a quick hello.

I can't believe how fast we all jump in an post. It's really a lot of fun reading everything.

My February goal is to just keep working on not eating my exercise calories. I think that is the key to everything for me.

Jeannie

firetuck

It's so good to be back reading posts after my weekend away. Unfortunately - I resorted to my bad habits over the weekend. We ate out at restaurants that were void of good choices, there were cookies and other things to nosh on while we were painting and moving my son. I did not weigh in this morning - I have some hard work to do this week and some soul searching to consider. I can't always eat at home and not ever travel - so I need to wrap my head around why I let myself blow it this weekend.
On a positive note - I did reach my January goals! And I need to allow myself to be happy about that and not dwell on my recent slip up. I'm so encouraged by those who posted their successes about feeling thin and fitting into clothes they hadn't for a long time. I want that too!! Here's to a better February with good choices!

mamacindy81

Well, I didn't make my weight loss goal having only lost 3 lbs for Jan instead at my goal of 5. so I think this month I will not target a set amount but still work on losing!

I'm having a hard time getting my water in with it being cold outside. Except when I am on the elliptical, I can drink 16 oz in no time.

I've posted this site before http://exercise.about.com/cs/fitnesstools/l/blcalorieburn.htm for calculating calories. It said I burned 191 calories shoveling snow. So I've almost reached my calorie burn for the day.

I'm really missing my boy. He is the main snow shoveler in our household. He would of had it all done by now. My husband did a little but has to be careful not to hurt his back because he is the only one here to move Granny and boy would I will be in a pickle if his back goes out. I only got a path done halfway down the drive way. Trying to get to the mail box is my objective. I walked out to the end of the cul de sac and the road going out of our development is still pretty slick and covered. We may not be going any where for days!

All I know is that the exercise sure did make me hungry! And unlike some of you I can certainly eat and post!

I'll probably go back out and shovel more snow after I give Granny her lunch.

BBL

Cindy

arborsong

Firetuck - Hey, congrats are in order -- you made your Jan goal. WAY TO GO!!!!! Focus on the positive and the long term not last weekend. We all do the best we can do at the time then pick ourselves go and go forward from there. Don't let the weekend get you down. Promise yourself you'll do good this week. We have to enjoy the time we have with family -- in the end, that's what life is all about anyway. You spent precious time with your son this weekend and you know he so enjoyed that. If you want to think about the weekend, dwell on the memories you made with him!!!

You'll have a fabulous week, I'm quite sure!!!

plantlady99

Afternoon Ladies:flowerforyou:
Made it to the gym. Walked on the treadmill for an hour. Not a huge amount of speed but I was consistent in the pace. Burned 300 calories. Not great as far as burning calories, but it was great to be in the gym again.

Kathy

zaza54

Kathy,
I think 300 calories and treadmill for an hour is great!!
Glad you were able to go.
Zaza

MacMadame

I made my food/eating goals for Jan. but not my exercising goals. I only swam 3x and I didn't bike last week. But I did do a lot of spin classes, so I think I might count that one. I did average 1 a week. I'm also back to running, which wasn't a goal but did cut into my time for other things. I ran 2 miles out of 3 last night! I can't wait to run the whole 5k!

I also didn't drink 80-100 oz *every* single day but I drank that much most days so I'm going to count it. :laugh: I did really well on my protein goals too.

For Feb, I'm going continue with the drinking and eating goals but I'm going to scale back my exercise goals to something attainable. Then I can up them next month.

Laura80111

Hello All:flowerforyou: I was wondering where all the women my age were. I only started this January really working on the new and improved me. So many of you are an inspiration...I'm not doing too good in the exercise department, but did pretty good in the eating and weight loss area. Glad to be part of this "speciality" club.:drinker:

peggyt67

So, ok. I've been using the sight for tracking my weight for a while and have never chatted. I am at an all time high of 173. I'm 5'7. Have gained 30 bls in 10 years. My Dr says it it imperitive that I loose 20 lbs. So, I am going to try.

barbiecat

Hello All:flowerforyou: I was wondering where all the women my age were. I only started this January really working on the new and improved me. So many of you are an inspiration...I'm not doing too good in the exercise department, but did pretty good in the eating and weight loss area. Glad to be part of this "speciality" club.:drinker:

:flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: Welcome, Laura,
If you continue reading this thread every day you will get great ideas for exercise and the motivation to get going. We're glad to have you with us.
One way that I get exercise is to take my dogs to the off leash dog park and walk vigorously for 20-40 minutes while the dogs run and play
Barbie :bigsmile:

barbiecat

So, ok. I've been using the sight for tracking my weight for a while and have never chatted. I am at an all time high of 173. I'm 5'7. Have gained 30 bls in 10 years. My Dr says it it imperitive that I loose 20 lbs. So, I am going to try.

Welcome, Peggy,:flowerforyou:
I started this journey year ago at an all time high of 183 and didn't really believe I could lose the weight. I took it one day at a time, stayed open minded to the new ideas I heard on MFP,and took baby steps in changing my life. You can do that too. :bigsmile: Barbie

mamacindy81

Great to have both of you, Laura & Peggy!

We have a good time on this thread and learn lots from each other.

Logging my food daily has really helped me. My all time high was 162 and I never want to go there again. Although I did gain 20 lbs back 10 of them are now gone thanks to this site. I used to use WW but with the economy I have tried to cut back and I am so please that this site is free.

I've spent 2 sessions outside today shoveling snow and have burned a whopping total of 574 exercise calories! I wouldn't have been able to do that if I hadn't been exercising regularly.

Well I hope everyone is having a good day and making good choices!

Cindy

exermom

Louise - you have much more willpower than I do not going to Trader Joe's every day. If I lived as close to one as you do, I'd probably be there AT LEAST once/week. We were in South Charlotte this a.m. Last minute decision. dh had to go to this place at the SouthPark mall. I really wasn't all that impressed with that mall. Guess it's too upscale for me -- I'm more of a WalMart, Kohl's, type of gal. We were very surprised that they didn't clear the snow from the mall. Well, I guess they're taking a religious view of the snow -- God put it here, God will take it away.....lol Your son sounds so precious!

Thank you, barbiecat, for posting the link to the new thread. That was such a great help

Jackie - what I'm thinking I may do is freeze just one cup of the spaghetti squash, thaw it and then see how it turns out.

Cindy - how right you are! I have some Wrangler jeans that I bought many, many moons ago, and I STILL fit into them, they are a size 10. Recently I bought a pair of size 10 shorts (Liz Clairborne) and they almost fell off me, I had to donate them. The manufacturer of pants, JM I think it is, I can take a size 4 in. There are certain jeans that are cut a certain way, so I need a size 6.

Diane - I'm with you, this will most likely be my hardest month of all for me, mainly because we'll be at our condo which will most likely mean lots of meals eaten outside the home. Even tho we can cook there, I'll most likely wind up (AGAIN) buying those Girl Scout cookies and putting them in the freezer. Plus, I don't have all my "cooking gear" like crockpot, blender, etc. It would be nice if it was warm enough for me to use the pool. That is one of the biggest motivators -- having to put on a bathing suit. Not that I enjoy doing it, mind you. Oh, I remember only too well taking care of my father and MIL. The ONLY good part was that I didn't eat as much. But what I did eat was usually something on-the-go. It helped immensly, not only with not gaining weight but also emotionally for me to have a little me-time to exercise for at least an hour a day.

Cindy - so what if you only lost 3 lbs and not 5? At least you lost, and that's what's important

Welcome peggy!

Well, as you know, I usually post every few days. Yes, that makes my posts longer. But I'm going to post today just so that its easier to find this topic when I do need it again.

Did a DVD today at home on the Bosu ball. I'm thinking that perhaps I'll do a weight training DVD at home tomorrow, then go for the reclast infusion. Wednesday, the roads should be fairly clear, so I'll take the water aerobics class (that is, assuming we're still here). Thursday I will do something again along the lines of weight training, not sure just what yet, tho. Friday I'll do something aerobic, don't know what yet since I don't know if we'll be here or not. Which reminds me, I should download the schedule of the Y at the condo. Saturday I'll do some yoga. I would like to make my goal to be adding more yoga, but I know that that's almost impossible this month, since we only have one TV at the condo.

Michele

mynyddisamrs

Heeeelp!!! - I musn't eat anything else tonight. DH is at work and I've added "stuff" twice to my list . I've got 37 calories left so am still within my limit - but my ....."I'll try and not use up my exercise calories"..... has already slipped!
Extras have been... 3 ryvita, low cal. butter and marmite spread. Then ... a chicken sandwich.
You all seem to exercise lots - I can't quite get your enthusiasm for that!! , water is another thing... I can't stand the stuff ... must try with that ... .
By the way what's a Zumba Class? Sounds like latin dance classes? DH and I started to go on a Monday Evening to Latin and Ballroom classes last year. They were great - Salsa, Merengue, Rhumba went down well. We did the simple waltz (had difficulties going around corners!) and the Social Foxtrot was ..... not quite mastered and the Quickstep was... impossible . I must admit I did feel trimmer doing that but over Xmas we noticed my Mum was a lot more confused so we decided not to leave her on her own any more. So we didn't go anymore. But... I've sent away for the "How to Dance " DVD's in the hope that we can practice at home. This is so we don't make fools of ourselves on the cruise in August - should there be dancing!
So ..... please Mr Postman ... hurry up with the DVD's and then we can get moving!!
I'll go now - I'll have the hot choc drink I've scheduled in already and THAT 'S IT .... I promise.

thanks guys
Jackie

firetuck

Louise - thanks! You are so right that I need to focus on the memories I made with my son instead of the fact that I overate. I am such a perfectionist and so competitive that I lose my focus on my priorities quite easily and get down in the dumps. Maybe staying focused on my blessings instead of my downfalls should be one of my goals for February! I'm liking it! I've been starving all day because of the overeating I did - so - I've been sucking down water to compensate.....better than food! Off to the gym..........

arborsong

Jackie - I'm not good about water either -- but it does help to add lemon or orange juice. Nestle makes a flavored water that is sweetened with Splenda. You may be able to switch to that then on to regular water. Use it as a stepping stone to get you onto water gradually. Exercise -- now that's another story. Although I do believe if you can force yourself to do it for a while, it becomes addictive to some degree. It does provide some sort of a high and gives you a feeling of accomplishment. Try making a routine and make yourself stick to it for 28 days. I believe I've heard that's how long it takes to make something a habit. After that, you'll be pushing folks out of your way to get to the gym!!!

Firetuck - Look at you! You're already got your positive attitude going! Good girl!!!

Exermom - I'm sure if I went to TJ more, I'd want to go even more. I do like their products but I've gotten in a food rut. Maybe I'll make a trip over on Sat and try some new things. It would help to mix up my boring routine of food. That's what happens when you live alone.

And for now, I'm going out to dinner with a client. This will be a challenge!

BirdieM

Kathy,
I think 300 calories and treadmill for an hour is great!!
Glad you were able to go.
Zaza

I agree! And thanks Kathy for the website http://exercise.about.com/cs/fitnesstools/l/blcalorieburn.htm
That really helps! What a great tool!
BirdieM

smwert

Just catching up with the new link. I weighed myself on New Years Day and I weighed 155. I weighed myself this morning and I weighed 148.2. So that is almost 7 for January. Less than I hoped but at least it is going down.

I started a Biggest Loser contest at my gym this week. It is just for fun. I certainly measured more than I thought. Had the first tough workout at noon today. I thought I was working out hard until Julie put me through the program she designed for us.

I hope I can keep it up. We are going to Florida on Feb. 11 to the 20th and I hope take my program with me and do it there.

So my February goal would be to not gain any weight back on vacation and hopefully lose another 7 pounds this month

Wish me luck. I am enthused today ...but once I get on the plane......

susan