Clueless

at the very least, start with increasing your water intake, AND eat smaller portions of everything you would normally eat. To be completely honest, I don't believe in "diets". I believe in making a lifestyle change, and that means that in your lifetime you WILL eat a cookie again, and you WILL eat cake again or other various treats. I think the key to it is, to eat it all in moderation!! if your family is eating homemade mac and cheese, don't sit by and eat something you have no desire for & will only give up later, eat the mac & cheese but eat 1 cup. Just eat in moderation!!!! that you can do very simply. Also, go for walks. Doesn't have to be a long walk, but a walk. Do what you can. Find things that work for you and stick to it. It will be a long process (it is for all of us) but it will come off eventually. goodluck. add me as a friend if you'd like, we cna support eachother

I had/have terrible scoliosis that cause a small fracture in my lower spine. I ended up having extensive surgery when I was 16.
Before surgery and after, I was a competitive swimmer. I loved it afterwards because there is little risk of injury (its not a contact sport), and it never put pressure on my spine the way running would for example. I would try finding a place where it's reasonable priced to go swim laps.

my advice is stick with it here on mfp. if your family doesn't want to eat better then let them do what they want and you keep your own special foods for yourself (if that is possible) you can't force them to do it with you and you can only really do it for yourself.
with your health issues try talking to your doctor and find out from him/her what exercises you can do that won't aggrivate your existing problems. as for the best time to exercise.. well it is my opinion that any time is a good time for it. even if it is just a little at a time. believe it or not eating healthy isn't any more expensive than eating the garbage. and who knows maybe if your family sees how good you will be doing they might say hey we need to do that too. I wish you strength on your weight loss journey since luck has nothing to do with it. keep us updated on how you are doing believe it or not the mfp community really does care.

Okay, I have had all of the above, plus asthma, arthritis, multiple knee injuries, and an ankle injury over the years. Some of which I will have forever and others I've been able to heal through proper diet and exercise. The first thing you have to do is decide that you aren't going to let anything stand in your way of achieving your goals. Yes, the family may complain when you quit buying junk food and start only making healthy purchases at the grocery store, but they will get over it. Eating healthier is a much better option then living without you should your weight cause major health issues. And your DH's health problems (I read your profile) will probably improve too when his nutrition while at home improves. I know that is how it worked for my DH. Of course, I went a bit nuts when he was diagnosed with high blood pressure and took his debit card for a while so he couldn't eat out and had to only eat what I prepared at home.

As for what to do, start by making small changes to make it easier to stick to over the long haul. If you're making pasta, for example, switch to whole wheat pasta. Add extra fruits and veggies to every meal, even if you have to hide them in stews and chili. Switch to lower fat meats. Make the same type of food the family enjoys, but make it healthier by using lower fat ingredients, complex carbs instead of white carbs, and fresh or frozen produce instead of canned. Cut down on the added sugars and learn your serving sizes. Measure your food if necessary until you know what a serving looks like.

For exercise, swim if possible as that is the easiest on all of the problems you have. If that isn't possible, try bike riding, Pilates or yoga at first and as your abilities improve and your joints can handle it, add in weights and more intense cardio. Start with a short workout of 10 minutes. Then start doing it 2-3 times a day. After that becomes easy, then add on more time to each workout. Know that it is going to be uncomfortable to do some things. Modify! If you can't do a specific exercise on a Pilates video for example, go into a stretch during that move and try the next one. Don't push yourself to the point of pain because you could cause more injury. But definitely push yourself to do as much as you can. Get your kids to workout with you. They will think it is funny that Mom is dancing in the living room, but will laugh and have fun doing it with you. If they are small, use them as weights! LOL Seriously, my favorite exercise is one I won't be able to do again until I have grandkids, Kiddie Kiss Curls. Pick the child up under the armpits, do a bicep curl to lift them up for a kiss, then lower them until their feet almost touch the ground and then curl them back up for another kiss. Mine made me stop that when they hit kindergarten, but they giggled like crazy when they were babies. The most important thing about exercise is make it fun! That way its easier to stick to it.

And add me as a friend if you need any specific exercise modifications for your injuries/conditions. Like I said, I've had the same things and have already done the work of figuring out the modifications for most things.

All of this advice sounds so right on. I would also suggest you add some easy to eat, low cost, items for your snacks and special treats. For example plain Skippy peanut butter on whole wheat crackers. makes a delicious, low cost snack or meal. You can find out how much exercise you can handle and start very slowly. Follow whatever is recommended ny your health care provider.

I believe that he/she will support you in your desire to lose weight.

Following the MFP plan does not take extra money. There are no special foods to buy, no meetings, no dues. You are in charge.

We are all here to support you as much as we can!