50+ going for 50+ and you?

whimsy38
whimsy38 Posts: 158 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
At 52 in Dec of '22 I started a journey that has lead to the first longterm weight loss in my life. I am down 50 lbs and I'm confident I have the skills and mindset to keep it off for good. I have learned to eat when I am hungry and stop when I've had enough (not full but about 80%) And I have worked on all the reasons that come up and make hunger and enough hard. Success is really about figuring out emotional eating, not just will-powering past it. I have 10 lbs to go to meet my goal, and the only obstacle really is emotional/habit eating. It's also not easy to work out all this alone in your own head. Sharing, analyzing, and accountability partners are essentials too :) So, what's helping you out today :)

Replies

  • mtaratoot
    mtaratoot Posts: 14,389 Member
    What's helping me is recognizing that the only moment I can make a decision is right now. If I want to make my vision of the future a reality, I only have this moment to decide how to proceed. I try to make good decisions every moment. Do I fail at that? Hell yes. Do I quit when I fail? Hell no.

    Keep sticking to it! Congratulations on your success so far. Stick to it and your final success awaits!
  • nashboots5
    nashboots5 Posts: 1 Member
    57 - Gotta lose some weight!
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,622 Member
    whimsy38 wrote: »
    At 52 in Dec of '22 I started a journey that has lead to the first longterm weight loss in my life. I am down 50 lbs and I'm confident I have the skills and mindset to keep it off for good. I have learned to eat when I am hungry and stop when I've had enough (not full but about 80%) And I have worked on all the reasons that come up and make hunger and enough hard. Success is really about figuring out emotional eating, not just will-powering past it. I have 10 lbs to go to meet my goal, and the only obstacle really is emotional/habit eating. It's also not easy to work out all this alone in your own head. Sharing, analyzing, and accountability partners are essentials too :) So, what's helping you out today :)

    Congratulations on the weight loss: That's wonderful!

    To the bolded: True for those whose excess eating was emotion driven.

    Me, I'm a hedonist: Excess eating was pleasure driven. I like food toooo much. (I barely have emotions. They're not a big thing in my subculture. I was raised in an environment where a raised eyebrow was a pretty strong expression of emotion. That's not because we stuff our emotions down, either. We just don't have big bunches of emotions in the first place, as far as I can tell.)

    Now, approaching year 8 in weight maintenance, I'm deriving pleasure from feeling much better in so many ways at a healthy weight, and from eating every delicious calorie that I earn while still leaving my future self in a position to be at a healthy weight, too. For me, it's about balancing current happiness and future happiness, rather than maximizing current pleasure while creating future unpleasantness.


  • sheflin1
    sheflin1 Posts: 2 Member
    I'm 61 and didn't really focus on my weight until I turned 60. I have toggled between 170-190 for years with a lot of fluid retention. This past summer I started using myfitnesspal to log what I eat and I started working out at a gym on a regular basis. I have lost 33 lbs and have made it to 156. I give credit to my myfitnesspal as being the game changer for me. I have 7 more lbs. to go. I wish I would have done this years ago.
  • stepper61
    stepper61 Posts: 3 Member
    I have used My Fitness Pal for about 7 years on and off only for tracking food. Snacking at night is an issue but have started to make a de-caf tea which helps. Was at my best weight just before retirement at age 58- in 2015-16. Learned tons with a trainer/dietician. COVID put me in a tailspin when gyms closed and was too easy to eat poorly and bake- which I love to do. Result was the pounds crept back and here I am at 30 lbs re-gained. Trying to visualize where I was then and know that chocolate and snacks aren’t helping to reach my goals. Establishing a new daily routine for food prep and workouts -which I can do again after knee replacement in May 2023. Needing some motivation & encouragement.
  • mtaratoot
    mtaratoot Posts: 14,389 Member
    Welcome back @stepper61

    If you already know your way around, you're ahead of the game. You know to set good goals and stick to 'em.

    As far as motivation, that won't last. Don't rely on it. Rely on good habits, like getting back to using the tools here on MFP. They do work!

    As far as encouragement and having fun while you're doing it, I'll put out another shameless plug for a group I'm involved with. Join us if you like. You'll still have to be accountable to yourself, and there will be people working on similar goals sharing their joys, frustrations, and successes.

    The group is called "Lose 1 Pound a Week and Keep it Off." It's a private group, so when you click on that link you'll have to request to join, and you'll be approved pretty quickly.

    There's only two requirements. First, enter your starting weight and goals for each quarter of the year. Easy. Second, enter a weekly weigh-in. Also easy. We have some ongoing other challenges, all of which are completely optional. They can be fun. We also try to do a "special challenge" each week, although we don't always get one up. The group is run by a few volunteers, and we're off doing fun things sometimes. The challenge for the upcoming week is to work on NEAT (not-exercise activity thermogenesis - the things you do that aren't exercise that burn calories).

    Check it out if you want. Invite your friends. We're not really recruiting, but... we're kind of recruiting.
  • whimsy38
    whimsy38 Posts: 158 Member
    nashboots5 wrote: »
    57 - Gotta lose some weight!

    So how’s it going nashboots5?
  • whimsy38
    whimsy38 Posts: 158 Member
    sheflin1 wrote: »
    I'm 61 and didn't really focus on my weight until I turned 60. I have toggled between 170-190 for years with a lot of fluid retention. This past summer I started using myfitnesspal to log what I eat and I started working out at a gym on a regular basis. I have lost 33 lbs and have made it to 156. I give credit to my myfitnesspal as being the game changer for me. I have 7 more lbs. to go. I wish I would have done this years ago.

    Congratulations on your progress! But I’m going to give you the credit for finding the right tool and following through!
  • intelligfee
    intelligfee Posts: 3 Member
    I just turned 65 in December. As of today I am down 37.8 pounds.. its been a struggle, as I have health issues and jaw prosthetics. So choosing the right foods is quite a challenge. I still have AT LEAST, 22.8 pounds to go. Losing weight is so much harder when you get older.
  • whimsy38
    whimsy38 Posts: 158 Member
    stepper61 wrote: »
    I have used My Fitness Pal for about 7 years on and off only for tracking food. Snacking at night is an issue but have started to make a de-caf tea which helps. Was at my best weight just before retirement at age 58- in 2015-16. Learned tons with a trainer/dietician. COVID put me in a tailspin when gyms closed and was too easy to eat poorly and bake- which I love to do. Result was the pounds crept back and here I am at 30 lbs re-gained. Trying to visualize where I was then and know that chocolate and snacks aren’t helping to reach my goals. Establishing a new daily routine for food prep and workouts -which I can do again after knee replacement in May 2023. Needing some motivation & encouragement.

    Sounds like you are getting into a good groove! I think evening snacking/overeating is the number 1 most common issue at least with women.

    I’m working on figuring out what it is I really want that I am misguidedly “feeding” with food. Often it’s wanting special-ness and I have to find other ways to generate that feeling.
  • whimsy38
    whimsy38 Posts: 158 Member
    intelligfee wrote: »
    I just turned 65 in December. As of today I am down 37.8 pounds.. its been a struggle, as I have health issues and jaw prosthetics. So choosing the right foods is quite a challenge. I still have AT LEAST, 22.8 pounds to go. Losing weight is so much harder when you get older.

    It is difficult to unwind all the diet mentality we’ve absorbed, but we have a lot more wisdom about who we want to be at least.

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