55-65 year old women's success?

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  • slimcharm20
    slimcharm20 Posts: 65 Member
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    trina1049 wrote: »
    This lady is my hero. I think of her when I'm tired. I figure if she can stay fit then so can I.
    ernestineshepherd.net/?page_id=2

    https://youtube.com/watch?v=na6yl8yIZUI

    Thank you for posting.. I remember seeing her before, she is so amazing!!
  • griffinca2
    griffinca2 Posts: 672 Member
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    Agreed! First saw her several years ago in a women's fitness mag. Excellent shape for 80 years old; gives us all something to strive for. Women need to be reminded not to be afraid of lifting heavy weights; just start out small and work yourself up. It may take us a little longer, but it can be done.
  • trina1049
    trina1049 Posts: 593 Member
    edited August 2016
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    slimcharm20 wrote: »
    trina1049 wrote: »
    This lady is my hero. I think of her when I'm tired. I figure if she can stay fit then so can I.
    ernestineshepherd.net/?page_id=2

    https://youtube.com/watch?v=na6yl8yIZUI

    Thank you for posting.. I remember seeing her before, she is so amazing!!

    You are very welcome! I've had to think long and hard about how to maintain my activity in my later years and what is sustainable for life. It's nice to know that women in their 80s are going strong. And I second @griffinca2!
  • slimcharm20
    slimcharm20 Posts: 65 Member
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    griffinca2 wrote: »
    Agreed! First saw her several years ago in a women's fitness mag. Excellent shape for 80 years old; gives us all something to strive for. Women need to be reminded not to be afraid of lifting heavy weights; just start out small and work yourself up. It may take us a little longer, but it can be done.

    That's my plan, I need to start soon. Kudos to you I see you do by your profile pic!
  • slimcharm20
    slimcharm20 Posts: 65 Member
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    trina1049 wrote: »
    slimcharm20 wrote: »
    trina1049 wrote: »
    This lady is my hero. I think of her when I'm tired. I figure if she can stay fit then so can I.
    ernestineshepherd.net/?page_id=2

    https://youtube.com/watch?v=na6yl8yIZUI

    Thank you for posting.. I remember seeing her before, she is so amazing!!

    You are very welcome! I've had to think long and hard about how to maintain my activity in my later years and what is sustainable for life. It's nice to know that women in their 80s are going strong. And I second @griffinca2!

    Awesome... you give me that push to start ASAP! :)
  • retirehappy
    retirehappy Posts: 4,752 Member
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    Kitty, sorry your MFPals didn't support you in your efforts. Lots of support here.
  • mittenswillet
    mittenswillet Posts: 697 Member
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    Thankyou =) Im about to do my bellydancing for the evening, then one more time tomorrow and I get Friday off, as much as I do enjoy bellydancing.......I always love my day off. lol

    Plus my husband gives me 100sek (about 11 dollars) a week if I bellydance 6 days a week........(the makeup box is getting VERY full lol...I can buy alot of stuff with my little money hhahh )

    I love everyones stories and comments....it really keeps me motivated!
  • Hilly4118
    Hilly4118 Posts: 5 Member
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    Hi y'all. I just posted on the "introduce yourself" page looking for members of a certain age! This is day 2 for me and I'm still stumbling around the forums, not being terribly familiar with how they work. Wish I had a 10 year old in the house to help.

    I'll figure this out eventually...glad to see everyone.
  • Hilly4118
    Hilly4118 Posts: 5 Member
    edited August 2016
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    1Nana2many wrote: »
    Griffinca2 is right! I admit I was just hopeful when I first started MFP on January 2nd this year. I just logged day 221 this morning. I started at 244.7 pounds and am now down to 187. I am 5'4" tall. I am way more then mearly hopeful now! I am committed! I try to log each meal as I eat it. At the beginning I even logged before I ate in case I wanted to revise how much I was eating. I try to be sure I get enough protein and I still eat too much sugar.

    I have not exercised myself to death. My goal from the beginning was to just move a little more today than I did yesterday, day after day and stick as close to my calorie goal as I could. For me and for my daughter who has lost over forty pounds in the same time, a food scale was essential so we could really learn what a serving size is. A food scale was a serious game-changer for her in her weight-loss. They cost less than $15.00.

    Showing up every day is also essential. Even if you don't hit your food goal, it keeps you conscious of your eating. It's tough at first, but it gets easier the more you do it. Treat every day as if it's a new beginning. Don't beat yourself up mentally when you fail. As the old saying goes, don't throw the baby out with the bath water! Just begin again! Don't worry what anybody else is eating, just focus on your own healthy eating. I've seen lots of people complain that they feel their spouse is trying to sabotage them by eating high calorie foods in front of them on the community boards. You can't fix anyone but yourself. Many of us women are really good at putting ourselves last in most equations. I sometimes think it's a DNA thing, but in weight loss I think you have to be a little selfish. You can't take good care of anyone else if you're not taking good care of yourself. You have to value yourself enough to believe you are worth the effort every day, day after day. If I was good at that, I would never have reached well over 200 pounds. I'm getting better. I know if I keep logging every day I will reach my goal and may even revise it to a lower number. I believe anyone can do this if I can.

    I forgot to mention a few things I'm enjoying now that I didn't like before. My left knee has stopped hurting every time I walk. Climbing stairs is great. I am sleeping better. I am shocked at the woman who looks back at me when I glance in a mirror...I don't know if that will ever go away, but it's a nice shock. You are worth it! Begin today and tomorrow and the next day. You CAN do it!

  • Hilly4118
    Hilly4118 Posts: 5 Member
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    I decided not to cut and paste which part of Nana2many's post I thought was important. All of it speaks to me and I'm saving it. Thanks so much!
  • Rigibann
    Rigibann Posts: 3,663 Member
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    JNALTBK wrote: »
    Hi ... I'm a little older than the rest of you (just turned 69). I originally lost 45 lbs. on MFP and then gained about 25 of it back over the last year or so. Stopped logging and got lazy with my exercising and the weight slowly started climbing back. Recently started back on MFP and am determined to lose those extra 25 lbs and then 15 more after that. Yes, it is more difficult to lose weight as you get older, but it can still be done with determination and effort. Good luck to all of you on your weight loss journey

    Sounds just like me - you cannot afford to take your finger off the button as those pounds just creep right back on. 1'm 64, lost 30lbs with mfp and last year put back on 20 of them. so here we go again.....
  • marjtrewin
    marjtrewin Posts: 30 Member
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    1Nana2many - so similar to my story. As a matter of interest, how many calories do you allow yourself a day. I aim for 1500 or less. 5ft 3in
  • 2012retiree
    2012retiree Posts: 36 Member
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    Down 90 lbs. and 61! One question though. I expected more energy and that hasn't been the case. Is it an age thing and you haven't experienced a big increase in energy either? I do walk two miles a day, but otherwise not real active.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,195 Member
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    2012retiree wrote: »
    Down 90 lbs. and 61! One question though. I expected more energy and that hasn't been the case. Is it an age thing and you haven't experienced a big increase in energy either? I do walk two miles a day, but otherwise not real active.

    I can't say I've experienced any great difference in energy, plus or minus, from weight loss (60+ pounds, age 60). My energy level was fine before, and it's fine now. I do feel more lively/spry (i.e., it's easier to move), which I guess some could see as more energetic. I'm quite active, but I was quite active while I was fat, so no big change there.

    Overall, I do feel dramatically better since losing weight, but not really more energetic.
  • 1Nana2many
    1Nana2many Posts: 172 Member
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    marjtrewin wrote: »
    1Nana2many - so similar to my story. As a matter of interest, how many calories do you allow yourself a day. I aim for 1500 or less. 5ft 3in
    I am also 5'3", age 60 in November. My calorie goal is 1200 per day. I have my exercise set at sedentary with a goal of three thirty minute workouts per week. I rarely input my exercise, mostly because I don't want to see all the added calories at my disposal and frankly, I just don't trust myself not to eat right up to the edge if it's there. That's not to say I don't do any, just don't want to start giving myself excuses to eat more. Yes, I readily admit it's a mind game I am playing with myself. On days when I know I have been excessively active and I know I've earned a lot I will occasionally eat over 1200 calories and input at least some of the activities mostly because I hate seeing it say I went over. It was hard at the beginning, but is easy to stick to my calorie goals and I get full fast now if I eat even half what I once did.

    RE ENERGY LEVEL: I'm not sure I would say I have a lot more energy then pre-weight-loss, but I definitely can sustain activities with less pain and less breathlessness than before. I actually want to do things more, but I also still have the same personality, which makes me want to vegetate with a good book. The reason I stick pretty close to my low calorie goal is because I know myself well enough to know that I am not going to turn into an exercise wonderkend anytime soon and for me this change must be sustainable for the rest of my life. Therefore, no lying to myself about how much exercise I'm going to do. I do believe in the "use it or lose it" theory and know if I just sit, I am inviting muscle loss and illness into my world. I fully believe most of my success is in my head. Every day is a new day and I am worth the effort is a big part of forward motion for me. I know I will be logging for the rest of my life to maintain or I will slowly creep back up. I believe I will have to keep my food goals in the front of my mind. There was a time when I believed I could lose weight and then just live my life, but I realize I really do have to put my health in the equation every day for the rest of my life.

    Hang in there ladies (and gents, if you're out there)! Sorry for all the philosophy! Just putting it out there. Sometimes I need the reminder! We are in this together and separately struggling to find what works for ourselves! Just know that this group gives great support with no judgment and that is priceless and rare!
  • trina1049
    trina1049 Posts: 593 Member
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    2012retiree wrote: »
    Down 90 lbs. and 61! One question though. I expected more energy and that hasn't been the case. Is it an age thing and you haven't experienced a big increase in energy either? I do walk two miles a day, but otherwise not real active.

    I'd like to chime in about my experience after losing 50-52 lbs in terms of energy gain. I have way more energy now than I did before losing weight. I've been at maintenance for almost 1.5 years and I'm on the go for 8-10 hours a day. I still log and monitor my food and weight every single day.

    I actually cut back on my exercise schedule as I lost weight because I wanted an exercise plan that I could live with well into really old age (I'll soon be 67). I walk every day but also lift weights and attend cardio classes 3Xs per week). I find I have more energy the more I move every day. I was very sedentary before and was always exhausted when I was heavier. The more I move the better I sleep as well.

    For me, it was finding a balance of moderate exercise, calories in and calories out. I believe that as we age we will slow down and so we have to adjust our calorie intake and exercise plan accordingly, but we still have to exercise for heart health, maintaining our muscle mass, and bone density along with eating the proper amount of calories or the weight will creep back up.

    I find that if I'm not active, I'm not as energetic. It's a total turn around from my past eating and exercise habits which were poor and non-existent. Changing my way of eating and forcing myself to move saved my health. I've embraced it now so take heart, it can be done with time and patience. Just get out there and move because it gets easier over time.
  • spikeyhair
    spikeyhair Posts: 2,078 Member
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    2012retiree wrote: »
    Down 90 lbs. and 61! One question though. I expected more energy and that hasn't been the case. Is it an age thing and you haven't experienced a big increase in energy either? I do walk two miles a day, but otherwise not real active.
    I'm 71 lost 30 lbs about 12 more to go and agree with Trina that we need to exercise for heart health, muscle and bone density. I dont go to the gym because I know I would not sustain it so started doing videos on Youtube and just started using kettlebell I never thought I would get to like exercise but now I feel deprived if I dont do it and I intend to keep it up
    Its great you walk every day it's a shame you don't have more energy but if you healthy in other ways eg iron levels etc then I'm sure it will come just dont give up
  • ItsyBitsy246
    ItsyBitsy246 Posts: 307 Member
    edited August 2016
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    trina1049 wrote: »
    This lady is my hero. I think of her when I'm tired. I figure if she can stay fit then so can I.
    ernestineshepherd.net/?page_id=2

    https://youtube.com/watch?v=na6yl8yIZUI

    Mine too. I never met her, but learned of her as a local heroine when I lived in Baltimore. I learned of her shortly after I turned 51. That day I went home, looked in the mirror and said to myself out loud, "Well, what the *kitten* is YOUR excuse??" Haven't looked back since.
  • mk2fit
    mk2fit Posts: 730 Member
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    I'm with @trina1049 and @spikeyhair. I lost 70+ pounds and exercise every day. Somewhere around -40#, I felt as if I wanted to move all the time! When I was fat and before, I could sit around and read all day. Now I get fidgety after 10 minutes of sitting.
  • griffinca2
    griffinca2 Posts: 672 Member
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    I'm up and down myself unless I'm watching a movie or a 1.5 hr show w/no breaks in it.

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