WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR MAY 2012

Well, April wasn't a total disaster, but I didn't meet the goals I had set. Now in May I'll try to get back on track and not let those old habits become normal again. Hopefully there will be less overtime at work so more time for a workout and healthy meal preparation. Several special events coming up this month. One of my goals is to plan ahead for them, and not let them throw off my whole week.

Laura, I can relate to your story about your old dog, as I have a 13 year old lab. She also forgets she's old sometimes, jumping up and down when it's suppertime, then her hips give out on her coming down the steps. Or she starts out our walk at puppy speed, then poops out after a couple blocks. It's tough to see them get old.

Have a good week everyone :flowerforyou:

Kat: Well said about Dieting vs The Way We Live right now! I realize NOW that all of my "always skinny" friends are skinny because that is how they have always lived their life. They eat some treats now and then BUT they make up for it with exercise and/or eating lighter the rest of the time. Makes sense doesn't it??? So...the challenge is to DO THIS. And I think that I will need to log my food and exercise for the rest of my life. It just helps me the most and I can easily fool myself about how much I am eating otherwise. But if I have to write it down, I THINK about it before I eat it. Something I need to do anyway! So much for my rambling now!

Laura; The movie sounds fun! I miss having an independent/artsy theater. We do not here:-(

Bye again!!! Kackie

Greetings Dear Ladies

I took Friday off as a personal day as we are allowed one a year, and I needed it. I love my students, most days, but they are very challenging in terms of motivating them, and we had a very busy April and early May in terms of catering. So, on Friday, I slept in until 7 (!) and then drove to a local river to ride the trail that runs beside it. It was lovely to ride though I think I must have missed a turn (or extension) as it was about 10 K shorter than I thought it would be. Nevertheless, I got 30 k in and yesterday and today got another two good rides in so I am 95 k in to my goal of 300k for May. I also got a lot of gardening done which made me happy. All my deck planters are done, and I have dibbled as many dandelions as I can see.....I know a lot more of those suckers are lurking though:mad: I don't grow veggies but I do grow flowers, and my gardens are in their full spring glory. I can smell the lilacs right now in my dining room which is a long way from the back of the garden where they grow.

Adolescent boys.....I teach them and I had one.....they are a moody lot. My own son was absolutely brutal....not in terms of drugs but he was so mean!! I honestly thought there was something wrong with him and we had more than one head to head about why he was so mean to me and his sisters. He's 30 now and a wonderful man, loving to me and to his two previously abused sisters who now dote on him. As a teacher, I often see the better part of them, but it can be so hard to be their Mama. However, if my son is any example, they can come through the other side and I have to remind myself, that I was no jewel in my teenage years.....sex, drugs and rock and roll.

I should have lost more weight given the amount of exercise I do but I eat and drink too much. I have yet to find the balance between calories earned and calories eaten. I am a work in progress and, at least, I am in progress. I am not going up even if my going down is slow. I know I have muscle I didn't have, and no butt left to lose. It's all about my belly now, and that will go. The thing I find frustrating is that at the weight I am now, I was two pant sized smaller 10 years ago. Aging sucks, sometimes.

regards

Sarah

Well I have just had 3 days of controlled eating, not perfect but a whole lot better than I have for a long time. I've been on my own all weekend too and that's when I usually go out of control. DH is back tomorrow which is another challenge as he likes to eat well too. I had a sneaky step on the scales and have already lost a few pounds so that's encouraging. I'm enjoying logging all my food and am drinking when I'm tempted to eat. I've never really counted calories before and am amazed at some of the foods I thought were quite low. It's been hard trying to keep below 1200 cals and gone over very slightly.

When I went out to put the ducks away this evening a lamb had got itself stuck in an old ruin at the back. It's Mum was stood at the top trying to encourage it out but there was no way that it could get out and I couldn't get it out either so it will have to wait for DH to do it tomorrow. I do hope that it will be OK overnight,poor little thing.

Jb, your garden looks so organised, very impressive. We need to put up higher fences around our raised beds before we plant more veg. The last time the sheep and deer ate them all.

Night all
Cath

I need to new computer and I am trying to put that purchase off a bit. I thought my luck ran out tonight but thankfully, I am connected and can get my computer fix!
I am more focused this week and it feels great. We had a lot of social things and I was concerned about handling eating out so much. I am happy with my choices from the weekend. I think I learn and relearn that I can live with these good choices.
I am looking for break through a sluggish spot I feel like I have been in for a few weeks.

I hope all is going well.... and hope my computer cooperates so I can come back soon!

We had family pictures taken today for my mom for mothers day. She didn't want to be in the, but we went ahead anyways. Then off to eat early dinner at Macaroni Grill. Im not sure if I overdid or not, ordered the trio but only ate one of the 3 brought the other 2 home. Had salad and one glass of wine. Not often my sister and nephew do much with me and my kids. So was a nice busy day.

Maybe tomorrow I can start over again, already made my refrigerator oatmeal for two days, and have an employee who has a birthday made stuffed strawberries with chocolate cream cheese.

Congrats to you ladies who have stuck with the same man for over 30 yrs. You are a lucky bunch.

Sherry

Happy sunday night to you all hope you are getting this post feeling a bit like Faye not sure my postings are showing up I have not heard from anyone on my page or on the posts on here. To be honest I didn't know why even though I was commenting nothing was coming back in return so was not sure what to think

Dana, Barbie had great advice about coming back often even daily miss a little miss alot on here and the support is so encouraging

Jb, I can relate to not having alot of control with certain foods But I do have to join all the others in congradulating you on a splendid garden love the pics looks so yummy

ribena1958, thats fantasic you lost 135lbs I have a hard time with specific goals as well if I don't reach them I beat myself up so bad it's totally counter productive

Michele I don't know what american mahjong is I play mahjong tiles on pogo.com and other game sights it's just kind of like solitaire I guess solving puzzles with mahjong tiles. I bought a cd of different puzzles

Cath beautiful picture what a stunning sight to walk into every morning very beautiful and welcome to the group

I raised 6 boys some were mine naturally and some were not they all went thru a rough patch around 15 - 19 but all are great men with wonderful families now I just think they needed to find there voices and some were harder than others 2 of them were seniors at the same time thought they might not ever outlive their senioritis as I called it good luck and hang in there.

Had a great weekend at my sons surprise party he was really surprised my hubby and I plus my Mom and brother went as well as my daughter and her daughter also a couple of his friends he went to school with and their wives all made the 4 hr drive down so he was thrilled and bonus we all got to spend time with the new baby I made them a book full of pictures of her birth and meeting the family the day she was born it was very cute if I do say so myself I narrated it from her perspective of meeting us all it was very fun to create and it was a big hit. My 10 yr old grandaughter loved it so much she read it over and over to anyone who would sit still long enough. And my son and DIL loved it With all the hoopla of the weekend I did not do as well on my food this weekend so back on track tomorrow good night all I hope the glitch works its self out soon I do so miss hearing from you all

Just having my morning coffee before I get ready to head into the plant. I weighed myself this morning even though I should really have waited until Wednesday. Don't know why I do this to myself. I'm really just waiting for results. Friday night I had two glasses of wine and for some reason when I have wine then I get hungry and I ended up eating over my daily total. And I had taken a rest day from exercise which didn't help. I would have been within goal if I'd gone for a run. So long story short my weight jumped up two lbs from where it had been. But then Saturday and Sunday i was very good. Ate the right amount, dranks lots of water and got lots of exercise. Ran 5K and Sunday did 30 seconds sprints with 30 second recovery plus walked for 20 minutes, weeded and tilled the garden with sweat dripping from my brow. And I'm still up that two lbs. I shouldn't let it bug me but of course it does. I seem to lose weight in chunks. I'll have one day where it drops 4 lbs at once. Must be a water thing. I will not get on that darn scale until Wednesday. And Hot Yoga tonight....hopefully that sweats a couple lbs off.

Everyone have a wonderful day.

Nancy

My month of May goals include

walking on average at least 5 miles a day
logging in every day to MFP
lifting weights 3 times a week
losing at least 4 pounds for the month
Staying positive even if I fail at one of my goals.

Cheers from Michigan! Rachel

Holy Smokes! I missed yesterday and today it's taken me an hour to read all the posts and reply to some. :noway: Who said this is better than reading magazines? So true!

I am enjoying all the stories about raising boys. :happy: I have three sisters and most of my cousins are girls, so I didn't grow up with boys around and I really don't know anything about boys except my own dear J'boy. Hearing how you've all coped with the moans, groans and grunts of adolescence is helping me keep a sense of perspective.

Not much is happening around here, except it was sunny yesterday so I took my foot out onto the lawn and we sat in the sun for a while, watching DH do yard chores. Only 72 hours to the robo-boot. Yippee, and back to the gym I will go. :happy:

Kackie, I think I will have to, want to, track food and exercise all my life too. :ohwell: I keeps me honest with myself, and I feel so triumphant when I have given myself all those “gold stars” for good work.

AlwaysNancy – your fitness routine sounds like a lot of fun, so great that your DH participates with you. Tracking calories has made a huge difference for me, and the other thing I did was buy a food scale so I really know that a 3 oz serving is what it is. I’m Canadian too, so I made sure the scale switches between metric and imperial measures!

The super moon has been shining in at me for the last few nights when I wake up in the dark. It’s lovely.

Hi Jen, I used to eat late at night … toasted cheese sandwiches. :noway: Last night I was tempted, and I heard myself say out loud to DH: “I am not going to eat. Tell me I am not going to eat.” He gave me the :huh: look, and I made it through!

Oh Kat, size 6 shorts. :drinker:

Yes, it’s not a diet, it’s a lifestyle.

Here’s a story. This is Canada, eh? And we have Tim Horton’s donuts. And once a year Timmy’s (that’s what we call it!) has a “roll up the rim to win” contest. That means you roll up the rim of your paper coffee cup to see what your prize is. I was at school and my prize was a donut. What did I do? Surprised myself, that’s what. :happy: Without really thinking about it I turned to me students and said, “I don’t eat donuts, I’ll make this a prize for one of you folks!” I could hardly believe my own ears, or how natural it felt to say “I don’t eat donuts”.

Michelle, Five boxes of strawberries! Lucky you. Our Farmer’s Market was supposed to open last Saturday but there was another event going on at the park. DH drove me all around town (that’s about 10 minutes worth!) looking for it but we didn’t see anything. We can get asparagus now, and if you check my food diary you’ll see it on the menu every day!

Don’t worry about food in Rome! It’s definitely not all fried no matter what Rick Steves says. Salads are fantastic and portions are small. Italians don’t eat pasta as a main course, their meals go: anti-pasta (which is an appetizer before the pasta), then pasta, then a meat dish, then dessert, then espresso. DH and I usually share all but one of the courses, and the restaurants are quite used to that. They are also quite used to people ordering only a part of a meal rather than the whole deal. If you are at a local restaurant, you’ll be served some kind of snack with your drink or coffee. They just can’t imagine drinking without eating! Pizza is also nothing like what you get here think super thin crust and only two or three toppings. Nothing drippy or cheesy, and you eat it with a knife and fork. When you are there, try to look for eating places that are down the side streets from the main squares and attractions, the prices are lower and the service is better. I can’t wait to hear more about your trip!

Jen, 7 good days in a row! :drinker: Yeah!

JB, that is one beautiful garden! I will share with DH so he stays inspired. He’s building a garden down the east side of our house where the yard was turned over so sewer pipes could be replaced.


Sarah. “No butt left to loose, it’s all about the belly now.”:laugh: Me too. I guess that’s where the extra went on first, so it’s where it comes off last.

I'm off to eat the breakfast I have planned, plan the salad I'll eat for lunch, and get down on the floor for my workout.

Nancy, from the Creston Valley where we have sunshine again.

The snow is melting off the mountain peaks and the lilacs and cherries are blooming in my yard.

Goals for May:

24 hours of exercise including weight training (no squats or lunges, gotta keep off that foot until the end of the month!)
4 sets of 25 right leg straight lifts, bent knee lifts, and kick backs every day.
Get the routine chores done – no procrastination!
Act the way I want to feel.

:flowerforyou: Rainy Monday and much cooler too

Kackie- sure do wish I had learned how to eat like a skinny person....hoping that this time around I'm learning:huh:

Sarah- I'm positive that we are all a work in progress:flowerforyou: and those like Barbie and Amanda are the best examples of how we can become a success after the work when we reach our goal and then keeping it.

Nancy- I'm too am hoping for a short week, Son #3 will walk on Friday with his MBA class but since he's doing a double masters he won't receive his diploma until next year when he completes his Computer Science Masters....so I will be requesting Friday off when my boss arrives:bigsmile: It is so bothersome when our weight jumps up and down so:grumble:

Cath- yes it is amazing how many calories are in the foods we eat, all that time I used to think I was eating healthy stuff and I'm finding out differently:grumble:

Jen- I too love to take a book outside and read...and I'm looking forward to the warm weather to be able to do that.:flowerforyou:

SallyCC- sorry you are having computer problems, hope they are cleared up soon

Michele- I have heard a lot of people talk about "Menopause the Musical" but haven't yet gone to see it. I'm sure it will come back here and I will make an effort to see it at that time.:flowerforyou:

Barbie- I can only hope that we all learn the lessons that you have on MFP and we will continue in the same form of success:drinker:

Sherry-:noway: Stuffed strawberries with chocolate cream cheese???sounds wonderful

Robin- have safe work travels this week:drinker: So sorry you had to use your Hawaii vacation money for a water heater

Some how I was able to keep all my calories in line for with weekend and so I'm hopful that this week will be a good one for a loss, but you know just about the time you are hoping for that life gets in the way and you are pushed off the wagon and you are sitting on the side of the road in the weeds

Hubby has a job interview tomorrow in the morning so once again I'm hoping and trying not to get my hopes up too much:ohwell:

Everyone have a good day, drink plenty of water:drinker: log your food and let's keep moving.

Laura80111

PS We missed the super moon....wouldn't you know it we had clouds and a fantistic storm:sad:

I had the greatest walk yesterday. DD and I went to a re-enactment of two Civil War battles: The Battle for New Mexico and the Battle at Glorietta. It was fun and fantastic walking up and down hills to see the battles, plus walking to the battlefield from the parking area and back. Plus walking around the historical sites and walking back and forth to the lunch spot. Lunch was traditional Spanish Colonial fare (beans, chili and tortillas).

In between the battles we walked and visited the two camps (North and South). I have to say the North ruled on the camp sites. lol But, the South had the better Calvary.

It was at an old ranch that was an overnight stop on the Camino Real, the road from Mexico City to Santa Fe, then on to Denver. It predates Colonial America and even Spanish Colonial periods. Once on the ranch, which had three villages, it is all walking, no cars allowed. It is no wonder people could eat 3,000+ calories a day and not be overweight,

Jeannie

Happy Monday everyone!

Yes, it is more challenging to lose weight at 50+. After watching the video of the wounded veteran, I believe anything is possible. Logging my food and exercise every day helps to keep me on track as well as challenging exercises like circuit training. Reading everyone's posts is a real inspiration to me. I feel like I am not alone in this weight-loss challenge. Thank you everyone and I hope that your week is a good one!