WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR FEBRUARY

Hello ladies, Dad is still in the hospital. Thinking of all of you. My best to you all.

Kathy

Good morning-
I know I have been MIA again, but this time it's just because I was away and not comletely falling off the wagon. I was visitng my parents in Fla and no scale and no computer. I didn't do too much damage despite a lack of exercise (other than the occasional walk). I did more damage yesterday when my husband regaled me w/food gifts for Valentine's Day (he missed me and made all these surprises...oh well). He was sweet.
I will try to catch up on the thread - it's hard since everyone is so prolific and I need to catch up on bills, laundry, unpacking, etc and we are going into NYC to see our kids today.
Have a great holiday everyone.
Zaza

Good morning all! Hope you had a great weekend. It was a bit chilly on Saturday, but warmed up nicely yesterday. Then another cold front came through last evening. It will be chilly this week with a warm up this weekend. Can spring finally be here in Texas?? I'm ready for it.

I did alot of cleaning and organizing this weekend. Although I'm up from what I weighed on Friday, I'm down officially 2 lbs. as my weigh in is today.

Have a great Monday!

Carrolle - I have found posting a great motivator. Everyone is encouraging and it just seems to help me keep on track. I see how well everyone is doing and so I want to do just as well.

Have a great day and look forward to more posts from you!

And a Happy & Blessed day to you All!!

Hello everyone,

Well this past weekend was DH and my get together with friends. We get together for a "theme" dinner party regularly with a group of wonderful and truly happy friends that I am so blessed to have in my life.

This month the theme was Moroccan cuisine, so everyone had a chance to research food dishes from Morocco.

Well, I knew (thankfully) what the menu was ahead of time and the recipes (Moroccan's have a very healthy diet by the way).

So, before heading out to the dinner party I made time to log all of the Moroccan food into mfp. Because I did this ahead of time, I knew in advance how much I could eat from the different dishes served. I also opted to drink non-alcoholic beverages so that I would remain vigilant with "mindful eating".

HUGE SUCCESS!!!

I figured out what I was going to eat and drink ahead of time (I allotted myself 700 calories in total). I did not have any snacks leading up to the dinner and my breakfast and lunch were low on the calories, but very healthy, of course.

I still came in UNDER my calorie goal for the day!

Plus, I didn't deprive myself of any of the fabulous dishes that were served.

I AM SO THRILLED WITH THIS!!!

So this (I hope) demonstrates that if you strategically prepare yourself ahead of time, you won't slip up and feel horribly guilty the next day.

I am so pleased to say that I remain VERY FOCUSED and VERY DETERMINED to be a FIT and FABULOUS 50 years YOUNG woman.

I know that all of you can do this too!

Good luck everyone and have a great day making the right choices for your body.

Debbie

:flowerforyou: Thanks for the well-wishes. Still not feeling well, not eating much and resting a lot. Went to the dentist and have a prescription for strong antibiotics and tomorrow an immediate root canal. I am in so much pain. It's excruciating. :sad: It must be because the mouth is such a sensitive area of the body. My apologies for not being too social, ladies. I am kinda busy being self-absorbed :sad: :blushing:

'nough complaining. I've never watched so much Olympics in my entire life!! Also watched the movie "Driving Miss Daisy" yesterday. It helps pass the time. DH is doing his best to comfort me. He has been awesome.

Rebel

DebbieW--So glad you found the secret of success. Nothing can stop you now. That is how I have managed to get where I am now, by PLANNING. That is why after 10 months I still don't feel deprived.

Rebel--I have only had one root canal. It really was NOT that bad, compared to the pain I was having BEFORE having it. I have had several crowns and found the process for them to be more annoying than a root canal, because the prep and other time for the crowns seemed to take longer than for the root canal. You WILL survive, and be VERY glad when the process as completed, because you will no longer have to think about your tooth pain 24/7!!! Good luck:flowerforyou:

I took the babies to the groomer today, and Mai Li, once again, proved that she is still perfectly capable of living up to her nickname "Diva Girl." All three of them got out of the car for a little last minute business in the yard of the grooming establishment, which is at the end of a long driveway, away from the street. As we walked toward the door of the shop, Mai Li got to the door and suddenly turned tail and headed out, into the yard down the driveway and then a turn on the sidewalk and down the street--:noway: with "momma" in hot pursuit. All commands to "wait" were ignored. Despite my improved level of fitness, for a fat "old lady"of 11.5 years, my little piglet girl can still really move fast!! Fortunately, she encountered a smell interesting enough to stop for and I was able to snag her and attach a leash and lead her back to the front door!!

Bradley and Pepper, meanwhile had walked inside and were patiently waiting for us to come back!!

Archie--the French Bulldog that my neighbor just got over the weekend does NOT like stairs--a problem since his new home is on the second floor of the condo building!!:laugh: So far, when he sees stairs he heads the opposite direction--so "daddy" gets to haul 30 lbs. of Frenchie up and down the stairs while Katie the pug (his other dog) looks on and seems to find the process quite amusing.

Well, I have so far not done anything I was supposed to today except drop off the doggies and visit my parents--there now-so I have to get off here or get nothing done for the day!!


Later.....

Barb

I'm still here - but I've been terrible about posting lately. I'm still getting my exercise done every day and have been doing well at staying within my calories. This weekend was tough because we went out for dinner with friends. I wish I could have read Debbie's post before I went! I'm definitely using her advice the next time this comes up! I need to step it up a bit on my goal of focusing on my blessings. It's been tough to stay positive with all the snow we've been getting and the stress I've had at work. Still have half a month though so it's never too late to start making those good choices.

Good evening, everybody!:flowerforyou:

I enjoy reading all your posts and they help me stay on track. Thank you all so much!:flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou:

I had a good weekend. I went shopping and got my daughter some maternity clothes. She needed them more than she realized!:laugh: She told me she didn't know that maternity jeans would feel so good! (Plus, now she looks pregnant and not fat!)

I also got a couple of things including a new pair of wrist supports! (I need them at night because of carpal tunnel syndrome.) Mine had gotten too big and weren't giving me the support I needed. My hands feel SO much better today!:happy:

I never thought of needing things like new wrist supports (or shoes!) because of losing weight!

I hope everyone is having a good day and evening.

Just got back. Boy, that was one interesting race!!!! We actually left after the first red flag, went and had dinner, drove BACK to the condo, and were able to finish watching it there!

I jotted down on a piece of paper the food that I ate and a few days I came in over calories. Of course, I didn't do any formal exercise (hey, shopping is exercise....at least it is to me....lol:laugh: ) Yea, the first day for the Nationwide, I watched the first few laps and then left to go shopping. Hey, they can freeze, *I'm* going to be in the warm mall!!:bigsmile:

When we got to the condo, we found that the condenser on the refrigerator had died, so the next time we go down there we'll have to buy a new refrigerator

I in a sense found it to be so frustrating to have to go out for every meal. The food that's served! dh likes to go to Picadilly Cafeteria. Almost everything is deep fried. For breakfast I asked them if they had oatmeal, nope, just grits, cheese grits, and biscuits and gravy. I wound up having a box of cheerios cereal (only 60 calories) with a banana. Since they only had whole or 2% milk, I decided to have the cereal with water.

Hopefully, now that I'm back home I can get back on track. I'm sure I will.

I had some Thin Mints (GS cookies) in the freezer and I really did need to open one package to see if it was OK since it wasn't in the freezer. It was. But, of course, before we left I had to finish the package (dh doesn't like mint cookies). There is still one more package that I'll have to finish the next time we go down (which will probably be in April). Now I'm debating whether to just have the whole package one night and just get the damage over with. What do you all think? I'm thinking that the next time we go down I'll take a few boxes of the 100 calorie microwave popcorn with me and have that. But I will need to finish up those cookies.

There is a health food store there and we were just able to get there right before they closed. They sell a Buffalo Jerky which is pretty good. I actually bought them out! Next time I may wind up getting more, I'll just call them before hand so they can order extra. Also, that is the only place where I can get hulled barley. I used to be able to get it when we were in PA.

But I did pretty well on my water consumption. Usually got in over 100oz/day.

Glad I took snacks with me (like turkey on whole wheat, carrots, Hunts snack pack which I really don't like that much but that is something that doesn't require refrigeration, soy milk in the cartons, apricots, clementines, soy nuts,). Next year what I'll probably do is take a lunchbox with me. I can go shopping then leave my pocketbook in the trunk for the race and take in some snacks. This yr. I had them in part of my pocketbook and both days I had to open my pocketbook for them to see. Of course, I only opened the part where my wallet was

Guess I'd better go take a shower and get to bed.

Michele

After my birthday on Saturday, I now qualify for this group. Never thought turning 50 would be so hard physically. I keep joking that my warranty just ran out. Bad knees/arthritic condition that won't stop hurting despite daily medication, a year of dental nightmares including three root canals and 4 crowns, one of which is having to be redone, hormonal fluctuations that turn me into a raging maniac and of course, having to figure out how to deal with my emotions without the food to stuff over them. But, despite all the bad things happening to me, there is also much good. Recently adopted a dog that is the love of my life (after my family), losing 15 pounds since the first of the year, finding an exercise program that seems to be compatible with my bum knees/arthritis, and getting support from MFP. Looking forward to many more posts from you all.

I wound up having a box of cheerios cereal (only 60 calories) with a banana. Since they only had whole or 2% milk, I decided to have the cereal with water.

Now I'm debating whether to just have the whole package one night and just get the damage over with. What do you all think?

Okay, I think we need to do some math!

2 oz. of 2% milk: 31 calories (or if you love milk and use 1/2 a cup for 1 cup of Cheerios -- 62 calories)
1 box of Thin Mint cookies: 1280 calories

If you threw out the cookies and put 2% milk on your cereal, you'd have saved yourself over 1200 calories!

Now, I operate totally on the "worth it" scale of picking foods. And sometimes it would be worth to me to eat a bunch of cookies. But not Thin Mints. It would have to be Samoans! :laugh:

For me, I would have used the 2% milk knowing that the difference between skim and 2% is only 10 calories when you are talking about cereal amounts. And I would let myself have 1 or 2 GS cookies a night (whatever I could have and stay in my calorie and carb range) and then throw out whatever was left over when it was time to go home.

Sorry Michelle but I agree with MacMadame on this one.

#1 - You NEED calcium as part of a healthy diet. Studies have proven that calcium actually helps you in the weight loss battle. You could also have checked to see if they had any yogurt and mixed in your Cherrios with that.

Also, the protein that is in the milk (and yogurt too) will help to keep your blood sugars level so that you don't have a craving to go and fill up on something, anything, such as Mint cookies for example.

#2 - Remember, this is a lifestyle change, not a deprivation diet.

A lifestyle change means that you will constantly be faced with these predicaments for the rest of your life. It's a matter of choices, balancing and adjusting what you are eating during the course of your day.

Please do not deprive yourself, this is a marathon, not a sprint.

#3 - I love MacMadame's "Worth It" scale. Great mind trick.

So Michelle, next time ask yourself, "is it WORTH IT to eat the whole package just so I can be "done with it"?

I hope that your answer is either,

"I will see if I have enough calories left over in my day to have maybe 1 or 2 cookies.

OR

"no, this is NOT worth it, I will simply give it away and I WILL NOT bring this "processed, none food" item back into my home to tempt me".

I am sorry if this is hard core talk Michelle, it's just that I really care about you and I know that you can lose the weight. It's all about planning ahead.

As Barbie said, "THOSE WHO FAIL TO PLAN, PLAN TO FAIL".

Just stick with it Michelle and thank you so much for posting your dilemma. It gives you an opportunity to receive the support and care that you deserve. It also helps other people on this thread who are facing the same types of challenges.

Have a great day and let's make the right choices for our bodies.

Debbie

Hi everyone - :flowerforyou: Hope all those with poorly sick loved ones to care for and worry about are feeling OK today.

:grumble: All of you with the weather to contend with ... it can get better!!

:flowerforyou: Barbie - sorry to hear about your DH's salad accident!! Hope he's ok now. Hope you washed the salad ... or at least added the extra protein to the food diary!!

Mum's cold has gone to her sinus' and ears and is also making her Verrry confused today. We've been looking for children again and she's convinced they are out in the garden now! I do hope her respite stay next month will not confuse her even more... inevitable I think!

:drinker: We're busy watching the Winter Olympics ... not many Brits to cheer for but never mind. It's all been brilliant so far hasn't it!!

:ohwell: Yesterday I did manage to do my cycling but couldn't do my DVD as mum kept me company all evening. I'm going to try and do it this morning. A lazy day again ... just can't get motivated to do much in the house other than deep clean the fridge in the utility .
:embarassed: Yesterday I didn't quite manage to squeak in with the calories - I sadly was feeling a bit bored and ate crisps and some toffee before DH came home from work . Evenings are my worse time... must do better tonight. Carrot and celery sticks maybe?

:drinker: Today I've already had 2 glasses of water ... good for me!!

:ohwell: I've had half a cooked breakfast - got half way through and thought ...yuk! ...and plan a salad for tea. Maybe some special K for supper.

Still so much in awe of those of you who've lost loads!! To any of the newbies ...take no notice of my moans!! just take notice of the others!

Be back again tomorrow ...honest!
Jackie

3 weeks and 5 days 'til we go away .... Perhaps if I start the packing , try on the summer outfits it may help. I need to get a few pounds off to make up for the pounds I may put on on holiday. Mind you i like my mum's scales as I'm nearly 7lb lighter on hers!! Head in the sand ...or what!!!

After my birthday on Saturday, I now qualify for this group. Never thought turning 50 would be so hard physically. I keep joking that my warranty just ran out. Bad knees/arthritic condition that won't stop hurting despite daily medication, a year of dental nightmares including three root canals and 4 crowns, one of which is having to be redone, hormonal fluctuations that turn me into a raging maniac and of course, having to figure out how to deal with my emotions without the food to stuff over them. But, despite all the bad things happening to me, there is also much good. Recently adopted a dog that is the love of my life (after my family), losing 15 pounds since the first of the year, finding an exercise program that seems to be compatible with my bum knees/arthritis, and getting support from MFP. Looking forward to many more posts from you all.

Welcome Cheryl in Colorado...15 pounds since the first of the year is awesome and certainly earns you bragging rights! Way to go! You will love it here, it's the best for motivation and support!

Barbie, sorry about hubby's finger -- love your dog's picture - what kind of dog is it?
Rebel - good luck on the root canal
Mary - any loss is a good loss - pat yourself on the back!!
Barb - I love hearing about your "kids" -- Mai Li sounds like a real kick!!

Morning everyone,

Well I started to say something negative about my efforts. But as I want as part of my life "Focus on the Positive"!!!
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I will have to get outside for a little while and get some of that good sunshine. That is always an upper for me.
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I have lots and lots of housework to do. I stayed up too late watching the Olympics. I was very pleased that the Chinese couples won the Gold and Silver medals.. I probably won't stay up watching it so late tonight.
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Some of us make progress a little slower so I hope you are encouraged by that. This site projects my weight loss at .9 pounds a week. That's okay with me. I did it pretty quickly the first time and found that I couldn't stick with it so I am trying to be sensible and find out what will work for me in the long run. I've got a couple more pounds to go before I hit the healthy weight range for my height and bone structure.
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Today I have cut out of magazines, Cholesterol Lowering Drug Ads and I am going to put them up in strategic places so I will at least have to think about how I want to live my life. Using drugs to do this or doing it in the healthy way. I can make that choice.

This morning has gone by so quickly and I must get on with my daily duties.

Make good and wise choices today!!

Exercise!!

Drink your water!!! (Go on get a glass right now, I'm going to)

Wise words Cincy...wish I could say I was just a few pounds away from healthy normal weight...I've got a ways to go before I get there. As one who considers housework an exercise to be done when expecting company, I applaud your dedication to doing yours!

Hope everyone has a great day!! Terri