Hello all,
I'm a 37 yr old. I finished MD/PhD at the Medical University of SC, then internal medicine residency at Emory, then a general internal medicine fellowship/MPH at Brigham and Women's Hospital/Harvard School of Public Health. I'm now doing 80% research on racial/ethnic health disparities at Univ of AL at Birmingham and 20% outpatient internal medicine at our public hospital in Birmingham. Needless to say, there were crappy eating/exercise habits from residency forward coupled with the quite obvious slowing of metabolism at age 30 and again at 35. But folks who meet me say I look 28, so I want my body to match my youthful face! And after several yrs of research on the behavioral contributors to health disparities I'm determined to not be in the bell of the current population curve!

I've learned quite a lot from my journey so far and it has definitely impacted how I can support my patients as they face similar challenges, often with higher stakes as they may already have signs/symptoms of organ damage.

Nicole

I'm Jakemia, a 36 year old Pulmonologist/Intensivist with a 13 month old son. I'm just trying to stay healthy.

Hi All!

Guess I am a little late to introduce myself.

I'm Vidya, originally from Toronto, Canada, attended medical school abroad in Europe, finished my last two years of medical school (rotations) in Chicago and New York and finally graduated May of this year.

I am currently back at home in Toronto, preparing for my USMLE Step 2 and the Canadian board exam aswell. Will be applying for residency in the US Sept 2012 and hope to match in either Obstetrics & Gynecology or Family Medicine.

My years in medical school were certainly fun but also stressful and I found that I ate a lot of bad foods when I was stressed. I look back and I feel disgusted knowing that before an exam I would load myself with caffeine, chocolates and bags upon bags of Doritos. After an exam, the stress of finding out my mark would make me order a extra large pizza and I would sit on my bed and eat the whole thing without thinking twice....yikes!

I find that I could use this year before residency to develop good eating and exercising habits. It also helps me relax, away from my books.

Great seeing everyone on here Goodluck to everyone!!

Hi I'm Robyn, a family physician from Iowa. Undergrad, Med School, residency training and practice - all in Iowa. Currently I work at a student health center -

I'm older than all you other young pups......I congratulate you all as being very smart to get/stay healthy with regular exercise and proper diet when you're young....it doesn't get easier as you get older. I used to say when I'm done with med school, when I've finished residency.....I'll start tomorrow/Monday/next month/January 1st. Now I have health problems related to my weight - not that I didn't know it was coming. But denial is powerful.

I'm a stress eater - no stress in my chosen profession LOL

I just turned the big 4-0. I trained in FP, but have been doing ER full-time for 9 years. Now that my 3 kids are in school, I'm trying to focus more on my health. Weird sleep schedule and stress eating have been obstacles. Weight has definitely yo-yo'd since med school. I've always liked exercising, but my joints aren't being kind to me carrying around 30-50 extra pounds. Need to tame the eating beast! Trying to focus on making my next 40 years as healthy as can be!

Hey folks!

My name is Lisa and currently I am still a med student (shouldn't be any longer in about a month or so) from Austria. Then I am going to start my residency for becoming a GP and later on hopefully getting into a radiology residency

for my own history, I've always been a little overweight and currently trying to lose weight - at the moment I am really involved in doing lots of exercise (Zumba and weight lifting), since I have the time with just waiting for graduation and I don't think that I will have more free time afterwards while working

Beth-

Welcome to MFP. I don't think may of us post often...perhaps because we are busy? I am an EM attending but my wife has had several patients succeed using MFP in her medicine clinic. The engineer/computer nerd type of person seems to embrace it the most per her non-evidence based experience. I give it out to patients in the ED as my one small fight against obesity.

Welcome. At this group there isn't much activity because everyone is so busy! But check in periodically, and if you have a question, or want the perspective of other physicians, feel free to post it. I'm sure you will get support from the rest of the group.

Hi all. I am an Internal Medicine physician in Marshall, Texas. I am the mother of 7 (4 of my own and 3 step) and grandmother to 6. I have a very hectic schedule as most physicians do. I am not only part of a very busy group practice but I am also medical director for Hospice (which love), Med Director for 2 nursing homes, Chief of Medicine, Chief of Cardiac Rehab, Med Director for a college paramedic training program and lastly Med Director for a home health. I originally gained my weight with my first pregnancy at 18 and have gradually climbed since that time. I have lost and gained the weight of several human bodies over the last 27 years. I have also made a million excuses for myself during that time. When faced with worsening arthritis due to psoriatic arthritis with constant knee and back pain as well as glucose intolerance, I finally had a "come to Jesus" talk with myself and decided enough was enough. I am too smart to let my weight be out of control. I know what I need to do but had to accept that I was a "carboholic". I do not consider myself on a diet but I am making lifestyle changes that I have never made before. I am strictly limiting all breads, pastas, potatoes, white rice and sweets. I am doing this not only for myself and my health but I am doing this for my kids and grandkids.

Checking this group out. Work in public health for the past 8 years. Married with 2 children

Hi Fellow Members!

I'm a 49-year-old Bay Area doc, dad of 3, who just joined at the beginning of January 2012. Certainly being in the healthcare field, I value good health and also want to model good behavior for my patients.

By observing a 1600 kCal diet (calorie-wise, about equal parts protein, fat, and carbohydrate), after 6 weeks I met my initial goal (-17 lb) and am now working on my stretch goal (-27 lb), which I hope to achieve well before I meet with my PCP this summer for my 50 yo checkup. By the end of the year I am hoping I can be close to my ideal body weight (-47 lb). While I'm glad about the progress made so far, I know the hardest part lies ahead -- especially lifestyle change. Beforehand, I would consume nothing between a light 7 AM breakfast and a heavy 9 PM dinner -- the latter of which would invariably be consumed in a starvation-fueled hunger. Going forward, I need to take time during a day to consume a healthy, nutritious mid-day meal and ideally some small snacks. This will take a very conscious effort on my part!

I also need to incorporate exercise into my program (cardiovascular and muscle toning) but like others have limited time due to my work schedule. Complicating this is a recent back injury that will limit my lifting, bending, and stretching until the summer at least. I'd appreciate any comments or advice about exercise routines, especially about HIIT or other similar regimens.

I look forward to being a part of this group. As health care providers we have special insights but also face unique demands. Please feel free to friend me if you wish!

Hi, I'm a 32 year old general internist. I'm struggling with residency and baby weight. I was obese when I was younger and was able to maintain a healthy weight through calorie counting - but I stopped at the third year of medical school, and started gaining, and by the time I delivered my baby I was 100 pounds over a healthy weight. I'm down 50 and have 50 more to go. The first 8 lb, 1 oz was easy but I've had to fight for every pound since then. I follow a 1300-1400 diet and that translates to a half pound or a pound per week on average.

Hey all! Checking back in, now that I'm a first year internal medicine resident! I gained more weight at the end of fourth year and through my first month of residency. I'm just so tired when I get home I usually can't talk myself into going for a run... So now I wake up an extra hour early (4:00-4:30, ugh) and run. It actually makes the rest of my day a whole lot better. I've kept it up for a few weeks now and hope that it will become a permanent habit. I also bought a FitBit Flex that is super awesome and motivating to see how much I walk during the day.

Hi, I'm an ObGyn in NY, 32yo. Started using MFP after I finished residency. I initially had great success, but have been on and off the fitness wagon a few times since then. I'm now almost 7 weeks postpartum from baby #2, so am now trying to get back on track to lose the baby weight (and then the remaining residency weight) Also, as several others have mentioned, it's hard to tell patients to do the right things for their health when you're not doing them yourself.
My biggest challenges - avoiding the post-office / on-call binge - after running around taking care of patients all day, it's so much easier to crash on the couch and eat way too much while finishing notes or watching TV than to hit the gym and stick to a healthy diet. Also, not feeling guilty about spending less time with the family in order to take that extra hour or two for myself to get to the gym. Being a working parent is tough, but add in being a physician ... well, you know.
It doesn't look like this group is too active (not surprising, I guess), but I'd be interested in making some monthly challenges to help keep motivated, or if anyone is looking for another "friend" for support, rather than just posts through the group.
Would anyone be up for a body weight percent challenge I.e. a goal of losing 4% of your body weight by the end of October? If so, we can start a new thread/topic.

Hello everyone,
My name is Victor. I'm 36 and an oncologist. I've been obese most of my life but it's starting to really take its toll on my energy levels, particularly now with a 14 month old and another baby on the way. I am hoping to really step it up and get myself back on track so as to be a good role model for my kids and frankly to feel better. I think my biggest issue is not necessarily the exercise, since I actually like to bike ride, it's just simply that I LOOOVE carbs! Trying to kick out the carbs and decrease portion size is really going to be my biggest challenge going forward. Anyways, hope to see some results in the coming weeks. Good luck to everyone!