Fat and 42 and ready to start to change it.

I need to lose a little over 80 lbs. I'm sick of feeling old, fat and frumpy. I have arthritis and a few other not so fun things going on. I know these things will improve with getting to a healthy weight and being more active. I have spent years taking care of my loved ones at the expense of not taking care of myself. This is changing starting today.

I am starting with baby steps and 1800 cals and just tracking. I know if I jump into something radical I will not keep it up! My goal is set at 1/2 pound a week for now. I have people around me pushing WW and Body by Vi and I know I wont keep those up. I have a very fit and active husband who has offered to start walking with me early in the morning once his schedule changes 9/1. He is also planning a surprise trip for us in a little under 6 months. I know it will be active so I need to work on it.

I feel really odd putting my business out here so to speak but I realized I really need the support so here I am!

Replies

  • jljewell
    jljewell Posts: 28 Member
    I'm 42, too. 43 in November, and like you I feel old, fat, and frumpy. I've joined and left this site multiple times in the past year, but I've been sticking it out for 10 days now and I'm making some progress. Add me as a friend and we can support each other through this! We're too young to be frumpy!
  • I'd love to add you as a friend :) However I haven't figured out how to do that yet. Technology is eluding me! Congrats on being 10 days in and losing 4 lbs! That is fantastic!!! I haven't figured out how to get the neat little ticker to work yet either.

    We are too young to be frumpy!!!
  • stemab3
    stemab3 Posts: 58
    your story is very similar to mine......best of luck and feel free to add me!
  • Kathysjourney
    Kathysjourney Posts: 13 Member
    Excellent...way to go....you have made the committment. So have I ... so let`s have a great day today. I have planned my food and done my walk. One day at a time..
  • Thanks for the replies! Can one of you tell me how I add friends on here? I am still trying to figure out how to navigate the site.
  • I am 43 (almost 44) and hear ya! I started 7 months ago and my husband has been one of my biggest supporters. He walks with me everyday he can... We eat healthy together (and sometimes dont eat healthy together! ) Its a long road to go down but a needed one. I started wanting to lose 90 lbs to get back to my weight when i got married. iVe lost 40.. so I have 50 to go. Its a slow process.. some ups and downs , and bumps along the way but so well worth it..
    I say take it one day at a time.. Thats what I do. If today is was bad then I go to sleep and start over.. I never go backwards- I always look forward... and i know i will get there.. might take me 7 more months but I have the time...
    Best of luck!!!
  • dorothytd
    dorothytd Posts: 1,138 Member
    Great attitude and best of luck with your lifestyle changes!! I think you are right in resisting plans that you know won't work for you. Everyone has their way of finding what's right as long as the motivation is there! Spousal support and having the trip in the future are great. I'm 44 and started the process sooner, but felt EXACTLY the way you do about six years ago. And that awful, tired feeling got me going. YOU CAN DO THIS. YOU WILL DO THIS. And you WILL feel better than ever. I know I do. Will send you a friend request. -Dorothy
  • Laurayinz
    Laurayinz Posts: 930 Member
    Hello fellow 40-something frumper! :laugh:

    I joined last year at 42, will be 44 later this month :noway: , and am not back to fighting weight yet, but at least I'm pre-kids and am about what I was in high school. All I've done is track calories and lost about 52lbs in 52 weeks. I just started adding in exercise a week or so ago, dabbling with a running program called Couch to 5K, or C25K., that has a 9-week plan. it starts off with you alternating walking and jogging for a minute each until you build up more endurance, and you can repeat weeks or days if you want.

    To add a friend you have to click on their photo on the left of these posts, and you'll get into their profile. Then there should be a rectangular button to the right of their bigger photo that says "Add Friend Request" or something like that. :drinker:
  • pinkpanthers1995
    pinkpanthers1995 Posts: 41 Member
    I'm 42 and like you have spent so much time taking care of everyone else and neglecting to do the same for myself. I have been a member for a year but mostly "played" with the occasional tracking and false starts. I made a decision that it was time to really get serious. I was at 199 when I first started toying with losing weight and have made it down to 184.6. My goal is 135, it may be unrealistic - I'm not really sure but it is what I am aiming for. I'm sick and tired of being tired, afraid to do things, and sitting on the sidelines. I want to be active with my hubby now that my kids are grown and living their own lives.

    I would love to support and encourage others on this same journey. I made my diary public hoping this will encourage me to eat better! We can do this and feel better healthier and sexier! :flowerforyou:
  • twistedsix
    twistedsix Posts: 3 Member
    I'm 42 and fat too! Add me - I need some motivation :).

    Patti
  • Cathcandoo
    Cathcandoo Posts: 107 Member
    Hi as well!

    I just joined this site yesterday and I should probably lose 80 lbs also but I set a goal for 45 lbs because I believe that it is attainable if I really set my mind and body to it and I do think that I felt and looked darn good at that weight - I am not looking to be a size 6....a solid 10/12 would be bliss.

    I have tried everything in my 41 years - WW, WW online, Nutri-System, Herbal Magic, Metabolism Diet, Blood Type Diet, Atkin's, Carb Lovers, Zone and countless other fads....wow-I should look and feel amazing right now...not so much, I even have a Fitness Membership to a Gym that is collecting cobwebs....I am pathetic.

    But no more...I truly felt what you are feeling when you spoke about your fit husband...mine has been taking full advantage of the gym that we belong to and has become tone and fit - while his success has somehow made me pack on more pounds...what is that about???

    I feel guilty, embarrassed and just plain unhealthy and unhappy with my situation to the point where I am actually refusing invitations and opting to be by myself and work from home rather than face the scrutiny of those around me - I used to be a very social person - I can honestly say that my weight has emotionally and socially started changing me in a way I am very unhappy with...it has to stop now.

    I hear ya with the starting off with small, reasonable goals so as to make it something that you are going to stick to - that is great. Take your hubby up on his offer to walk with you - but start now so that you will have a couple weeks of walking under your belt so you won't feel like he is taking you for a walk but rather that the two of you are walking together.

    It is a bit weird baring your soul to this vast chasm in space but it is also quite therapeutic and lots of encouragement and support to give and be given....so please add me - yourself and anyone who reads this and feels similar of has some advise that could prove to help make this the difference in my journey.

    My goal is to greet my 42nd year looking and feeling more confident and happy in my own skin and get back to living and not wasting my time and energy looking for excuses not to.
  • Click on someone's pic and you should be re-directed to their profile, and there will be some green 'buttons' , one of them says add as friend. You are quite welcome to try it with me !!! Good luck !
  • keeponkickin
    keeponkickin Posts: 1,520 Member
    Welcome. I felt the same way as you do now when I joined MFP. I dropped 113 in one year with healthy eating and exercise. No WW and NO Body by Vi. You can eat healthy foods and lose weight and feel more satisfied. Just log your food daily and start off with some walking and the pounds will start to fall off.
  • HazelCaz
    HazelCaz Posts: 48 Member
    I only joined a week ago, but already see the benefits of tracking my food and exercise. I turned 47 in July and am feeling age creeping up on me, but am keeping it at bay at all costs. :) Feel free to add me as a friend.
  • stemab3
    stemab3 Posts: 58
    your story also similiar to mine.....best of luck! Please add me!
  • brunette_gurl_66
    brunette_gurl_66 Posts: 48 Member
    Congrats on joing MFP. With all this support along with your husbands (he's wanting to walk with you, that's super) and your strong ambitions and determination for a better you, I know you'll be able to do it! You can add me if you would like :)
  • Go for it... i am 48yrs also with athritis... i started exercising 2 years ago started with nhs class and a wii fit, then progressed with the gym, dvds and now daily fitness training at least 30mins every day , always monitoring my calorie intake .Now two years later i am 32lbs lighter with just 9lb to go, it has been a long journey but well worth it. i feel great xx
  • penycat
    penycat Posts: 3
    I am just restarting here after 2 months hiatus. I am 38 and feel much older due to fatigue, trying to get over a frozen shoulder. I think this journey can be much easier and more enjoyable with some like minded friends. I would love to be added as a friend. I have the itch to get in a better life style permanently!
  • madreof2
    madreof2 Posts: 6 Member
    I'm in my late 40s and I need to lose around the same amount. Want to get off my medication for high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

    Tired of watching people on youtube and tv on how they lost lost of weight and I'm not doing anything about it. If they can do it without suregery, I know I can. Just taking one step at a time, making small changes. My problem is the exercise. Got to get motivated to move more!
  • Thanks so much to all of you for your replies and the offer to add you as friends. I seriously feel much more positive about this than I did before. So many of us seem to have things in common. It has made me seriously feel better to read that I'm not the only one that has felt like sitting on the sideline because of being fat.

    I hope I got everyone added and btw thanks for telling me how to do it! I'm still learning to navigate!
  • I am 43 and feeling the same way as all of you have mentioned, frumpy and tired. Seeing that I am not alone in my feelings makes me want to work harder. I also see that it is one day at a time and I need to set realistic goals rather than overwhelming myself and setting myself up for failure. Thanks to all the great posts and helpful suggestions. Good luck to all of you.
  • your story sounds so similar to mine. I hae taken care of everyone in my family i have lost 6 family members in a total of 1 year and the day of my brothers funeral my daughter 11 years old at the time just stopped breathing thank god my husband did CPR and brought her back to life. My problem isnt eating to much its that i dont eat eough and my body goes into starvation mode. I have wrapped a year in a half around my daughter and cant sleep or eat i need to find something quick and easy to grab for breakfast i need to consume 1700 calories aday i would love t have a friend to help me keep on track! I'm excited to hear from you soon!
  • pbunny37
    pbunny37 Posts: 2 Member
    I'm new and also in my 40's I just started weight watchers and then my niece told me about this site. I figured I'll long into both to see what they both tell me. Either way I want to lose 180lbs.
  • wtbsn
    wtbsn Posts: 2
    Hey, I'm right with you. I' m 42 and obese. Your story sound just like mine. I've tried so many times to lose weight. I'm always so up and down. I've been on this program for 10 days and I'm really enjoying it. If you need any encouragement let me know. I'm like you I feel funny putting it all out there, but it does seem to help. Good luck!!
  • Dyetcoke1
    Dyetcoke1 Posts: 54 Member
    First, to add friend, touch or click profile picture then you will see add friend button. My advice is to set a goal for 5 pounds. Then Google "photo of five pound of fat". Everytime you lose five, look at that picture. Or if you are creative, make playdough (only 3 ingedients plus yellow food coloring, and use the picture to make a model of it, into any shape, like a small person. As you add playdough pounds every time u lose 5, you will never get discouraged. Crazy but look up the picture, you will see...
  • new_blossom
    new_blossom Posts: 111 Member
    First, to add friend, touch or click profile picture then you will see add friend button. My advice is to set a goal for 5 pounds. Then Google "photo of five pound of fat". Everytime you lose five, look at that picture. Or if you are creative, make playdough (only 3 ingedients plus yellow food coloring, and use the picture to make a model of it, into any shape, like a small person. As you add playdough pounds every time u lose 5, you will never get discouraged. Crazy but look up the picture, you will see...

    that is a great idea! I can fill a garbage bag full of yellow play dough. I can then donate it to a school or create a sculpture for the local museum of art. :laugh: Really, that is a great visual to see the accomplishment. Someone on MFP told me also to think of 1 lb of fat loss is equiv. to 4 sticks of butter. Thats a good one too. So far I have lost 76 sticks of butter and I do not miss it one bit!

    I am 42 as well and want and need too create a new leaner sculpture of myself.
  • I can't tell you how much it means to me to realize I am not in this boat alone. It is kind of you all to share your stories. Grandma, I'm so glad your hubby can do cpr. Hugs!

    Thanks for all the instructions! I am finally learning to navigate the site!
  • Hello I am 40 years old and feel like I am literally 60 with how my body aches! I just had a baby boy almost 8 months ago and since then my health has gotten even worse after my c-section and I am now having blood pressure issues and know that in order to begin to feel better I must lose weight. I want to lost at the very least 50 pounds. I am hoping to do this diligently and seriously need to but I lose motivation so easily with a new baby and all (btw he is our only child)

    Baby boy is starting to crawl so mommy needs to be healthy enough to chase him down! From what I am finding online all I really need to do to lose the weight is be consistent and watch my calories and even just walk...I am hoping so. I have many physical ailments like damage knee and herniated discs so going to the gym is not an option for me.

    So at the very least I can say that I honestly know how you feel and I know how hard it is to admit we need to lose weight...but this is a start and we can do this together, please feel free to add me and let's support and encourage one another to lose this awful weight and be healthier! by no means do I think I can be a size 6 even but I would love to just be able to lift my legs and move without getting winded and sweat! Any and all advice and support everyone can give would be greatly appreciated
  • ribena1958
    ribena1958 Posts: 152
    I'm 55 this year and started to change my life around 3 yrs ago, a lot because of what you are experiencing now, You can do it. x
  • Thanks for sharing Chelle! You'll be zipping around before you know it :)

    Ribena, congrats on all your success!!!