WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR JULY 2014

Happy July to everyone and happy Canada Day for those north! BTW, I took my daughter on a cruise to Canada for her college graduation gift and it was so incredibly beautiful. We made lots of awesome memories!

Still plugging away at the house. It's getting closer!! I hope have a Realtor in by this time next week. I lack about 20 minutes more work in my bedroom to be finished except for mopping and waxing the floor. My knees hurt too much tonight to work anymore, though. I need to call a local furniture ministry to see if they will pick up some bookcases because they won't fit into my car. One day I'm gonna have as truck!!

I took my blood pressure today during one of my light headed spells, just to see. The first reading was 132/78, the second was 108/72, and the third reading was 122/76. I did them all without removing the cuff berween readings so I don't know what it means, if anything.

I will add my thanks to Barbie for starting the new thread for us!

I'm off to bed now, hoping to sleep!

Carol in still-90-degrees-at-10-p.m. NC

I found the info on that artist. Her name is Surabhi Saraf, and she's from California. I found a link to a piece of her work. It's not the same as the one I saw today, but it's similar.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=RPjTtOH3viY

Its grainy on YouTube, and you have to imagine it on a huge screen. Keep watching at least till she folds the green sheet.

Sylvia

Hi ladies ! One more peek and Im off to the recliner, I had a good day off, hubby is working a double shift, so it has been really quiet on the home front here. It was nice to do chores, sun bath, and have me time, if you know what I mean. The weather was a scorcher, it is just as warm outside as it is in. We only have A.C. in the bedroom, and that's a luxury for most folks here in Washington State, as we rarely get hot, hot days.

What I know for myself is that since starting my healthy path, my body is getting back to normal, I notice the body's temperature is regulating at a normal temperature, before I was ALWAYS HOT !!!! extra weight and fat made for uncomfortable day's !

Goals for July,

continue to consume mega water
continue my walking regime
go to the local aquatics center and start a class
get comfortable in my new size capris
stay positive
continue logging and not add calories when allowed by exercise

have a great evening !

Carol in Monroe

I can’t keep up. I can’t keep up. Help! I’ve tried. I really have. But I look away for a minute and there are 18 new posts. I started a reply this morning and this is as far as I’ve gotten. I’ll do my best to catch up tomorrow.

I really, really need the support that comes with being part of this group. Somehow, some way, I’ve got to figure out how to do it without shortchanging anyone. You all are so interesting that it’s hard.

I’ll do my best. If I don’t respond…what can I say…I will when I can. That’s my best for now. Urgh.

I’ve stuck to the no-sugar, no-gluten plan so far. I had one brief craving for candy when I noticed my folks’ candy dish. Other than that, I’ve done better than usual. In the past, I’ve held strongly (mostly) to the “all things in moderation” camp, not wanting to give up just a little taste now and then.

I’ve revised that stance. The description in the Vicious Eating book on authoritynutrition.com/viciouseating.pdf (free and with good citations) hit home closely. I’ve lost weight only to regain it too many times to think that “just a little bit” won’t hurt. Gaining the weight back is painful. The prospect of starting again is daunting and always takes a while.

Update since this morning (when I started this post). I craved more foods this afternoon. Probably because I was hungry. I had a CT scan this afternoon at 2 pm, fasting before that, then went shopping for groceries for our Graeagle trip afterwards. It was close to 6 pm before I got home.

When I put together a plate with a couple of tortillas, scrambled eggs, salmon and avocado, my Mom (bless her…I am lucky to have her and I know it, but sometimes!) said, “That looks like an awful lot of food.” Later, when I fixed some more food she said, “You could go to bed and not eat anymore.”

Thank you, Mom. LOL. I explained to her that if I’d stopped before that last meal, I would have eaten only 800 or so calories and eating like that for long would send me into starvation mode. She’d never heard of that.

I also told her (always a fount of information) that with her added sauces, butter, mayo, sugar, etc. she actually had far more calories on her plate even though the volume was lower.

Like I said, I’m lucky to still have my Mom. She’s 88 and my Dad is 92. I am grateful and count it as a blessing to still have my folks to spend time with. However, she isn’t (never has been) helpful when it comes to eating.

BTW, I don’t think everyone is in the same place on whether they should eat sugar or not. Some manage to have “just a little bit” without it throwing them off the straight and narrow. I’m not one of them. (Gosh, that’s hard to admit.) For me, “just a little bit” is like an alcoholic having “just one drink.” I’d sure like to be slim and fit in my lifetime (which is going by way too fast).

Hi Viv…glad to see you’re back to your usual spunky self. You’d better watch that DD. LOL. Have fun on your time away.

Cynthia, I looked at the MFP apps. I don’t, right off the bat, see one that let’s you add post or even input your food. I’ll keep exploring. Maybe there’s something hidden in their app gallery or maybe I just didn’t see it. I’d like to have an app that lets me do those things before leaving on vacation Thursday.

Heather, I’m sad to hear about your friend. That would be heartbreaking. BTW, I just read that a study showed that, on the same number of total calories, the group of people who had half an avocado at lunch had fewer hunger pains the rest of the day than the group that didn’t. I’m voting for the avocado!

Bears, yanniejannie? Yikes! I don’t think I’d want to get close to one. Not to a raccoon either as they can be pretty feisty (and have long claws). I’ll take my nature from a safe distance. We live in a rural area known to have mountain lions, bears, foxes, etc. We actually have a local bobcat, he’s been seen several times, and see occasional mountain lion sign. I’d just as soon not even see one! Hmm. Maybe from a car (moving)! It would be interesting.

Gloria, my grands have so much fun splashing in their above-ground pool. The other day, I was sitting in one of the patio chairs. A little boy who was visiting was sitting in the other. We’d recently acquired 11 goats (5 of them babies, mostly pygmies so not huge) and he said to me, “I wonder if goats can swim?” No sooner had he said that than one of the babies jumped into the pool. After quickly rescuing the goat who, I think, would have scrambled out by himself (but we didn’t want to take the chance on punctures, we about fell over laughing. That little goat was surprised!

Tina, corn barbecued in its husks on the grill is good too. I’m laughing at your story about trying to kick your sister.

Hi Carol. Sounds like you have your plate full. How old is your son? My son’s boys are 13 and 15. Their parents, who are divorced, live a few miles from each other. I know they enjoy being able to spend time both places. It’s a tough decision. Maybe focusing on just the job would be enough for now. It’s hard to do too many things at once.

Re salt consumption. Probably others on here have mentioned cutting down. I had high blood pressure after a high-salt day. I tend to salt everything. I’ll probably add some more salt to my diet but not too much as my BP dropped 10 points, diastolic and systolic, when I cut down on salt.

Meg, you made me laugh (habanero cheese). It sounds like you had a nice day overall. I don’t think I could take the humidity though. I like California’s generally dry air, although I get an overdose of people when I visit the Bay Area. Then, I go back up to my neck of the woods (closer to Lake Tahoe), and breathe a huge sigh of relief.

Vicki, thanks for your prayers. I’m going to be a little (or a lot) nervous until after the ablation on the 15th. There are always risks, of course, which is the part that scares me. But the idea of the ablation is to reduce the overall risks. The surgeon is good and I trust him. His cardiology group is affiliated with Stanford, which also is good. It will be 5-6 hours under a general though and he tells me I’ll feel “beat up” for a couple of weeks. Urgh.

Smwert, happy anniversary and good for you for getting back on track so fast.

Sylvia, hurray on the steps. I am inspired by your weight loss and fitness. I started at 324 lbs 13 years ago. MFP has been a big help and I lost steadily until I got about 25 lbs from my goal. Then I got off track and despite fits and starts, stayed off track long enough to regain 50 lbs. Double urgh. My ticker shows what I need to lose from here on. It feels good to be on track again. I’m hoping that staying off added sugar (and maybe gluten – I’m trying that just to see) will help me say on track.

Renny, you sound great! You live in such a wonderful place. I’m glad to hear about your mom.

You can see that I didn’t get through all your posts. I’ll do my best tomorrow and work on a way to participate without spending the whole day doing it. Any suggestions? They would be welcome.

G’night.

Mimi

Good morning everyone!

Joyce! Congrats on 59 pounds lost! You really are doing well. Sorry about the nightmare.

Rori: sounds like you had a good month indeed.

Sylvia: the video is fascinating! And you’re right about the green sheet…. Your description sounds a bit like a piece of music by Charles Ives, “From the Steeples and the Mountains”, where the orchestra imitates bells (among other things) by starting together and then playing the same thing in a different tempo, so that it sounds like the “chaos” of lots of church bells.

Carol: you sound more upbeat. :flowerforyou:

Joyce: good luck with the early start and the rest of the day. I had the same problem with my rabbit chewing electrical cords. I ended up putting some kind of tubing on them that electricians use. Not beautiful, but functional.

Mimi: not sure what you mean. If you want to record your food on your smartphone, you have to go to the App Store on your phone (or the equivalent for Google or Android) and download either Fitbit or MFP. You can also use the browser on your smartphone to log into either site and add food, but that’s less convenient. The only advantage of using the browser is that you can access the forum section.

I have some job news; my job may go from the university to the private sector, which may have consequences for my retirement, disability etc. But there's not a whole lot of information yet. :devil:

Hope everybody has a good day.

Cynthia :flowerforyou:

Good morning and happy July,

Goats in the pool is a very cute story, as long as it's happening to someone else. My germophobic tendencies would not be able to handle hairy critters taking a dive.

So, I've made it through 2 whole days following this Biggest Loser plan. The only suffering I'm really doing is missing my nighttime snacking. Been sipping tea, doing my nails, etc.

Think I'm going to dust off one of my T25 DVDs this morning to wake up my weary muscles.

Simple goals for July: keep following this 6 week eating plan (that includes tracking) along with 5-7 hours of exercise per week.

Best wishes to all for strength and success!

xo- Gloria in Metro Detroit

Good afternoon my friends!:flowerforyou:

So many lovely new people - welcome to this great and supportive group. :flowerforyou: They certainly help to keep me accountable. I could not have done it without them and especially not been able to maintain my weight since the New Year. I have managed to lose weight before in my life, but never maintained it afterwards. I intend this time to keep it off for life. This group helps me enormously.

Done all my prep for tonight's dinner with my DB and DSIL. Still have to do some house and patio prep. :ohwell: DH will help me with that. Then I will lay the table - one of my favourite things, even though we may eat the first course outside. We will certainly have drinks and nibbles outside as they are arriving at 6 pm.
I have a sense that DSIL is a bit sensitive to my weight loss as she is obese and we used to be a similar size. She hasn't seemed as keen to see me lately, but it could just be her general low mood. I do miss her friendship. We used to go out together. I feel very self conscious about talking about my fitness around her and try not to. She is 18 years younger than me, but not healthy. Or happy.:ohwell: I have another very good friend that seems to find the new me a bit difficult. She is always going on crash diets. Loses some, then puts it all back on and more. I know she is embarrassed about her size. I have tried to help her in the past, but most people don't want to hear the truth - that counting the calories and moving more is the best and most lasting way. DSIL was liquidising everything at one stage :noway: and my friend was doing one where you don't eat until the evening.:noway: I always ssy, don't do anything that you can't sustain for the rest of your life as this IS for life. But the simple EAT LESS MOVE MORE falls on deaf ears. So now I say nothing and just let them delude themselves. But I miss the closeness we had.:brokenheart:

Love to all. Keep on keeping on. There is no alternative.

"If you don't sacrifice for what you want, what you want will be the sacrifice."

Heather in sunny Hampshire UK

Good morning! It isn't even 9 a.m. and the temp is already 80 degrees. Have I ever expressed how much I hate hot weather? It turns out that I most likely have Seasonal Affective Disorder that occurs in the springtime. I guess it's because I feel so cooped up in the summer because I don't tolerate heat well and tend to stay indoors. I'm warding off a full depression so far and, if history is something to judge by, I may have beat it this go round.

Mimi - You did an excellent job! I can in no way reply to everyone. I can't remember stuff and I'm usually posting in a hurry if I'm on an actual computer so that I don't open a Word document to keep track. You sound as if you're creating a plan and are determined. Good for you! In answer to your question, my son is 17. He will be going away to college in about six weeks.

Joyce - I hope everything went well this morning. I am thinking of you!

Heather - You always make me feel like I have a really sophisticated friend with the things that you cook and the amount of entertaining that you do. I don't know if I would like squid stew or some of the more "exotic" things you prepare, but it's so fun to read about it.

Alison - I am so sorry your trip turned out to be a bust! You worked so hard for it. At least you can still eat the food that you prepared so you can focus on having some fun instead of working so hard.

I think part of the reality of going away to school is finally hitting the boy child. He came into my room last night, crawled up on the bed with me, and asked me to help him make a list of all the things he needed for school. He is such a male!! "I don't need a comforter!" "Why do I need a lamp?!" Cleaning supplies?!! Why would I need those?!" At least he did think to add a toothbrush and toothpaste to his list! :laugh: I asked him if he was going to miss me and, of course, he said no. If he doesn't, I guess I will have done my job. :ohwell:

My son and my best male friend are planning a trip to Virginia on Saturday night to go to a racetrack where they can ride their bikes on the track. He is really excited about it so I hope a work issue doesn't pop up to prevent their going. He even asked me if I wanted to go with them!

I'm excited because my best female friend (she lives out of state) is coming to visit on Friday! She is actually going to stay in my house. :laugh: I won't get her for long because she has family in the area to visit as well, but I will enjoy it while she is here.

Now I guess I'd better get some work done and maybe walk a few more steps before anyone else gets here. (I LOVE being by myself here!) Have a great day, everyone!

Carol in NC

bump

Heather: I agree with you about the value of this site. My friends on the women 50+ group are a huge help in learning how to succeed and maintaining motivation. Like you, I’ve lost weight before, only to regain it. This time, I realize that I need to continue on this “diet” for life if I want to stay healthy. I’m certainly NOT suffering. I can eat all my favorite foods except potato chips. I can’t eat a sensible portion of potato chips; I just keep eating, so they’re out of my life. I need to use portion control and will always need to pay attention to serving sizes. I have had a lot of comments on the changes in my weight and appearance. I thank people and tell them I’ve been counting calories & moving more. If they ask, I say more about MFP and yoga.:flowerforyou:

Carol in NC: I’ve had seasonal affective disorder most of my adult life, but mine is connected directly with day length. I realize that getting out in the sun for some Vitamin D is a lynchpin to feeling better. I’ve found that taking a Vitamin D and calcium supplement really helps to relieve symptoms. I’ve also replaced all my light bulbs with daylight temperature bulbs. They’re an amazing help. We did this over time as the old light bulbs burned out, so the cost was spread out and not a problem. Maybe it would help you, too. I’ve heard that people with summer birthdays have a worse time with SAD than people who are born in fall and winter. :ohwell: :flowerforyou:



Fourth of July plans have fallen apart. DS doesn’t feel well enough to travel. His surgery recovery is slower and more painful than expected. They invited us to join them at their place, but we passed because of the traffic situation and the fact that our dog needs to be kenneled during the firecrackers, noisemakers and fireworks. We have a reservation for the dog at the vet’s and wouldn’t be able to get back in time to pick him up. Their neighborhood is as noisy as ours so taking him along is not a good option. Seattle traffic also plays a part in our decision. We've driven through there on a 4th of July weekend once before and it is NOT habit forming. :noway: :grumble:

Today is DD’s 35th birthday! I had a long “chat” with her last night via texting. She arranged for a long holiday weekend off from work so she could come here, and then that fell apart due to travel issues with cost and also her pregnancy. She’s far enough along that she should not be flying. Health is more important than spending a few days together.

Have a great day.

Katla in beautiful NW Oregon

“Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.” Thomas A. Edison



July Goals:
1. Log every bite and swallow.
2. Cardio exercise at least 3 days a week.
3. Have fun every day.
4. Drink at least three glasses of water daily, preferably more!

Hello--after having some success with weight loss this winter, I've gotten lazy the last couple months. I'm finally ticked off at myself enough to get going again. My July goal is to log in every day. If I can do that, other things should fall into place!

I've been trying Zumba this past month. I enjoy it very much, however my foot that I had surgery on 2 yrs ago is starting to hurt again. So I'll have to decide if it's worth it.

Never thought about SAD affecting people in the summer, but I suppose summers in the South keep people indoors just like winters up North. I don't think any of us get enough of those perfect days when you can enjoy having the windows open!

I'll try to check back with all of you more often, at least to scan through your comments. It helps keep me motivated. Enjoy your day! :flowerforyou:

Kay - Wisconsin

I really love Chattanooga! We went to dinner last night in the downtown area, then hubby's sisters and their hubbies went back to the hotel and Bill and I walked down by the river and across the foot bridge. It was beautiful! They have electric shuttle busses that take visitors all over (free), so it was fun to ride around and see the lights and all the shops. We even stopped at Ben & Jerry's and I got a kids scoop of cherries garcia. What a treat!

Well, gotta go get ready for another day. I hope everyone has a great day!

Sylvia

Good to know. It's always been a pass through or half way stop off 75 on the way to Florida. Perhaps I should consider it as a destination or "extended layover" in the future.

Today I weight in at 233. I'd like to lose 75lbs by the end of 2015 and arrive under 200 by the end of the year. My 11 yo son is away for the summer with his dad, so my intention is to use these next two months to work on myself.

Goals for July would be:

* Exercise 4 days each week.
* Stick to a plant-based diet as much as I can.
* Get a minimum of 7 hours of sleep each night.

How exciting to have that time to start on some lifestyle changes. I'll be looking forward to hearing about the look on your son's face when he sees you after the summer.

Bump! Don't want to lose this thread!

Rita from CT

Hi everyone! I'm here for July challenge as well! I work full-time so don't have time to check-in too often but will try to add extra exercise and try to drink more glasses of water this month. We're starting a "Healthy Challenge" for work on Monday. This will force me to go for 8 glasses a day! Thank you for being here for support - I couldn't do it on my own!

Melinda (from Eastern Oregon)