WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR FEBRUARY 2105

OK folks - some of you have asked about my knee exercises, so I will try to describe them.
- My left knee has been a problem on and off since I was 16. I had many investigations and no one could tell me what was wrong with it. :ohwell: Becsuse it was often a problem I tended to favour the right leg and so the left leg became weaker until I could hardly lift it without using my hands. With ankles that had sprained several times and pronation of the feet I was severely compromised with my mobility.
- I obtained some orthotics which were custom made and slso had some from the pharmacy for other shoes. After a bad flare up with my knee I went to a sports therapist at the leisure centre. She was the first person to diagnose a problem with the patella not running true, which is why the problem was intermittent. Why the doctors and surgeons didn't know this is a mystery to me as it appears to be a common problem, judging by the internet. She showed me how to strap the patella when it plays up.
- My task was to strengthen the muscles around the knee . My whole leg was thinner than the other one.
- I first did "clam shell" exercises lying on my side and knees bent, opening and closing my knees. I could only manage a few inches at first. She asked me to stretch my calves also.
- Then it was "two foot support" as in yoga. I can now do "one foot support" with my arms by my side and my other leg vertical. I have built those up and am now doing 22.
- I do squats with weights, very gingerly. Look for good form videos on the internet.
- I do leg raises with ankle weights, sitting on the bed with a cushion under my knees. Currently I raise 4 and a half pounds on my bad leg.
- A physio at the hospital suggested lunges, but my knee doesn't like them much. I do yoga ones, gently.
- He also suggested the one I do most often, which is standing on the bad leg with the knee bent and my bottom stuck out behind me. With the other leg I draw the alphabet in the air. This is a good one I think.
- I don't do all of these every day, but a good proportion of them, in rotation. Today I did the ankle weights and the "one foot support"..

All this work meant that I could very gingerly do all the activities on holiday, including climbing loads of steps and slowly come down them, one step at a time. I negotiated boulders and slippery slopes on a 6 mile walk. I can still have flare ups if I overdo things. No HIIT for me. No dancing or running. But it functions ok for my normal life.

Hope that is some help. U tube has lots of videos if you want more details.

Love Heather in Hampshire UK

Hi ladies, I'm sneaking in here towards the back end of February seeking (and providing) support.

I joined MFP January 2014 having decided that enough was enough over the previous weeks. MFP tools helped me count calories and log exercise and I'd lost 14lb in five weeks... but my world ended, crumbled and died when my husband left me. We hadn't had a cross word and I had no idea that he was unhappy.

My best friend knew, I found out later, but she decided not to share it with me. She offered him a bed and now he is in her bed. So during those months I lost a husband and business partner, and my best friend. It was, and still is, a difficult thing to deal with. The stress resulted in a 70lb weight loss in a very short space of time... not healthy at all.

My weight loss stopped as I developed tummy troubles and I decided I had to gain some strength back so I ate more and exercised lots which maintained the weightloss... until this Christmas... where I have regained 15lb... not happy and not going to continue going backwards!

So... back to calorie counting and more exercise... but this time it is a struggle... I am an emotional eater and there is still a lot of stress and anxiety in my life... as I am running the business on my own and selling my house that I love... so I have got to find the strength to do 50 squats when I feel stressed instead of heading towards the biscuit tin (cookie jar for my American brethren).

One good thing that has happened is I have met a man who is nine years younger than me and is very fit; doing 100 push ups each morning and runs and cycles a lot. He is wonderfully encouraging as he trains others in fitness and kickboxing. However it is so easy to make dinner with him and he piles food on his plate, and my portion size has been creeping up... this I have to stop!!

Thank you for reading

Wendy T
Sheffield, England
Age 54

Good morning everyone! I'm so glad to hear the news that Selena found the owner of the little dog! Amazing!

Last night hubby and I went to a concert at the brand new performing arts center on campus. It's a beautiful building, and this was the first concert in the concert hall. We sat way up in the balcony and I don't think there was a bad seat in the place. The sound was great too. So, I didn't want to go to the concert wearing my baggy sweat pants, so I broke out a bigger pair (size 16) of black jeans that I had not donated yet. They were the dressiest of any of the clothes I still have. They seemed plenty big, but apparently they weren't. When I sat down the snap in the waistband hit just at the spot where my biggest incision is - right at the belly button - and about half way through the concert I started to feel some pain in my belly.

It didn't help that at intermission I read a message from one of my friends. I had asked her about her eye doctor's appointment that day, how it went, and she replied that her "fat acne" was better and her astigmatism was gone. Obviously an autocorrect thing (she meant far sight), but it struck me as extremely hilarious and I was laughing. It hurts so bad to laugh! Afterwards I had my pants undone in the car on the way home and immediately changed into my nice soft jammies. So, the moral of the story is, I'm not ready to wear jeans again just yet.

The incision had sort of a thick scabby crust on it, which was covered with superglue, and part of that popped off, but it was oozing a little crud, so I put some peroxide on it before I went to bed. It looks better this morning and feels better. I think that scab needed to come off.

Well, I have a lot of drafting to get finished before I can go glaze bowls, so I'd better get busy. Have a great day everyone!

Sylvia

Hi everyone!

I haven't checked in here since December! I see the thread is still going strong, how great is that! Thanks for keeping going, Barbie. I'm still chugging along, lost 3 pounds of holiday pudge in January and now working towards removing the excess that snuck up on me last year. Funny how it does that when we don't pay close attention.

We've had some fantastic weather here in NW Oregon, I've been busy clearing the yard & vegetable gardens of weeds. Prolific little buggers! Hubby and I started our pepper seeds under lights a couple of weeks ago, they're all popping up now and seem quite happy. Celery seeds have sprouted, too, I was glad to see that. They're soooo tiny! I sowed a few sugar-snap peas and some spinach directly in the garden last weekend. Next on the gardening agenda is to purchase new strawberry plants and get them in the ground.

I'm doing yoga and strength work again, taking a little break from intense aerobics since I hurt my knee last week by overdoing it. Typical me. I'm taking note of Heather's list of knee exercises!

Wendy, you've sure been through a lot, wow. My heart goes out to you! It's wonderful that you've met such an inspiring young man - yes, be careful of those portions, they do have a way of creeping up. I'm very good at measuring portions, enjoying a good meal, then going back in afterwards for a few more bites. That's where I get into trouble.

Wishing everyone well on your journey here! Feel free to add me to your friend list, I stay fairly active with my newsfeed. I'll try like heck to get in here on a regular basis! I've missed being a part of it.

jb (Joanie) in Portland, Oregon

Call me crazy but I love to see other people happy and succeeding.

Good morning to all you lovely ladies.

*Barbie, thank you for always sharing such words of inspiration.

*Tina, great idea on the gravy. I also find that I am trying new things that never used to be in my diet. It’s somewhat of an exciting adventure.

*Judy, great going with your trainer. If you feel you are making progress, who cares what the scale says. You go girl!!

*Mary, I’m glad your DH was able to thaw the pipes before he left. I remember many times in Milwaukee, standing in the basement with the hair dryer to thaw out frozen pipes. I’m so sorry for all of you in the super cold areas and what you are going through this year. Gosh, won’t we all appreciate spring and summer this year!

*Michele, have a wonderful time in Florida. Maybe it will warm up in NC by the time you come home.

*Joyce, when we lived in the frozen North, we all put plastic bags over our socks before we put on our boots. It really helped keep our feet warm in the coldest weather. Glad your gear is keeping you warm.

*Gail, welcome to this wonderful group of ladies. You will find lots of support and useful information here. Come often and keep us updated on your progress.

*Allison, I personally vote for shower doors. I think they look better and even though you can wash a shower curtain, I feel like I keep the doors sanitized better. You are going to love your bathroom when you are finished and it will be worth all the stress. You make sure that dentist is doing it right, as I can see you assisting in the procedure. LOL

*Heather, how wonderful that you finally found someone that could help with your knee. And congrats on your patience and persistence in doing the exercises. We all need to remember that it often takes work to get what we want.

*Wendy, welcome. I’m so sorry about your husband, friend, house and what you must be going through. You will find this a very supportive group of ladies and I hope you will come often. It sounds like you know what you need to do as far as eating and exercising, so I hope you can do it. Best of luck with your journey.

*Diana, way to go on starting the loss of those 2 pounds. Hopefully more will follow when they are gone.

*Sylvia, you are way more classy than I am. I would have had the top button on the jeans opened at the concert. I’m glad the incision is looking better today. Wishing you a speedy recovery.
It took me just a minute, but I love the jokes. Still LOL

*jb, so nice to have you back. I’m curious, did you keep logging your food and exercise? I’ve become so addicted to it that I can’t imaging eating anything without it. I hope you come back often.

*Terri, cook those cookies and put them away. Who could resist cookie dough?


Welcome to any Newbies that I missed. Come often and join in the chat. This thing works!! Please sign your post with what you want to be called. It makes it easier for us to respond to you. Also a location is great, be it specific or general. We are happy to have you join us.

I slept on the sofa downstairs last night so Maggie (Our black lab that is an outside dog) could come in. She has a heater in the garage but it was going to be really cold and she loves to sleep in the house. The two poodles slept upstairs with their Daddy. I actually slept quite well and now need to go get in some exercise.


I love all you wonderful ladies and I wish you all a very happy and healthy day.

My word #1 is savor. I have to slow down and savor every bite.

#2 is opportunity. Each day offers new opportunities for good health and happiness if we just look for them and choose them.

Janet
Myrtle Beach, SC

Do Not regret growing old. It is a privilege denied to many.

Thanks Janet, and the answer is Yes, I did continue logging. I went through a few bad spells and took a few days off here and there, but I'm finally back to finding delight in being diligent

Oops! I forgot to tell you all about the free advice I got from the Physical Therapist today: I have been using the handbike instead of the stationary bike because of my knee pain, and increasing the tension. Now the muscles in my lower-mid back are "complaining" (like the ribs, right above my waist, all the way around). He said that is good, and it means I am working the core muscles, and I am therefore strengthening my back (herniated disc) and abdominal muscles. His suggestion is 5 minutes on the stationary bike, nice and slow with no resistance, then 15 minutes on the hand bike with no resistance, until my muscles get used to this new exercise. The most important part is to be sucking in my tummy while exercising, to continue engaging those core muscles. So, that's what I will do today

Carol in NC: You aren’t a failure in any way. You are awesome and doing all of the things you should be doing except being patient with yourself. Quit beating yourself up. I'm sending hugs & hope you allow yourself the peace of knowing you’re doing the right thing.

Judy in PA: It sounds like you’ve found a great trainer who builds your confidence. Good for you!

Michele: I’m so sorry your condo suffered damages from the upstairs neighbor. I hope there is a good system for taking care of the problem. Our neighbors are in Florida now visiting relatives and going to Daytona. I hope that you and they have a good time.

Gailnadeza: Use the tools here at myfitnesspal to log your food and exercise. It works.

Alison: Good luck with your dental procedure. We have one shower that doesn’t require a door and the other has doors. DDIL and DD both use shower curtains. DDIL is in a rental and can’t make permanent changes to the home. DS is career military, and they will probably wait to buy a home until he retires. DD likes her shower curtain.

WendyT: It sounds as though you’ve been through the wringer lately. I’m happy that you’ve met someone nice. Welcome to a great group.

Diana in NE IN: Stay warm in the cold wind.

Sylvia: I’m sorry that you were so uncomfortable during the concert. It sounds as though the concert hall is wonderful and I hope your next visit there is more pleasant. You do so much that it is easy to forget you recently had major surgery. I LOVE today’s jokes.

Joanie in Portland OR: It is great that you stopped in this morning. You provided just the right push. I need to get my snow peas planted this weekend. Last year I put climbing purple pod beans in behind them and had a great fall crop. I want to do it again.

Terri in Milwaukee: I have only one way to deal with the call of the cookie dough. I leave it in the grocery store where I can’t hear it. I don’t have kids at home who would eat the cookies and it is so much easier to avoid temptation.



Heather gave a wonderful description of what she’s been doing for her knee issues. I’m here because of knee issues, too, as many of you may remember. I gave myself bursitis while posting during a riding lesson a few years ago. The doctor recommended some knee exercises, which I still do but not as often as before. And I had a huge “aha” moment. That was when I realized how seriously overweight I’d become. I started taking yoga twice a week, which I now do three times a week. I had no idea how to lose weight and wondered if there was an app for that. That is how I found MFP and eventually all of you. Between MFP tracking systems, this group and yoga, I’ve managed to lose the weight, strengthen my leg, and get back to riding lessons. It has been a fabulous experience and I intend to keep it up indefinitely.

I hope that all of the newbies here will settle in and take advantage of the system and support that is freely available. This group is magic. Transformation takes time and effort, and you can do it.


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


February 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!
5. Eliminate alcohol.
6. Monitor sleep.

Alison, I like a curtain with a curved rod, mostly because I like to sit on the edge of the tub to shave my legs (happens twice a year, like clockwork). And I put the curtain in the washing machine with bleach to keep it clean. My only experience with doors have been in other people's homes and they always looked grungy around the frames.

Sylvia

TGIF~daughter saw surgeon,Gall bladder surgery on Mar 13.
Never heard someone so young-18 to have it.
Fighting off a bug for a couple days and trying to stay warm in this bitter cold.
HUGS to all
jane