Ages 70+

@jan110144 I would like to try tamales; never had one.
Speaking of HVAC we are having our furnace, humidifier, hot water tank replaced and a new AC installed. They are 20years. Thank you Costco we win a few $$ back on our Membership, Costco promo another 15% discount and points on our Cash back Credit Cards Very pleased that there is not a lot to retrofit.
Our daughter and SIL (Germany) had a set of twins (boy and girl) in December. Going to Netherlands, Belgium, France and Germany in the summer. I have not travelled to Europe before.

Just for today: Off to the Rec. Centre 45minute walk on track it's raining. 50-60minutes stretch and weights (cable) maybe a dip in the pool or hot tub.

Have a great day everyone

Not much going on for next couple of days since I will pretty much be stuck at home while they replace hvac. Everything moving forward wonderfully with intuitive eating. (Actually dislike that term ... find it totally NOT intuitive, at least initially). A little struggle staying away from the scale this morning, but I am moving to weighing in just once a month ... so not til June 1.

@jonni82014 what a great trip you have coming up!! I'll bet you are very excited to see the twins. I have been to France, Germany and the Netherlands, but not Belgium. What are your travel dates? Will you be traveling by train once you get there? (I love European trains)

@BarbMessimer SIXTY-TWO plumerias repotted! Wow! That IS a lot if work. You will have to post pics when they all bloom. Pompeii was one of the most interesting places I have visited.

Hello. I would love to hear any tips you can give me on this journey.

@jan110144 The two dollar value coin is called the toonie (two). We have a one dollar value coin called the loonie. It has a bird on it. The lake loon bird hence the name loonie.
We are decluttering and downsizing however at this point if we were to downsize from our house to condo we would be paying the same price. There would be no equity in the house to draw on. The condos we were looking at are the same price as the our house. Senior living is sooooo... expensive $6000. - $8000. per person per month. Nothing available as Senior Community Living. There is a house shortage in Canada as a whole.

@gates6489 welcome.

@BarbMessimer how is the knee?

Just for today: I am still research weight loss blockers ie life traumas. I might have to sit down with a professional to help me override my thinking. I have a clue what the life trauma is but not the steps that I would have to take

Have a great day everyone!

Sorry – long post - feel free to skip.

Journey Month 1

I started the IE "intuitive eating" journey one month ago today. I had tried this before, but did not succeed. This time it was probably not a typical start, as I began by the normal ‘dieting’, tracking, etc. I did it knowing that I wanted to move toward IE and just took this period to read and understand what I was about to do. During this time, I also concentrated on making sure I got adequate sleep, exercise, hydration and made an attempt to do more things with friends. These three issues were key, because I frequently struggle with trying to figure out whether I am tired, stressed, bored, thirsty or hungry! Fundamentally, I needed to cut down on the ‘noise’ if I was going to be able to listen to my body and try to understand what it needs.

After about two weeks, I decided to switch over to IE. By this time, I was MUCH MORE attuned to what I was feeling. Turns out that much of the time my eating was a response not to hunger but to one of the other issues. Addressing those has been absolutely essential to being able to recognize and respond to my hunger cues.

Once I started IE, the only real change I made (besides no longer tracking and obsessing about what I was eating) was to focus on variety. Instead of eating the same things over and over again (typical diet mode), I made sure that I was digging out old recipes, trying new ones, etc. The only ‘rule’ for me, was that there were no rules. I do tend to have the same thing for breakfast most mornings, but lunch and dinner are as varied as I can think of and have time for. The only time I eat the same thing twice is if I make something that has left-overs that don’t freeze well. Otherwise, into the freezer for future meals leftovers go. This variety has proven to be my ‘magic cure’ for cravings. So far, I can honestly say that cravings have not not been an issue.

One other key change for me, that seems to have really resolved bingeing, is the concept of granting permission to myself. When I have people over for dinner, or o out to dinner, and I know that I will be eating/drinking special things (i.e., dessert, richer than normal daily foods, drinking a glass of wine), I no longer try to plan just how much I can have to ‘stay on plan’ (old behavior). Inevitably, that would never work. Instead, it would tend to lead to overindulgence, disappointment, feeling ashamed of myself, and several days of highly "bingy" behavior following. Or, if I managed to ‘regulate’ myself, I would end the evening craving and giving in to eating, which, again, often led to a binge. Now going into such a day/evening, I tell myself that I am going to eat (whatever), have a good glass of wine, enjoy dessert and savor the entire experience. Doing that, I end the day feeling satisfied and content … and best of all a return to ‘normal’ eating the following day. And, pretty much I am quite happy with just a ‘normal’ amount of food. Amazing how the messages you give yourself can have such a powerful impact on behavior.

My goals for April were to walk at least 10,000 steps per day, a FitBit sleep score of at least 80, and to adhere to my eating plan. Results
Steps – 29 days at 10,000 or more Average steps/day – 13,500. Total miles – approx. 160
Sleep – 25 or 30 days with sleep score over 30 (never lower than 78)
Food – Started tracking and then moved to ‘intuitive eating’ after two weeks. “On Plan” – 30 of 30 days.

All in all, an excellent start. May will be much the same. Only changes will be 12,000 steps a day (vs 10) and add more variety in fruits and veggies.

@jan110144 You are a star!
I like you words:
I no longer try to plan just how much I can have to ‘stay on plan’ (old behavior).

Just for today: Senior Centre attending discussions on decluttering and downsizing.

It's snowing. It has been for two days; worst part is it is staying on the ground; best part we really need the moisture ie wild fires and drought.

I have participated on the MFP forum NO Late Night Snacking since March/22 -
Effective 30April/24: I have been successful Not snacking for 748days and have snacked at night 9days. I do not eat after 6pm.

Have a great day everyone!

May off to a good start. New hvac system installed yesterday ($$ - ouch!).Window replacement scheduled for end of month ($$$$ - OUCH!).

@annliz23 I find that daily check-in first thing in the morning really helps me stay on track. Get into a habit of walking your poodles around the same time every day and you will never miss another walk. I start getting "the look" if I am too late in putting my shoes on and grabbing the leash🙂

@jonni82014 EXCELLENT accomplishment re no night time snacking! I have really cut down on mine primarily because late night eating tends to make it harder for me to go to sleep. Now, I will only have something if i am really hungry ... then will usually be a piece of fruit or a handful if nuts.

@BarbMessimer glad to hear your knee is getting better. IE is "intuitive eating". I read a very good book that talked about "attuned eating" which I think is a far better word and more closely aligns with what i am doing. Intuitive eating, however, is the phrase most people relate to.

@jonni82014 book - "The Emotional Eating, Chronic Dieting, Binge Eating and Body Image Workbook" by Judith Matz. Et al. This is NOT a "diet" or "how to" book. I found it really helpful from a mental and emotional perspective in terms of getting me out af a "diet" mindset into a healthy choices mode ... which I have no doubt will also lead to weight reduction over a realistic time frame. The release from "rules" and rigid focus on what i can and can't eat has been particularly helpful for me. The process has been incredibly freeing.

First day off the rails. Looking back at it today, I think I just plain under-ate the past couple of days and allowed myself to get too hungry. Resulted in mini-binge. Only positive thing was that I did not have any junk food in the house, so overate mostly good stuff. Back on Track today, hopefully. Telling myself that this was just one day in the rest of my life ... no big deal in the scheme of things.

Hope everyone is doing well.

My son got on my case the other day. A month ago I hurt my knee (almost healed now) and also recently got a UTI. He gave me a lecture about my weight. Said in the past when I lost down to merely being overweight (Don't want to divulge the number), that I was so much healthier, had more energy and was out and about more and that I needed to get back to that point. I defended myself and told him to not "fuss" at me... that I keep working on it and even though I put back on a few pounds last year, I've consistently kept off 50 and am so much better off than I was in 2021. I told him I work on this every day and am working to get back to where I once was. He then said I was too obsessed with food, and I told him I have to be or I'd be like I was before. At that point, I told him to "get off my case"!!!! I know he loves me dearly and I believe his little lecture was meant to help me as he's concerned with my health. I think I do well. I'm 77 and manage a "plumeria farm" with 250 plumerias so I'm out almost every day working on them. I don't sit around watching TV and overeating. He just wants me to do better.

@jonni82014 ... Thank you. I'm sure he's just concerned and loves me.... and I AM trying.

HA ... It seems like 'we old-timer's (I'm 79) are all pretty much in the same boat, still! We are still way overweight and struggling to get healthier. Hooray for us for continuing to be concerned and active in our health management, which includes lifestyle, interpersonal relationships, as well as our physical well being.

Today, I feel thankful for reading the past couple of day's posts because I was feeling pretty down about myself and don't feel that way any longer after spending a few minutes reading here. So, Thanks for sharing your struggles as well as successes!

AFM ... My weight gain is still out of control. I went on a reducing 'diet' 2 weeks ago and lost weight the first week but gained back the loss this second week. That kind of yo-yoing is how it all began for me over 50 years ago!. I am determined that I will stop this. I too lost 50 pounds using MFP in the past and then continued to maintain and lose some more on my own. But something has gotten terribly out of whack since I moved into an Independent Senior Apartment building. (This is NOT the kind of senior apartment complex that provides food and other services; it's a plain small apartment with elevator service and a community room where we can gather if we want to.) Actually, it's not even since I moved here in 2022 that my weight has started to climb, but since the cancer diagnosis last year. That, and sudden problems with my blood pressure, and heart has put me into a new class of many medications, and those medications seem to be driving my insulin resistance and appetite. Also, when I was undergoing cancer surgery and therapy last year, my doctors urged me to maintain my weight; which I did until I started to gain. It's a new struggle I am figuring out. I want so much to get back into the numbers I was a 1.5 years ago, and even to continue on my goal of losing 100 pounds. But this set back is eating up the days and months of my life, and i hate it.

Whew! After 2 rocky days, back on track (hopefully🙂). Good day yesterday, including a good night's sleep, which makes a huge difference. New recipe for the week... huli huli chicken in the grill. A keeper.

@nsk1951 sounds like you're dealing with a lot of challenges right now. It can be a challenge to figure out what is going to workband be sustainable for you when there are so many factors involved.

@BarbMessimer Sleep is such a major part of things for me! The first day mini-binge resulted in a really bad night's sleep which led to a second problematic day and poor sleep (although not as bad as day 1). Back on track yesterday with a bit of effort and voilà ... slept really well. Can already tell that I will be fine today. I understand what happened. Now to see if I can manage it better the next time it happens. Right now, I am grateful it was only 2 days.

Just for Today ... that's something I have practiced over the years as well. It's interesting to me how things seem to come and go, ebb and flow, in my life; probably yours too. One day or moment we feel 'down' and 'defeated' and when we give it a little time, it usually improves. We don't always recognize what made it so. It's a real blessing when we do.

Just for Today I am going to do some housework ... sort the laundry, vacuum the rugs ... cook a Monday Night dinner ... which for me is meatless Monday.

Looking at a rainy day today, so need to be out of the house early to walk Abby. Yesterday good. Today will be a challenge with being stuck in the house most of the day. Dinner at friend's house tonight.

@jonni82014 huli huli chicken involves a marinade of pineapple juice, garlic, ginger and worcestershire sauce.

Just for today is a very good mind set for most things in life! I am very good at not getting stuck in the past. However, I am a "planner" at heart so keeping myself grounded in the present instead of jumping into the future can be a challenge.