Getting fit at 50 and beyond...200+ pound club

Smart_Beautiful_and_Strong wrote: »

Thank you for the welcome! I started a few years back at 389.9 and got to 321 but have yo-yoed since. I do CI/CO at 1600 but usually try to hit lower. I log here on MFP, but I do admit, sometimes life takes over and I fall short at times. I work in a medical office so I'm on my feet a lot, but not many steps. I am doing PT but a few times I have had a few instances that as I progress, the progression really aggravates my knee and I take a break until it calms down because I'm afraid of the intense pain I had before seeking treatment. Not to mention my office is pretty fast paced and I know I'm slower and I'm in fear of more of an injury I could lose my job.
I do not have pool access yet, but I may have in the near future, my ortho just put in a referral at a fitness center.

Hi, there! I'm post weight loss now (in maintenance) but pop in here occasionally as an age-grouper. I started out at a little lower weight (but obese) and much shorter than you, but with torn meniscus in at least one knee (suspect the other, but it wasn't imaged) and osteoarthritis in both.

A few thoughts from that perspective:

It's great that you're doing PT - that helped me a lot. One thing my PT helped me with was improving my movement patterns in ways that reduced strain on my knees when walking and (especially) climbing stairs (in addition to giving exercises to strengthen or stretch body parts that needed it, to improve). Also, have you talked with your PT about whether any kind of wrap or bracing might help you with stability or pain reduction in the exercise context, as a temporary thing?

Every individual case is different, so I think it might be individual which exercises hurt and help. I agree that pool exercises are usually good. For me, walking was not a good idea, as I found that impact and torque/twisting on my knees were the things that increased pain. Instead, I found that things that required leg strength, but that involved only straight-line hinging motions of my knees, were the best for me to do. So, I settled in on rowing (on water and machine) and cycling (stationery and road/trail) as things that worked well for me. Things like aerobics and martial arts were pretty disastrous, for me, in addition to high-volume walking (let alone jogging/running).

For me, a thing that helped along the way was using ice after the more strenuous/lengthy exercise (I kept one of those gel packs with a velcro strap in the freezer, and would apply it for 20 minutes or so after exercising, whether there was significant pain at that moment or not). At other times, I would use a moist heat pad, usually not right on the knee but on muscles that felt tight and might be stressing it. (Self massage and foam rolling also helped with that sort of thing.) Your PT would perhaps have insights about whether you could do things like this, or not.

I don't know if you're having pain that interferes with sleep. If so, I found that experimenting with pillows under or between knees helped me find positions that were more restful, less likely to cause discomfort.

The other thing I wanted to say that weight loss alone made a huge, huge improvement for me in discomfort/pain frequency and severity. Now, after a period of time at goal weight (and still focused on the less stressful-to-me forms of exercise), it's a very negligible factor in my life. I had been told I might need scope-type surgery to clean up the joints, and would need knee replacements eventually, but at this stage (now age 64 and about 5 years at a healthy weight), I feel like I've pushed that need far into the future. Even the first 20-25 pounds made a noticeable improvement in average pain level and frequency.

As others have said, the weight loss is pretty much all about calorie intake. I wouldn't encourage you to eat way below a sensible routine calorie goal to go faster, because that can backfire (binges, fatigue/weakness, other effects of the physical stress from a large deficit - you want to keep your metabolism in a state that will foster healing). Learning and practicing ways to stay right around calorie goal, including strategies for handling times when life gets busy or stressful, are really very powerful

Wishing you all the best!

At 10:00 BST tomorrow morning I shall be slipping the moorings for a weekend on the boat.....Bliss!

A bit gutted that my boat time was cut short in the early hours. It does mean that scales day can go ahead as normal though....

It's Scales Day!
I have let the Scaley Beast out of its corner and it appears that the fat boy is now within 1 stone of the first milestone.

Weight was 314.4.....Now 312.2.....A loss of 2.2 lbs

I'm just back from a mini getaway --- postponing weigh in until Monday morning. The relaxing, beautiful time away was wonderful for the mind and soul, but I'm sure the body(improvement) took a hit. I was mindful but didn't deny myself; I could have (and would have in the past) done much worse, so maybe it won't be too much of a climb.

jm216 wrote: »

Starting weight: 228.9 on 6/1/2020
Age: 50
Height: 5’8”
Goal weight: 180
6/1– 228.9
6/4– 227.9
6/9– 226.7
6/14-225.3
6/22-225.0
6/28-224.2
7/2—223.3
7/6—223.2
7/13–221.6
7/20–218.4
7/26–217.7
8/9—218.1
8/16–216.4
8/24–216.7
8/30–216.2
9/6—212.5
9/13-212.0
9/20-213.2
9/27-212.9
10/4-211.4
10/11-212.3

Up .9 pounds for the week. Snacking but not tracking was the culprit. I’ve been getting lazy about not tracking everything and it shows... but the difference from past performances is that I won’t let myself get completely off the rails. This was just a small detour.

I’ve seen glimpses of 210 recently, and my mini goal is to get back there and stay there for awhile and become friends with 210. For some strange reason, once I hit 210, I start to self-sabotage...but not this time... this time we’re going to be buddies.

🥰Jill

A small blip is no big deal as long as you keep it small.
Say a big hello to that 210 mark Jill, then leave it behind as you enter the 100s...

So I'm not 50. I just turned 48. I'd love to join a group of my peers. My weight has fluxuated greatly my whole life. Been as heavy as 300 as low as 190s. I'm 240s now after weighing 217 3 months ago. Need to get healthy so I can live well and energetic. My Dad just had triple bi pass. I see that as my future. I need to get my butt in gear but also stop this rollercoaster.

newlook1972 wrote: »

So I'm not 50. I just turned 48. I'd love to join a group of my peers. My weight has fluxuated greatly my whole life. Been as heavy as 300 as low as 190s. I'm 240s now after weighing 217 3 months ago. Need to get healthy so I can live well and energetic. My Dad just had triple bi pass. I see that as my future. I need to get my butt in gear but also stop this rollercoaster.

You've joined a very supportive and encouraging group of friends. Welcome!

daydrem_dw wrote: »

Here it is, in writing so I have to own it...

Two weeks ago 197.4
Last week 198.8
Today 199.2

Better than I had feared given the cinnamon bun mornings and fruity cocktail nights of my vacation!

Goals for the week--set back the scales two weeks by being extra mindful of my food intake, get in daily walks, and stay hydrated.

Less than two pounds put on while on holiday.....sounds like you did very well.

Hello all, I'm 52 at 5'1" and am a bit discouraged by my physical yesterday -- 267 my highest weight ever and high LDL cholesterol. A recent layoff from my long-time position has me struggling to maintain a positive outlook and focusing forward is super challenging. I had already made changes to reduce meat and dairy but still my LDL and weight are high. I know I may have a slight sugar problem, but I've already cut back severely on white carbs, I don't drink soda or eat a lot of fast food or junk food so I am frustrated and discouraged. Forgive me if I've gone on too long, but one more thing... having surgeries on both feet about a year ago had a bigger negative impact on my physical activities than I was prepared for. Getting back into a routine of exercise or even regular movement has been more difficult that I ever thought it would be.

In short, I would love any support, motivation or new perspective you all care to offer. Thanks!

Tammy, SE Texas

Scales Day tomorrow....
The scaley beast will be released and we shall see what it has to say....

The "Scaley Beast" was let loose from its cupboard and has proclaimed that this fat boy is less fat than he was before!
This week had the potential to be rather a bad one. I have had TWO Chinese takeaways this week and had to estimate what their calorie content was.
Anyways, down to the statistic stuff....

Weight was 312.2 lbs.... Now 310.8 lbs.... A loss of 1.4 lbs

Only 10.9 lbs to my first "Milestone" goal.

cpnknight wrote: »

The "Scaley Beast" was let loose from its cupboard and has proclaimed that this fat boy is less fat than he was before!
This week had the potential to be rather a bad one. I have had TWO Chinese takeaways this week and had to estimate what their calorie content was.
Anyways, down to the statistic stuff....

Weight was 312.2 lbs.... Now 310.8 lbs.... A loss of 1.4 lbs

Only 10.9 lbs to my first "Milestone" goal.

Woot Woot!!

Three weeks ago 197.4
Two weeks 198.8
Last week 199.2
Today 197.8

My goal for this past week was to turn back the scales three weeks -- 197.8 is close enough to have me smiling this morning I walked 5.5 out of 7 days (counting .5 for the day I made it happen in the rain but only for half the distance).

This weeks goal: daily walks and add distance to my usual route when time allows

Next milestone: confident the 200s are behind me, I'm setting my sites for the 180s. According to MFP, "if every day were like today" that goal is achievable in the next 5 week.